L I B  RARY 

OF   THE 
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or    ILLl  NOIS 


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•  tlie  Gourt  ofilallip  U,Spam.by  SiijtoomoMoro.fl^mhirojriiiiiaiuiesi 
die  Palace  ol'Ri:di)e.sinj>e  hirniei. 


THE 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY 


PORTRAIT  GALLERY 


REPRESENTATIVE  MEN   OF  CHICAGO 


T 


WORLD'S  COLUMBIAN  EXPOSITION. 


WITH  JJ,I.lSTKATIONS    ON   STRUT,. 


CHICAGO    AND    NIAV    V(^RK: 

AMERICAN    BIOGRAPHICAL   PUBLISHING   COMPANY, 

H.  C.  COOPER,  JR..  &  CO,,  PROPRIETORS, 

1892. 


PRESS  OF 

KNIGHT,    LEONARD  &  CO. 

CHICAGO. 


PREFACE. 


THE  compiling  and  publishing  in  permanent  form,  biographies  of  our  successful 
and  representative  business  and  professional  men  is  of  comparativel}'  recent  date. 
Our  work  in  this  line  began  in  1S73  ;  and  such  has  been  the  favor  with  which  our 
former  books  have  been  received  by  our  patrons  and  the  public,  that  we  were  encour- 
ao-ed  to  prepare  this  volume  to  be  issued  simultaneously  with  the  celebration  of  the 
four  hundredth  anniversar}'  of  the  discover^'  of   America  by  Christopher   Columbus. 

The  value  of  such  a  work  is  commensurate  with  tlie  character  of  those  whose  life- 
histories  it  contains,  and  the  accuracy  of  the  statements  that  are  made  concerning 
them.  We  have  tried  to  exercise  due  care  in  selecting  our  subjects  and  in  avoiding 
superfluous  statements — the  task  has  been  a  difficult  one — and  while  we  have  spared 
neither  time,  labor,  nor  mone}-,  in  carr\-iug  out  our  purpose,  our  experience  teaches 
us  not  to  flatter  ourselves  that  we  have,  in  every  instance,  realized  our  ideal. 

The  large  number  of  steel-plate  portraits  with  which  this  volume  is  adorned,  are 
life-likenesses  wrought  in  the  highest  stj-le  of  the  engraver's  art. 

Our  earnest  purpose  has  been  to  make  a  book  that  should  be  worthy  of  the  time 
and  the  subject-matter  represented.  In  as  far  as  we  have  done  this,  our  success  is 
the  highest  reward  we  could  ask.  Wherein  we  have  failed,  we  may  be  pardoned  if 
we  crave  that  indulgence  which,  we  believe,  a  generous  public  will  cheerfully  grant 
to  those  who  have  conscientiously  tried  to  do  their  best. 


*2f^!^;;; 


uri^J^    oi    /YV»'-»^»-«*^'-^i- 


BIOGRAPHICAL    DICTIONARY 


PORTRAIT    GALLERY. 


PHILIP  D.  AR.MOUR, 

CHICAGO.  ILL. 


MR.  ARMOUR  is  distinctively  American. 
So  were  his  ancestors  both  hneal  and  col- 
lateral for  generations.  In  the  early  history  of 
the  paternal  wing  of  the  family,  special  mention 
is  made  of  the  ancestors  as  having  "  bright  ideas, 
and  noted  for  their  clever  acts."  The  maternal 
branch  of  the  family  is  of  old  Puritan  stock,  and 
said  to  possess  an  unusual  amount  of  good  com- 
mon-sense. Such  was  the  ancestry  of  Danforth 
Armour  and  Julianna  Brooks,  the  father  and 
mother. 

They  left  Union,  Conn.,  September,  1825,  and 
settled  at  Stockbridge,  Madison  Co.,  N.  Y.,  where 
Philip  D.  Armour  was  born,  May  16,  1832. 
There  were  six  brothers  and  two  sisters.  Farm- 
ing was  their  occupation.  Habitual  frugality 
and  industry  were  the  fundamental  principles  and 
characteristic  features  of  the  parents.  These 
family  tenets  were  laid  down  in  their  simplest 
forms  and  instilled  with  human  sunshine  into  the 
life  of  each  child.  Their  school  days  were  the 
best  the  local  red  school-house  could  afford. 
Some  of  the  children  were  fortunate  enough  to 
attend  the  neighboring  village  seminary.  This 
was  the  case  with  Philip,  and  many  are  the  anec- 
dotes that  are  related  of  him.  He  was  genial  to 
a  degree,  healthy,  resolute  and  strong;  he  held 
his  own  wherever  events  found  him ;  not  a  fol- 
lower, but  a  leader,  of  his  schoolmates,  as  latter 
events  were  bound  to  make  him  among  his  fellow- 
men. 

During  the  winter  of    1S51   and   1S52,  the  ex- 


citement attending  the  gold  discovery  in  Cali- 
fornia having  spread  over  the  country,  a  party 
was  organized  to  make  the  overland  trip.  Mr. 
Armour  was  invited  to  join  them,  and  was  in- 
fluenced by  a  growing  desire  to  get  out  into  the 
world.  A  country  life  on  Stockbridge  hills  was 
too  obscure  for  one  so  tempered.  He  was  enter- 
ing his  manhood,  and  to  go  was  only  to  satisfy 
his  ambition.  The  party  left  Oneida,  N.  Y.,  in 
the  spring  of  1852,  and  reached  California  six 
months  later.  In  making  this  trip  they  were  not 
exempt  from  the  trials  and  dangers  attending 
similar  journeys. 

A  miner's  life,  as  everyone  knows,  has  its  pri- 
vations and  uncomfortable  surroundings.  These 
were  not  to  be  endured  in  vain.  The  pitfalls  and 
vices  so  common  in  a  country  that  was  turned 
over  to  so  many  adventurers  could  not  find 
lodgment  with  one  of  so  resolute  a  character  and 
fixed  a  purpose.  The  vicissitudes  of  his  early 
experience  rather  tended  to  broaden  his  views 
and  knit  together  his  dominant  characteristics. 

In  1856  he  returned  to  the  I-last  and  visited  his 
parents,  whom'  he  always  hold  in  reverential 
affection.  He  minutely  laid  before  them  all  he 
had  accomplished  during  his  absence.  To  a  few 
of  the  most  intimate  friends  of  the  family  the 
father  whispered  the  fact  of  the  young  man  hav- 
ing brought  back  some  money  with  him. 

After  remaining  with  them  for  a  few  weeks,  he 
once  more  turned  westward  and  finally  located  in 
Milwaukee,  where  he  formed  a  co-partnership  and 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AND  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


entered  the  commission  business  with  Frederick 
B.  Miles.  After  a  successful  run  they  dissolved 
in  1863.  The  dogmatic  and  persistent  way  in 
which  he  pursued  his  business,  his  characteristic 
manner  in  grasping  out  for  new  ideas,  brought 
him  prominently  before  his  fellow  townspeople. 
Though  yet  young,  he  was  looked  upon  by  many 
with  almost  envy  at  the  prestige  he  had  attained. 

In  the  spring  of  1863,  there  occurred  what  later 
years  proved  the  forerunner  of  a  very  successful 
business  engagement  in  the  joint  co-partnership 
arrangement  between  Jno.  Plankinton  and  Philip 
Armour.  Mr.  Plankinton  had  been  for  some 
years  previously  engaged  in  the  pork-packing 
industry  with  Frederick  Layton.  This  firm  had 
dissolved  as  that  also  of  Miles  &  Armour  before 
mentioned.  Mr.  Plankinton  was  Mr.  Armour's 
senior,  and  had  been  a  resident  of  Milwaukee  for 
a  much  longer  period.  He  had  established  a  most 
thriving  business,  which  had  been  conducted  with 
unerring  judgment.  He  stood  high  as  a  mer- 
chant and  commanded  the  respect  of  all  as  a 
public-spirited  citizen.  This  was  Mr.  Armour's 
opportunity.  How  well  he  handled  himself  and 
the  business  that  fell  to  him,  the  history  of  the 
commercial  world  is  alone  our  witness.  To  the 
pork-packing  business  of  Mr.  Plankinton  he 
brought  that  unremitting  labor  and  concentration 
of  thought  that  were  so  peculiarly  his  own.  The 
fluctuations  in  the  price  of  provisions  at  the 
closing  scenes  of  the  war  left  the  firm  with  a 
fortune.  This  with  the  developments  of  the 
country  gave  them  an  opportunity  of  extending 
their  growing  business. 

At  Chicago,  in  1862,  Mr.  Armour's  brother, 
Herman  O.  Armour,  had  established  himself  in 
the  grain  commission  business,  but  was  induced 
to  surrender  this  to  a  younger  brother,  Joseph  F. 
Armour,  in  1865,  and  take  charge  of  a  new  firm 
in  New  York,  then  organized  under  the  name  of 
Armour,  Plankinton  &  Co.  The  organization  of 
the  New  York  House  was  most  obvious.  The 
financial  condition  of  the  West  at  that  period 
did  not  permit  of  large  lines  of  credit  necessary 
for  the  conducting  of  a  business  assuming  such 
magnitude,  and  it  was,  therefore,  as  events  proved, 
most  fortunate  that  the  duties  devolving  on  the 
head  of  this  house  should  fall  to  one  so  well 
qualified  to  handle  them.  He  wSs  not  only  equal  to 
the  emergency,  but  soon  became  favorably  known 


as  a  man  possessing  great  financial  ability,  and 
was,  in  fact,  the  Eastern  financial  agent  of  all  the 
Western  houses. 

The  firm  name  of  H.  O.  Armour  &  Co.  was 
continued  at  Chicago  until  1870.  They  continued 
to  handle  grain,  and  commenced  packing  hogs  in 
1868.  This  part  of  the  business,  however,  was 
conducted  under  the  firm  name  of  Armour  &  Co., 
and  in  1870  they  assumed  all  the  business  trans- 
acted at  Chicago.  The  business  of  all  these 
houses,  under  their  efficient  managements,  grew 
to  dimensions  that  were  the  marvel  of  the  trade. 
Their  brands  became  as  well  known  in  all  the 
markets  of  the  world  as  at  home. 

It  became  evident  in  1871  that  the  stock  pro- 
ducing power  of  the  country  was  migrating  west- 
ward, and  in  order  to  keep  abreast  of  the  times 
they  established  at  Kansas  City  the  firm  known 
as  Plankinton  &  Armours.  This  enterprise  was 
under  the  immediate  supervision  of  Mr.  Simeon 
B.  Armour,  an  elder  brother.  The  failing  health 
of  Joseph,  at  Chicago,  necessitated  assistance, 
and  Milwaukee,  as  we  have  already  seen,  had 
brains  to  spare;  consequently  Philip  moved  to 
Chicago  in  1875,  where  he  has  since  resided. 

The  fraternal  feelings  manifested  on  every 
occasion  for  the  welfare  and  prosperity  of  his 
own  family  were  noticeable  in  the  organization  of 
the  Armour  Bros.  Banking  Co.,  at  Kansas  City, 
Mo.,  in  1879.  At  that  time  there  remained  at 
the  old  homestead  at  Stockbridge,  the  last  of  the 
Armours,  Andrew  Watson.  This  new  institution 
was  created  for  this  brother,  and  he  assumed  the 
presidency  of  its  management,  conducting  its 
affairs  with  signal  ability.  As  an  illustration  of  the 
acuteness  and  quick  perception  which  is  the  fam- 
ily trait,  we  must  be  allowed  to  digress  and  relate 
an  incident  of  this  man.  Soon  after  first  having 
been  installed  in  ofifice,  a  member  of  a  Montreal 
firm,  who  had  enjoyed  extensive  transactions  with 
the  Chicago  house,  and  stood  high  in  commercial 
circles,  while  at  Kansas  City,  on  his  way  to  a 
depot  from  his  hotel,  it  occurred  to  him  he  had 
not  sufficient  money  to  procure  the  necessary 
transportation  to  a  point  in  Texas  where  he  was 
en  route.  Looking  around  he  noticed  the  bank- 
ing sign  and  thought  of  his  relations  with  the 
Chicago  house.  It  occurred  to  him  that  the 
bank  might  be  induced  to  cash  a  draft  on  his 
Montreal  house  for  twenty-five  dollars,  notwith- 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Standing  he  was  a  total  stranger.  He  applied  to 
the  teller  and  related  his  story,  who  promptly 
refused,  but  told  him  he  had  better  see  the  cash- 
ier. He  also  declined,  but  told  him  to  lay  the 
matter  before  Mr.  Armour.  So,  for  the  third 
time,  he  repeated  his  story  to  Mr.  Armour,  who 
asked  him  if  twenty-five  dollars  was  not  a  pretty 
small  amount,  and  if  he  would  not  be  better 
pleased  with  fifty  dollars.  He  replied  in  the  nega- 
tive, and  said  twenty-five  dollars  was  sufficient. 
As  quick  as  a  flash  the  farmer  president  told  him 
he  could  have  the  money.  H  he  had  been  a 
rascal  he  would  have  taken  the  fifty  dollars.  It  is 
needless  to  say  the  draft  was  paid. 

It  is  not  to  be  wondered  at  that  the  manage- 
ment  of  the  many  millions  that  were  invested  at 
the  other  points  mentioned,  should  take  their  cue 
and  follow  in  the  footsteps  of  the  wise  and  in- 
trepid California  pioneer  at  Chicago.  This  was 
done  invariably  with  alacrity,  and  so  harmonious- 
ly that  it  has  made  them  all  renowned.  It  is  im- 
possible to  convey  to  one  not  familiar  with  the 
scope  of  the  business  its  magnitude.  The  dis- 
tributive sales  of  the  Chicago  house  alone  are  in 
excess  of  the  gross  receipts  of  any  railroad  cor- 
poration of  the  world.  Even  in  a  business  of 
these  dimensions  there  was  nothing  too  great  for 
Mr.  Armour  to  handle,  nothing  so  small  that  he 
could  overlook. 

Mr.  Armour's  capacity  for  work  is  something 
wonderful.  He  is  at  his  desk  by  7  A.  M.,  and  fre- 
quently before.  Fatigue  is  an  unknown  term. 
He  has  traveled  extensively,  but  wherever  time 
has  found  him,  it  has  been  among  those  who  con- 
sumed his  products,  and  where,  necessarily,  his 
agencies  had  been  established,  his  mind  would 
turn  intuitively  to  his  industries,  and  thus  his 
recreation  became  a  source  by  which  he  qualified 
himself  as  to  the  merits  of  his  representatives  as 
well  as  the  requirements  of  the  people  and  their 
condition.  He  is  a  close  observer,  and  can  give  as 
clear  and  accurate  a  forecast  of  the  coming  finan- 
cial condition  of  the  country  as  it  is  possible 
to  do. 

At  the  earnest  solicitation  of  the  late  Alex. 
Mitchell,  he  became  one  of  the  directory  of  the 
St.  Paul  Railway.  This  is  the  only  office  he  has 
ever  held.  Political  preferment  is  not  the  bent 
of  his  mind  or  his  ambition.  He  was  never 
known  to  occupy  a  public  office. 


Mr.  Armour  was  married  to  Belle  Ogden,  at 
Cincinnati,  Ohio,  in  October,  1862.  She  was  the 
only  daughter  of  Jonathan  Ogden.  In  making 
mention  of  this  circumstance,  it  must  occur  to 
anyone  who  has  been  fortunate  enough  to  have 
been  at  all  intimate  with  the  family  historj-,  that 
their  home  life  has  been  singularly  happy. 
Domestic  economy  was  no  more  truly  one  of 
the  hearthstones  of  Mr.  Armour's  inheritance 
than  it  was  of  Mrs.  Armour's.  These  family  pre- 
cepts were  laid  down  and  fostered  in  every  way. 
They  have  two  sons,  Jonathan  Ogden  and  Philip 
D.,  both  under  thirty  years  of  age,  and  active 
partners  with  their  father.  He  has  made  them 
millionaires.  It  can  safely  be  said  they  will  carry 
their  honors  gracefully  and  with  becoming  mod- 
esty. They  are  quiet  in  manner;  nothing  can 
agitate  them,  and  it  is  pretty  sure  guessing  that 
the  name  of  Armour  will  never  be  tarnished  by 
their  acts. 

Their  father,  the  most  affable  of  men,  approach- 
able, notwithstanding  his  great  cares  and  re- 
sponsibilities, leaves  all  of  this  at  his  office  and 
enters  his  family  circle  to  find  that  joy  and  con- 
tentment which  alone  springs  from  an  adminis- 
tration of  home  life  that  is  so  simple,  gracious, 
and  of  such  an  unostentatious  character. 

In  January,  1881,  Joseph  F.  Armour  died,  and 
bequeathed  one  hundred  thousand  dollars  for  the 
founding  of  a  charitable  institution.  He  wisely 
directed  that  the  carrying  out  of  his  benevolent 
design  should  be  chiefly  entrusted  to  his  brother, 
the  subject  of  this  sketch.  In  accepting  the  trust 
so  imposed,  he  has  given  to  it  the  same  energetic 
and  critical  attention  that  he  has  given  to  his 
private  affairs,  and  has  added  a  large  amount  to 
his  brother's  bequest. 

And  it  may  also  be  said  of  Mr.  Armour,  that 
while  he  is  disposed  to  be  liberal  in  his  religious 
views,  his  time  on  the  Sabbath  day  is  mainly 
given  to  the  churches  of  his  choosing.  In  the 
afternoon  of  every  Sunday  during  the  year  this 
wonderful  protege,  founded  by  his  brother,  and 
cherished  by  himself,  receives  his  individual 
care  and  attention,  and  it  is  the  individuality  of 
the  patron  that  gives  so  much  life  to  the  insti- 
tution. 

It  is  this  combination  of  industry,  untiring,' 
energy  and  philanthropy  that  has  made  the  name 
of  Philip  D.  Armour  not  only  so  potent  in  the 


8 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


West,  but  a  recognized   leader  among  the  mer- 
chants of  the  world. 

Such  is  a  brief  history  of  a  man  who,  by  his  own 
energy,  perseverance  and  indomitable  strength  of 
character,  has  achieved  a  reputation  that  entitles 
him  to  rank  among  the  leading  merchants  of  the 
world,  due  alone  to  his  keen  foresight  and 
honesty  of  purpose,  and  a  bright  example 
to  the  rising  generation  of  what  can  be  accom- 
plished by  untiring  energy  and  attention  to  busi- 
ness. 


His  success  has  been  truly  wonderful,  and  due 
alone  to  his  individual  efforts.  One  of  the  most 
active  of  men,  never  idle,  and  keeping  his  wealth 
in  motion  for  the  interests  of  the  city  he  lives 
in,  his  name  in  commercial  circles  is  a  tower  of 
strength,  and  with  him  there  is  no  such  word  as 
"  fail  "  in  anything  he  undertakes.  Of  medium 
height,  with  a  keen  and  expressive  eye,  he  is  to- 
day the  embodiment  of  health,  and  it  is  to  be 
hoped  he  may  "live  long"  to  enjoy  the  fruits  of 
his  industrious  life. 


LYMAN  J.  GAGE, 

CHICAGO,  ILL. 


THE  subject  of  this  biography  has  been  a 
resident  of  Chicago  for  thirty-seven  years 
and  during  that  time  has  come  to  be  known  as 
one  of  the  leading  financiers,  not  only  of  that 
city,  but  also  of  the  nation.  He  is  a  native  of 
Pvladison  county,  New  York,  and  was  born  in 
1836,  the  son  of  Eli  A.  Gage,  one  of  the  early 
settlers  of  that  county,  and  a  hatter  by  occupa- 
tion. When  seventeen  years  of  age,  Lyman 
closed  his  studies  in  school,  and  accepting  a  posi- 
tion in  the  Oneida  Central  Bank  at  Rome,  New- 
York,  began  that  business  career  in  which  he 
achieved  a  most  laudable  success,  and  made  for 
himself  an  honorable  name.  In  1855  he  removed 
to  Chicago,  and  for  some  three  years  was  em- 
ployed by  a  lumber  and  planing-mill  firm,  located 
at  the  corner  of  Canal  and  Adams  streets.  His 
natural  liking  for  the  banking  business,  however, 
led  him  to  make  a  change  as  soon  as  a  suitable 
opportunity  offered,  and  in  1858  he  became  a 
book-keeper  for  the  Merchants'  Loan  and  Trust 
Company  of  Chicago,  at  a  salary  of  five  hundred 
dollars  per  annum,  and  held  that  position  till  1863, 
when  he  was  made  assistant  cashier  of  the  bank. 
During  this  time  Mr.  Gage  made  a  careful  study 
of  the  banking  business,  familiarizing  himself  with 
all  its  minutest  details,  and  came  to  be  known  in 
local  financial  circles  as  a  man  of  progressive  yet 
conservative  ideas,  and  unusual  executive  ability. 
In  recognition  of  this  ability  and  fitness  he  was, 
a  few  months  later,  made  cashier  of  the  First 
National  Bank  of  Chicago,  which  had  been  organ- 
ized  May  I,    1863,  with   a   capital    of   §100,000, 


which  was  speedily  increased  to  $1,000,000,  with 
Mr.  E.  Aiken  as  president ;  Mr.  Samuel  W.  Aller- 
ton,  vice-president ;  Mr.  E.  E.  Braisten,  cashier, 
and  Messrs.  E.  Aiken,  S.  W.  Allerton,  S.  G.  D. 
Howard,  B.  P.  Hutchinson,  Samuel  M.  Nickerson, 
Tracy  J.  Brown,  John  B.  Sherman,  Byron  Rice 
and  E.  G.  Hale  as  directors.  Upon  the  death  of 
Mr.  Aiken,  in  1867,  Mr.  Samuel  M.  Nickerson  was 
elected  president,  and  in  August  of  the  following 
year  Mr.  Gage  was  made  cashier.  The  bank  was 
at  that  time  located  at  the  southwest  corner  of 
Clark  and  Lake  streets,  but  afterwards  was 
removed  to  the  southwest  corner  of  State  and 
Washington  streets.  During  the  general  conflag- 
ration of  October  9,  1871,  its  safes  and  vaults 
were  but  little  damaged  and  not  a  security  or 
valuable  was  lost,  and  after  a  temporary  removal, 
on  January  i,  1872,  again  occupied  its  rebuilt 
structure.  The  capital  remained  $1,000,000  until 
the  expiration  of  the  charter  in  1882,  when  the 
reserve  or  surplus  fund  over  and  above  dividends 
was  found  to  be  over  $1,800,000.  In  May  of  that 
year  a  new  organization  was  effected  under  the 
same  designation,  with  a  cash  capital  of  $3,000,- 
000,  with  Samuel  M.  Nickerson  as  president ; 
Lyman  J.  Gage,  vice-president ;  H.  R.  Symonds, 
cashier;  H.  M.  Kingman,  assistant  cashier,  and 
R.  J.  Street,  second  assistant  cashier,  and  the 
business  was  removed  to  its  present  magnificent 
building  at  the  northwest  corner  of  Dearborn  and 
Monroe  streets.  During  the  time  since  the  new 
organization  Mr.  Gage  has  been  the  general  man- 
ager and  chief  executive  officer  of  the  institution, 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


and  has  come  to  be  recognized  as  among  the 
most  far-sighted,  broad-minded  and  substantial 
bankers  of  his  time.  He  is  now  president  of  the 
bank. 

In  1S83  he  was  elected  president  of  the  Ameri- 
can Bankers'  Association,  at  their  meeting  held  in 
Louisville,  and  the  following  year  was  re-elected 
at  the  meeting  of  the  association  in  Saratoga. 
He  was  one  of  the  prime  movers  in  the  economi- 
cal conference  of  1888-89,  looking  to  the  welfare 
and  interests  of  wage  workers.      From  the  incipi- 


ency  of  the  World's  Columbian  E.xposition  he 
has  been  untiring  in  his  efforts  in  its  behalf  and 
foremost  among  its  promoters,  and  from  his  com- 
manding position,  and  in  recognition  of  his  emi- 
nent fitness,  was  naturally  selected  as  president  of 
its  local  Board  of  Directors,  bringing  to  the  office, 
as  he  did,  the  ripe  fruitage  of  a  rich  and  varied 
experience  in  financial  and  business  afTairs.  Mr. 
Gage  is  now  serving  as  a  member  of  the  local 
Board  of  Directors  and  is  one  of  the  most  ac- 
tive members  of  that  body. 


CHARLES   LAWRENCE    HUTCHINSON, 


CHICAc;o.   ILL. 


THE  subject  of  this  biography  is  pre-eminent- 
ly a  Chicago  product,  than  whom  no  one 
is  worthier  of  representation  in  a  work  illustra- 
ting the  lives  and  deeds  of  leading  men. 

A  native  of  Lynn,  Massachusetts,  he  was  born 
on  March  7,  1854,  the  son  of  Benjamin  P.  Hutch- 
inson and  Sarah  M.  (Ingalis)  Hutchinson.  The 
father  is  one  of  Chicago's  most  successful  busi- 
ness men,  whose  operations  in  the  commercial 
world,  and  especially  on  the  Chicago  Board  of 
Trade,  have  won  for  him  a  national  reputation  as 
a  far-sighted  financier,  a  shrewd  trader  and  a  man 
of  indomitable  will  and  unfaltering  courage.  The 
mother  of  our  subject  is  a  woman  of  exemplary 
Christian  character,  esteemed  and  loved  for  her 
kindness  and  nobility  of  character  and  her  chari- 
table and  benevolent  deeds.  When  Charles  was 
two  years  old,  his  parents  removed  to  Chicago, 
where  he  received  his  education  in  the  public 
schools,  growing  up  with  the  growth  of  the  city. 
Upon  liis  graduation  from  the  High  School  in 
1873,  being  then  seventeen  years  of  age,  he  at 
once  engaged  in  busmess  with  his  father,  and 
began  that  business  career  w-hich  has,  throughout, 
been  characterized  by  persevering  energy,  unflag- 
ging enterprise  and  honorable  dealing,  and  crowned 
with  success.  His  first  year  in  business  was  in 
the  grain  trade  ;  the  second  in  the  packing  busi- 
ness, after  which  he  was  for  three  years  connected 
with  his  father's  banking  house,  in  every  depart- 
ment of  which  he  became  thoroughly  versed, 
making  the  business  a  special  study.  On  the 
organization   of   the  Corn  Exchange    Bank,  Mr. 


Hutchinson  was  made  president.  Under  his 
careful  and  able  management  this  has  prospered, 
increasing  in  public  esteem  until  it  stands  to-day 
one  of  the  solid  and  substantial  financial  institu- 
tions of  Chicago.  As  a  member  of  the  Chicago 
Board  of  Trade  he  is  held  in  high  esteem  and  in 
recognition  of  his  ability  and  fitness  as  an  execu- 
tive officer  and  leader,  his  fellow  members  in 
1888  elected  him  president  of  that  organization. 
He  is  largely  interested  in  Chicago's  packing 
interests  ;  is  a  director  in  the  Chicago  Packing  and 
Provision  Co.;  a  director  in  the  Chicago  Street 
Railway  Co.;  a  director  in  the  Auditorium  Co., 
and  officially  connected  with  other  business  and 
financial  concerns. 

Aside  from  his  business  relations,  Mr.  Hutch- 
inson has  always  shown  a  commendable  public- 
spiritedness,  and  has  always  stood  ready  to  devote 
his  time  and  energy  and  money  to  the  welfare  of 
Chicago  and  the  public  good.  To  his  enterpris- 
ing spirit  and  personal  effort  is,  in  large  measure, 
due  the  renown  of  the  Art  Institute  of  Chicago, 
of  which  he  is  president,  and  to  which  he  has 
contributed  time  and  money  without  stint.  As 
an  instance  of  his  deep  interest,  it  may  be  stated 
that  in  order  to  secure  for  the  Institute  a  valuable 
collection  of  celebrated  paintings,  he  and  Mr. 
Martin  A.  Ryerson  voluntarily  advanced  $2chd,ooo. 
After  the  selection  of  Chicago  by  the  United 
States  Congress  as  the  place  in  which  to  hold  the 
World's  Columbian  Exposition,  Mr.  Hutchinson 
was  one  of  the  forty-five  men  who,  by  reason  of 
their  peculiar  fitness,  were  chosen  by  the  stock- 


12 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AND  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


holders    as  directors  of    that    mammoth    organi- 
zation. 

He  is  a  man  of  intense  activity,  and  notwith- 
standing his  extended  business  relations,  has  found 
time  to  travel  extensively,  having  made  several 
European  trips,  from  which,  and  his  careful 
observation  and  study  of  men  and  things,  he  has 
acquired  a  most  valuable  fund  of  information  that 
renders  him  at  once  an  instructive  and  interesting 
conversationalist  and  charming  companion.  In 
his  personal  characteristics  Mr.  Hutchinson  com- 
bines the  business  ability,  keen  foresight,  persever- 
ance and  nerve  of  his  father  with  the  Christian 


virtues,  amiability,  generosity  and  goodness  of 
heart  of  his  mother,  and  is,  in  the  truest  sense,  a 
high-minded  gentleman. 

Mr.  Hutchinson  is  a  leading  member  of  St. 
Paul's  Universalist  Church,  and  superintendent 
of  the  Sunday-school,  in  which  he  takes  great 
pride.  In  political  sentiment  he  is  a  Repub- 
lican, and  takes  an  active  interest  in  political 
affairs  in  as  far  as  using  his  influence,  and 
doing  what  he  can  to  secure  and  maintain  good 
government. 

He  was  married  in  i8Si  to  Miss  Frances  Kins- 
ley, daughter  of    Mr.  H.  M.  Kinsley,  of    Chicago. 


COL.  GEORGE   R.  DAVIS, 


CHICAGO,  ILL. 


THE  subject  of  this  biography  is  a  born 
leader.  A  native  of  the  old  Bay  State,  he 
was  born  in  the  town  of  Palmer,  in  the  year  1840, 
the  son  of  Benjamin  and  Cordelia  (Bufifington) 
Davis,  the  former  a  native  of  Ware,  Massachu- 
setts, and  the  latter  a  member  of  a  well-known 
Quaker  family  of  Connecticut.     George  attended 


cral  Sheridan  in  the  Indian  campaigns  of  1868  and 
'69,  of  which  the  engagement  at  the  headwaters 
of  the  Washita  was  the  most  decisive,  resulting  in 
the  defeat  and  routing  of  the  famous  chief  "  Black 
Kettle  "  and  his  band. 

Col.  Davis  was  on  duty  at  the   headquarters  of 
General  Sheridan  when  that  commander  was  sta- 


the  public  schools,  and  in   other   respects   passed      tioned    at  Chicago    in    1869,  and    continued   his 


his  boyhood  after  the  manner  of  New  England 
boys,  and  later  prepared  for  college,  graduating 
from  Williston  Seminary  at  Easthampton. 
This  was  just  prior  to  the  opening  of  the  war  of 
the  rebellion,  so  that  instead  of  entering  college, 
as  he  had  anticipated,  he,  at  the  age  of  twenty- 
two,  responded  to  the  call  for  volunteers  and 
enlisted  in  the  army,  as  a  private  in  Company  H, 
Eighth  Regiment  Massachusetts  Infantry.  By 
gradual  promotion  he  rose  to  the  rank  of  captain, 
and  in  that  capacity  served  with  the  Eighteenth 
Army  Corps  in  the  North  Carolina  campaign 
until  August,  1863.  Resigning  his  commission, 
he  now  returned  to  Massachusetts  clothed  with 
proper  authority,  and  recruited  and  organized  a 
battery  of  light  artillery.  From  this  he  was  soon 
transferred  to  the  Third  Regiment  Rhode  Island 
Volunteer  Cavalry,  with  the  rank  of  major,  and 
commanded  it  until  the  close  of  the  war  in  1865. 
After  the  war  was  over.  Col.  Davis  received  an 
appointment  in  the  civil  department  of  the  regu 


connection  with  the  army  till  May  i,  1871,  when 
he  resigned  and  took  up  his  residence  in  Chicago, 
where  he  has  made  his  home  ever  since.  Col. 
Davis  has  always  been  an  active  and  staunch 
Republican,  and  since  his  residence  in  Chicago  has 
held  a  conspicuous  place  in  the  councils  of  his 
party,  and  a  recognized  leader.  He  was  elected 
to  the  United  States  Congress  from  the  Second 
District  of  Illinois  in  1878,  and  re-elected  for  the 
two  succeeding  terms.  As  a  congressman  Col. 
Davis  naturally  took  a  prominent  and  leading 
place,  and  was  one  of  the  few  of  Chicago's  repre- 
sentatives to  that  body  whose  efforts  in  behalf  of 
their  constituents  were  crowned  with  success. 
Among  the  important  acts  of  legislation  in  which 
he  took  a  prominent  part,  it  is  but  just  to  say 
that  securing  a  large  appropriation  for  improv- 
ing the  Chicago  harbor  was  chiefly  due  to  his 
efficient  and  faithful  work.  In  1886  he  was 
elected  county  treasurer  of  Cook  county,  Illi- 
noi.s,  for  a    term    of    four   years.     When  it  was 


lar  army,  and  was  attached  to  the  department  of  decided  by  Congress  to  celebrate  the  four  hun- 
the  Missouri,  of  which  General  Sheridan  was  then  drcth  anniversary  of  the  landing  of  Columbus  on 
in  command.     He  served  in  the  West  with  Gen-     American  soil  by    a    World's  Columbian  Exposi- 


--7    /^c^^    ^ 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


15 


tion,  Col.  Davis  was  one  of  the  foremost  in  the 
promotion  of  the  enterprise,  and  to  no  one  is  the 
pubhc  more  indebted  than  to  him  for  the  selec- 
tion of  Chicago  as  the  site  of  what  promises  to  be 
the  greatest  World's  Exhibition.  He  was  after- 
wards chosen  by  the  stockholders  one  of  the 
directors  of  the  local  board  of  management,  and 
upon  the  meeting  of  the  Board  of  Commissioners 
in  September,  1890,  that  body,  in  recognition  of 
his  peculiar  fitness  for  the  place,  selected  Col. 
Davis  as  Director-General  of  the  mammoth 
undertaking.  A  man  of  fixed  opinions,  iron  will, 
unfaltering  perseverance  and  unusual  executive 
ability,  he  at  the  same  time  possesses  a  tireless 


energy,  and  whatever  he  attempts  stops  at 
nothing  short  of  its  attainment.  He  is  a  man  of 
great  personal  magnetism,  courteous  yet  dignified 
in  manners,  generous,  kind-hearted  and  genial, 
and  has  always  attracted  to  himself  many  warm 
friends.  With  his  splendid  qualities  of  mind  and 
heart  he  combines  a  finely  proportioned  physique, 
being  strong  in  stature  and  of  robust  constitution. 
He  is  a  handsome  man  in  both  form  and  feature, 
and  a  mass  of  iron-gray  hair  gives  a  distinguished 
air  to  an  otherwise  striking  personality.  Col. 
Davis  was  married,  in  1867,  to  Miss  Gertrude 
Schulin,of  New  Orleans,  Louisiana,  by  whom  he 
has  two  sons  and  four  daughters. 


ELBRIDGE  GALLET  KEITH, 


CHICAGO,  ILL. 


AMONGST  the  prominent  citizens  of  Chicago 
who  hail  from  the  Green  Mountain  State, 
there  are  few  who  have  been  more  closely  con- 
nected with,  or  more  deeply  interested  in,  every- 
thing tending  to  the  good  and  welfare  of  this 
city  and  the  inhabitants  thereof,  than  has  the  sub- 
ject of  this  sketch,  Elbridge  Gallet  Keith. 

Born  in  Barre,  Washington  county,  Vermont, 
July  16,  1840,  he  is  the  youngest  son  of  Martin 
and  Betsy  (French)  Keith.  The  Keith  family 
of  New  England  are  all  descendants  of  a  Scotch 
Presbyterian  clergyman,  James  Keith,  who  grad- 
uated at  Aberdeen  College,  Scotland,  and  came 
to  America  about  1650,  settling  in  Bridgewater, 
Mass.  Our  subject's  father  was  born  in  U.xbridge, 
Mass.,  and  removed  to  Vermont  at  an  early  age. 

Our  subject's  early  years  were  spent  on  a  farm, 
and  he  received  his  early  education  in  the  public 
schools  of  the  neighborhood,  and  subsequently 
attended  Newbury  Seminary,  Vermont,  and  Barre 
Academy  (at  that  time  j»resided  over  by  Dr.  J.  S. 
Spaulding,  an  able  educator  of  his  day).  Young 
Keith  was  at  this  time  more  inclined  to  political 
and  literary  pursuits  than  to  that  of  business,  but 
he  eventually  entered  a  country  store  in  his  na- 
tive town  (at  the  age  of  sixteen),  and  remained 
here  for  a  year.  In  1857  he  joined  his  two  elder 
brothers,  Edson  and  O.  R.  Keith,  who  had  jire- 
ceded  him  in  taking  up  their  residence  in  Chicago. 
After  a  short  time  spent  in  the  employ  of  W.  W. 


Secombe,  he  entered  the  house  of  Keith  Bros.  & 
Faxon,  continuing  in  their  employ  until  1865, 
when  Mr.  Faxon  retired,  and  he  then  became  a 
member  of  the  firm,  under  the  style  of  Keith 
Brothers,  which  firm  still  exists,  occupying  a  lead- 
ing position  in  its  line  of  business,  as  it  has  done 
for  upwards  of  twenty  years. 

In  1884  he  was  elected  president  of  the  Metro- 
politan National  Bank,  to  which,  from  the  date  of 
its  organization,  he  has  devoted  the  most  of  his 
attention  and  care.  It  has  achieved  a  most 
marked  success,  and  now  ranks  as  one  of  the  lead- 
ing institutions  of  its  kind  in  the  city.  Mr.  Keith 
has  always  taken  an  active  part  in  all  movements 
tending  to  the  welfare  of  the  city.  State  and  Na- 
tion. He  served  seven  years  on  the  Board  of 
Education,  and  was  a  leading  member  of  that 
body,  serving  as  chairman  on  numerous  occasions 
on  several  of  its  most  important  committees,  and 
as  a  token  of  the  warm  interest  he  displayed  in 
educational  matters,  the  Board  named  one  of  its 
schools  the  "  Keith  School."  Higher  education, 
also,  has  found  in  him  a  warm  advocate,  and  he  is 
at  present  one  of  the  trustees  of  Beloit  College. 
One  of  the  incorporatorsof  the  Union  LeagueClub, 
he  subsequently  became  its  president,  and  is  to-day 
prominently  identified  with  it  in  all  the  patriotic 
and  public-spirited  work  in  which  it  is  engaged. 

He  has  also  been  prominently  identified  with 
the  Commercial  Club,  and  was  its   president  dur- 


i6 


BlOGIiAPIlICAL  DICTIO.XARV  AND  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


ing  the  past  year.  He  is  now  the  president  of 
the  Bankers*  Club.  Mr.  Keith  has  held  numerous 
other  positions  in  connection  with  the  various  be- 
nevolent and  philanthropic  institutions  of  this 
city,  and  has  been  president  of  the  Young  Men's 
Christian  Association,  and  also  of  the  Chicago 
Orphan  Asylum. 

In  politics,  a  steadfast  Republican,  he  has  from 
an  early  age  been  an  interested  student  of  polit- 
ical affairs,  it  being  related  of  him  that  when  but 
fourteen  years  of  age,  he  walked  twelve  miles  to 
attend  the  first  State  convention  of  the  Republi- 
can party  in  his  native  State.  And  though  an 
ardent  Republican,  he  has  never  been  a  bitter 
or  bigoted  partisan.  An  active  member  of  his 
party,  he  has  had  much  to  do  with  nominating 
conventions,  both  of  the  City  of  Chicago  and  the 
State  of  Illinois.  Mr.  Keith  represented  the 
City  of  Chicago  in  the  memorable  National  Con- 
vention that  nominated  Garfield  for  president, 
while  he  has  frequently  been  urged  to  accept 
positions  of  high  political  importance,  but  has 
hitherto  always  declined  to  become  a  candidate 
for  any  political  office.  He  was  re-elected  as  a 
director  of  the  World's  Columbian  Exposition  in 
April  of  this  year,  189 1. 

In    matters    of    religion,  he   holds   Evangelical 


views,  and  is  a  warm  supporter  of  Dwight  L. 
Moody,  while  he  is  also  a  promoter  of  and  firm 
believer  in  unsectarian  Christian  work.  Brought 
up  a  Methodist,  the  influence  of  a  pious  mother 
has  been  marked  throughout  his  life.  For  over 
twenty  years  he  has  been  a  member  of  Christ  Re- 
formed Episcopal  Church  (Bishop  Cheney's),  and 
its  senior  warden  for  many  years.  Married  in 
December,  1865,  to  Miss  Harriet  S.  Hall,  a  native 
of  LaSalle  county,  Illinois,  they  have  four  sons 
and  two  daughters. 

A  man  of  large  affairs,  his  time,  as  may  be  im- 
agined, is  fully  occupied,  for  he  is  always  promi- 
nent in  benevolent  work,  and  actively  interested 
in  everything  tending  to  the  benefit  of  Chicago 
and  of  good  citizenship  generally,  and  with  zeal 
seemingly  beyond  his  physical  strength,  for  he  is 
by  no  means  robust  and  his  constitution  none  of 
the  strongest.  Mr.  Keith  is  one  of  the  most 
popular  men  in  this  city,  one  of  the  most  widely 
known,  and  certainly  one  of  the  most  respected. 
A  typical  Chicagoan,  he  is  truly  a  representative 
citizen,  and  belongs  to  that  class  who  have  aided 
so  materially — and  to  an  e.xtent  as  yet  unknown — 
in  raising  this  city  to  the  position  it  to-day  occu- 
pies amongst  the  cities  of  America,  and  the  cities 
of  the  world. 


EUGENE  S.  PIKE, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


THERE  are  few  studies  more  elevating,  more 
encouraging,  or  more  interesting  than  the 
study  of  the  lives  and  characters  of  men  who 
have  risen  from  the  ranks.  When  we  trace  the 
career  of  those  who  stand  highest  in  public 
esteem,  and  of  those  whom  the  world  acknowl- 
edges as  successful  men,  we  find  almost  invariably 
that  they  are  those  who  have  risen  gradually, 
overcome  severe  opposition  and,  in  the  face  of 
the  most  bitter  trials  and  seemingly  insurmount- 
able difficulties,  have  at  length,  by  much  self- 
reliance,  great  energy,  perseverance  and  honesty, 
overcome  every  obstacle  and  won  that  success 
for  which  they  had  so  long  and  so  perseveringly 
striven. 

Eugene  S.  Pike  was  born  in  Lake  county,  Ohio, 
October  5,  1835.     His  father  and  mother  Qcrusha 


Hartwell)  were  born  in  Berkshire  county,  Mass. 
Both  families  are  branches  of  old  New  England 
stock,  while  his  mother,  together  with  her  cousin, 
Mary  Lyon,  took  an  active  part  in  establishing 
Mount  Holyoke  Seminary,  a  seminary  which, 
to-day,  is  one  of  the  most  famous  seats  of  learn- 
ing in  the  State  of  Massachusetts.  His  father 
died  when  he  was  but  cyght  years  of  age,  leaving 
him  and  his  mother  in  somewhat  straightened 
circumstances.  Three  years  later  death  removed 
his  mother  also,  a  mother  to  whom  he  owed  much 
and  from  whom  he  derived  such  virtues  as  are 
only  in  the  gift  of  a  refined,  educated  and  chris- 
tian mother  to  bestow,  and  a  mother  for  whom 
he  always  cherished  the  mo.st  sacred  and  loving 
thoughts. 

Looking  the   world,  however,  in  the  face,  and 


BIOCKAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AND  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


17 


forming  a  resolution  to  succeed,  young  Pike 
engaged  on  a  farm  in  his  native  county,  attending 
school  in  the  winter,  and  carefully  putting  by 
what  small  sum  he  could  earn  in  the  summer 
time,  with  the  intention  of  acquiring  a  college 
education,  if  possible,  later  on.  At  length  young 
Pike  determined  to  undertake  a  course  at  the 
Western  Reserve  College,  Hiram,  Ohio;  remaining 
here  two  years,  he  afterward  went  to  Antioch  Col- 
lege and  here  concluded  his  collegiate  education. 
During  the  time  he  was  at  Hiram  he  had  for 
a  fellow-student  and  companion  the  late  and 
lamented  James  A.  Garfield,  and  we  can  imagine 
the  strength  of  character,  the  tenacity  of  pur- 
pose and  the  determination  to  succeed  which 
pervaded  these  two  young  men  at  this  time. 

Leaving  college,  he  commenced  his  business 
career  by  traflfic  in  fruit  and  ornamental  trees, 
gradually  extending  his  connection  until  at 
length  he  became  an  importer  of  fruit  trees, 
grape-vines,  roses,  etc.,  from  France.  Finding  a 
ready  sale  for  them  in  the  Southern  States,  his 
business  grew  rapidly  until  the  commencement  of 
hostilities,  in  1861,  put  an  end,  almost,  to  these 
transactions,  and  Mr.  Pike  decided  to  relinquish 
his  interests  and  engagements  in  this  line  of  busi- 
ness, always  having  had  more  or  less  of  an  ambi- 
tion to  become  a  banker.  On  the  breaking  out  of 
the  war,  he  removed  to  Painesville,  Ohio,  where 
he  engaged  in  the  banking  and  brokerage  business. 
His  success  in  this  vocation  was  phenomenal. 
Soon  invited  to  a  prominent  place,  he  became 
locally  and  otherwise  engaged  in  numerous  enter- 
prizes  of  much  importance.  His  wealth  in  the 
meantime  having  much  increased,  he  decided  to 
seek  a  larger  and  more  important  field  in  which 
to  operate,  and  thus,  in  1867,  he  decided  to  locate 
in  Chicago. 

Our  city  at  that  time,  as  now,  was  growing 
rapidly,  and  becoming  every  day  more  prominent 
and  more  favorably  known  in  the  commercial 
world.  Foreseeing  to  a  great  extent  the  import- 
ance and  prominence  which  this  city  would  ulti- 
mately attain,  Mr.  Pike  invested  in  land  through- 
out the  business  district  of  the  South  Side, 
erecting,  as  his  means  would  allow,  solid  business 
blocks,  which  have  materially  added  to  the  growth 
and  improvement  of  that  portion  of  our  city. 
His  experience  and  admitted  authority  on  the 
subject  of  building  have  often  led    to  his  being 


consulted  and  to  his  advice  being  sought  by  a 
number  of  our  well-known  and  prominent  archi- 
tects. Real  estate  is  what  he  is  perhaps  most 
interested  in,  and  outside  of  this  (in  this  city)  his 
ventures  have  not  been  numerous,  but  such  as 
they  have  been,  they  have  been  eminently  suc- 
essful,  and  in  every  way  creditable  to  the  great 
energy  and  enterprise  so  characteristic  of  Mr. 
J'ike. 

Purchasing  a  half  interest  in  the  well-known 
jewelry  house  of  N.  Matson  &  Co.,  corner  of 
State  and  Monroe,  in  1876,  he  retained  his  inter- 
est, though  he  took  no  active  part  in  the  manage- 
ment of  the  business,  for  three  years,  relinquish- 
ing same  in  1879. 

A  director  of  the  First  National  Bank,  he  has 
held  this  position  for  several  years.  A  director 
of  the  World's  Columbian  Exposition,  he  was 
among  the  first  selected  by  the  Committee  of 
Organization  to  hold  the  important  and  honor- 
able ofifice.  The  choice  was  undoubtedly  a  good 
one,  for  in  Mr.  Pike  the  directorate  have  an  able 
financier,  one  whose  advice  and  experience  cannot 
but  prove  to  be  very  valuable. 

Much  interested  in  numerous  benevolent  and 
charitable  affairs,  Mr.  Pike's  interest  is  more  prac- 
tical and  material  than  it  is  theoretical,  and  is  not 
confined  merely  to  paper  and  the  giving  out  of 
resolutions,  etc. 

Socially,  he  is  most  agreeable  ;  genial  with  his 
friends,  he  is  an  excellent  companion  ;  jovial,  gen- 
uine in  his  actions,  he  seems  to  overflow  with  the 
spirit  of  good  fellowship,  and  inspires  the  same 
disposition  amongst  the  numerous  friends  and 
acquaintances  with  whom  he  is  so  often  inti- 
mately associated. 

A  man  of  more  than  the  ordinary  force  of 
character,  possessing  great  tact,  he  quickly  com- 
prehends and  solves  what,  to  others,  often  appear 
difficult  problems,  both  in  business  and  social 
affairs.  A  faithful  friend,  he  is  a  strong  adherent 
of  any  cause  he  embraces,  while  on  behalf  of  a 
friend  he  deems  no  service  too  great  or  any  per- 
sonal inconvenience  too  much,  if,  by  so  doing,  the 
desired  result  can  be  obtained. 

In  religious  matters  a  Presbyterian,  Mr.  Pike  is 
a  member  of  the  Second  Presbyterian  Church  of 
this  city,  being  prominent  in  religious  circles,  and 
much  interested  in  church,  Sunday  school  and 
charitable  work  generall) .     He  was   married    in 


i8 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AND  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


1865,  to  Miss  Mary  Rockwell,  of  Painesville,  Ohio. 
Mrs.  Pike  is  a  relative  of  Ralph  Waldo  Emerson, 
the  famous  poet  and  philosopher.  Personally,  she 
is  a  lady  of  rare  qualifications  and  much  ability. 
There  are  three  sons,  issue  of  this  marriage,  the 
eldest,  Eugene  R.  Pike,  a  graduate  of  Yale  in  the 
class  of  '90.  The  second  son,  Charles  Burral 
Pike,  is  now  at  Harvard,  where  he  is  a  member 
of  the  class  of  '92 ;  while  the  youngest,  William 
W.  Pike,  is  now  at  Yale  University.  Deriving 
such  excellent  qualities  and  position  as  they  have 
inherited,  both  from  their  father  and  mother, 
their  path  through  life  will  be  comparatively 
smooth,  while  they  are  already  in  possession  of 


rare    accomplishments,   and    are    spoken   of    as 
being  delightful  and  agreeable  companions. 

Not  given  to  much  outdoor  recreation,  there 
are  yet  two  or  three  sports  in  which  Mr.  Pike 
takes  great  interest,  and  they  are  more  especially 
those  of  fishing  and  shooting.  Accompanied, 
as  he  often  is,  by  his  sons,  his  shooting  trips  are 
always  a  source  of  much  gratification  to  him. 
Keen  sportsmen,  father  and  sons,  they  always 
have  something  tangible  to  show  as  the  result  of 
their  frequently  long  trips,  and  the  success  of 
Eugene  S.  Pike  is  no  less  marked  in  this  direc- 
tion than  it  is,  and  always  has  been,  in  other 
directions. 


SAMUEL    M.  NICKERSON, 

CHICAGO,  ILL. 

SAMUEL  M.  NICKERSON,  one  of  the  After  this  event,  which  at  the  time  was  con- 
organizers  of  the  First  National  Bank,  its  sidered  by  him  as  a  great  calamity,  but  which, 
vice-president  upon  its  organization,  and  since  doubtless,  had  a  beneficial  influence  upon  his  life, 
1 867  the  president  of  that  gigantic  financial  institu-  he  borrowed  a  few  hundred  dollars  from  his  friends 
tion,  was  born  at  Chatham,  Mass.,  on  June  14,  1830.  and    removed    to    Chicago,    where,    in    1858,    he 

His  parents,   Ensign   Nickerson    and     Rebecca  launched  upon  a  prosperous  business  career  as  a 

Mayo  Nickerson,  were  descended  from  the    early  distiller  of  alcohol  and   high-wines.     He    was  so 

Puritan     settlers    of     Massachusetts,    his    father  successful  that  within  the  next   six   years  he  had 

being  a  lineal  descendant  of  the   Wm.  Nickerson  accumulated  a  fortune  sufificiently  large  to  enable 

who  left  Norwalk,  England,  and   settled  at  Chat-  him  to    retire    from    the    business.     In    1864,  he 

ham,  Mass.,  in  1660.  accepted  the  presidency  of  the  Chicago  City  Horse 

The  first  seven  years  of  our  subject's  life  were  Railway,  and   continued   its  presiding  ofificer  and 

passed  in  the  place  of  his  birth,  at  which  age  his  controlling  spirit  for  seven  years  more.     In  1 871, 

residence   was    changed    by  the    removal    of    his  his  banking  interest  having  become  so  large,  and 

parents  to  Boston,  where  he  received  his  educa-  requiring  most  of  his  time  and  attention,  he  was 

tion  at  the  public  schools.     At  the  age  of  seven-  forced  to  resign  his  offi.cial  position  with  the  rail- 


teen,  he  left  school  and  accepted  a  position  as 
clerk  in  his  brother's  store,  at  Appalachicola,  Fla., 
where  he  received  his  earlier  business  training. 
He  remained  with  his  brother  for  four  years,  and 
in  185 1,  at  the  age  of  twenty-one,  he  began  mer- 
cantile lifeforhimself,  by  entering  into  the  general 
merchandise  business,  which  he  continued  until 
1857,  when  his  business  property  was  destroyed 
and  he  was  left  a  financially  ruined  man,  by  a 
disastrous  fire  which  consumed  his  assets.  Very 
much  discouraged,  he  compromised  with  his  credi- 


way  corporation,  and  devote  his  entire  time  to  his 
other  interests. 

His  business  career  since  1863,  when  he  assisted 
in  the  organization  of  the  First  National  Bank, 
has  been  almost  identically  the  same  as  the  history 
of  that  corporation.  In  1863  he  was  elected  its 
first  vice-president,  which  official  position  he  held 
until  the  year  1867,  when  he  was  elected  to  his 
present  position  of  president,  and  he  has  remained 
at  the  helm  of  this,  one  of  the  largest  financial 
houses  in  the  world,  continuously  for  twenty-four 


tors,  doing  as  well  as  he  could  for  them  with  the  years;  and  it  has  been  largely  due  to  his  fostering 

means  at  his  command,  but  settled  with  them  in  care  that  the  First  National    Bank   occupies  the 

full  some  five  years  after,  although    he    was   not  position  in  the  financial  world  that  it  does  to-day. 

lesjally  obliged  to  do  so.  He    was  present    at    its    birth,    watched    over  it 


.i^/  ///  A. 


t^y>^i 


BIOGRArmCAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALUUiY. 


ai 


closely  during  its  infancy  and  childhood  days, 
nursed  it  through  its  time  of  disease,  caused  by 
the  fiery  times  of  1 871,  and  guarded  and  shielded 
it  through  the  assaults  and  storms  of  the  panic  of 
1873.  He  has  witnessed  its  growth  from  a  tod- 
dling child,  having  a  capital  of  one  hundred 
thousand  dollars  on  May  i,  1863,  to  the  gigantic 
financial  giant  of  to-day,  with  a  capital  of  $3,000,- 
000,  surplus  of  $2,000,000,  undivided  profits  of 
$800,000,  and  average  deposits  of  $25,000,000. 

This  marvelous  growth  is  acknowledged  by  all 
to  be  largely  due  to  the  policy  of  its  president, 
our  worthy  subject,  which,  whilst  conservative,  has 
always  been  considered  liberal. 

Mr.  Nickerson  has  also  been  identified  with 
other  financial  concerns.  The  Union  Stock  Yards 
National  Bank  of  Chicago  owes  its  existence  to 
him,  he  having  organized  it  in  1867,  and  become 
its  first  president.  He  continued  in  this  position 
for  several  years,  or  until  the  stress  of  his  other 
business  affairs  caused  him  to  resign. 

In  1887,  upon  the  expiration  of  the  charter,  this 
bank  was  reorganized  under  the  style  of  The 
National  Live  Stock  Bank  of  Chicago. 

In  1864,  Mr.  Nickerson  was  chosen  as  a  director 
of  the  Chamber  of  Commerce,  and  in  1 871  was 
appointed  by  the  governor  as  a  member  of  the 
first  Board  of  Commissioners  for  Lincoln  Park. 
He  continued  as  commissioner  for  four  years,  and 
was  always  an  active  member  of  the  board  ;  his 
fellow-members  of  the  board  were  Joseph  Stock- 
ton, Belden  V.  Culver,  W.  H.  Bradley  and  Francis 
H.  Kales. 

In  December,  1858,  he  was  married  to  Miss 
Matilda  P.  Crosby,  of  Brewster,  Mass.  Roland 
Crosby  Nickerson,  the  sole  issue  of  this  marriage, 
is  at  present  connected  with  the  banking  house 
of  Jamieson  &  Co. 

Mr.  Nickerson  has  always  been  largely  inter- 
ested in  art  and  musical  work.  He  is  a  member 
of  the  Chicago  Historical  Society,  and  a  trustee  of 
the  Art  Institute,  and  his  magnificent  residence 
contains  many  choice  works  of  art  that  he  has 
collected  during  his  extended  travels,  which  have 
not  only  covered  this  country  and  Europe,  but 
have  been  entirely  around  the  world,  he  having 
made  a  circuit  of  the  earth  in  1883  and  1884. 

Mr.  Nickerson  is  a  man  of  dignified  appearance, 
and  of  pleasing  countenance,  with  an  car  ever 
ready  to  listen  to  affairs  that  will  interest  him, 


kindly  and  affable,  liberal  where  liberality  will  be 
beneficial,  interested  in  music  and  art  and  ever 
ready  to  assist  both  financially  and  personally  any 
movement  to  elevate  either.  At  the  helm  of  the 
largest  financial  institution  in  the  West,  esteemed 
by  the  citizens  of  Chicago,  and  admired  by  his 
friends  and  business  acquaintances,  he  stands  to- 
day as  a  man  whose  works  will  be  remembered 
long  after  this  generation  has  passed  away,  and 
one  who  during  his  life  has  always  been  an  hon- 
ored, respected  citizen  of  the  community  in  which 
he  lived. 

Mr.  Nickerson's  term  as  president  of  the  bank, 
which  position  he  has  filled  so  successfully  for  so 
many  years,  is  about  to  come  to  a  close,  not  with- 
out the  deepest  regret  of  the  directors  of  the  bank, 
as  will  be  understood  by  perusing  the  following 
extract  from  the  minutes  of  the  meeting  of  the 
directors  of  the  First  National  Bank,  in  January, 
1891,  for  the  election  of  officers  for  the  ensuing 
year : 

Mr.  Nickerson  then  requested  the  following 
communication  should  be  read  to  the  board: 

"  CniCA<;o,  January  22,  1891. 
"To  THE  Directors  of  the  First  National  Bank: 

"  Dear  Sirs, — Before  proceeding  to  the  election  of  officers 
for  the  ensuing  year,  I  wish  to  state  that  should  you  decide 
to  elect  me  president  it  must  be  with  the  understanding 
and  notice  that  I  shall  resign  the  office  whenever  Mr.  L.  J. 
Gage  shall  be  relieved  from  his  duties  as  president  of  the 
World's  Fair,  and  can  devote  all  of  his  time  to  the  affairs 
of  this  bank,  and  when  that  time  arrives,  I  shall  take 
pleasure  in  co-operating  with  you  in  electing  him  to  take 
my  place,  if  you  then  decide  to  do  so. 

"  It  would  be  my  desire  to  continue  as  a  director  of  the 
bank,  and  co-operate  with  you  in  working  for  its  interest 
and  success. 

"  It  is  not  my  intention  to  engage  in  any  other  business. 
I  have  arrived  at  a  time  in  life  when  1  consider  it  my  duty 
to  delegate  to  younger  heads  and  hands  the  responsibilities 
that  are  involved  in  the  position  I  have  held  in  the  bank 
for  the  past  twenty-four  years  as  president,  and  for  four 
years  previously  as  vice-president,  which  covers  the  entire 
time  since  its  organization,  in  1863.  The  success  which  has 
attended  this  bank  is  known  to  you  all.  For  this  I  have  to 
thank  the  directors  and  other  officers,  who  by  their  advice 
and  labor  have  made  this  success  possible. 

"  Thanking  you  for  your  many  evidences  of  confidence 
and  good  will,   and  hoping  that  the  future  success  of  the 
bank   may  under  your  direction  be  equal  to  or  better  than 
the  past,  I  await  your  decision  as  indicated  above. 
•■  Yours  very  respectfully, 
"  (Signed)       SAMUEL  M.  Nickerson." 

After  which  Mr.  Gage  offered  the  following 
resolution  which  was  unanimously  adopted  : 


22 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AND  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


"  Resolved,  That  the  communication  of  Mr.  Nickcrson 
just  received  be  spread  upon  the  records. 

"  Whilst  we  deeply  regret  the  suggestion  that  he  may  feel 
compelled  to  resign  the  office  before  the  expiration  of  the 
current  year,  we  feel  that  it  is  for  the  interest  of  the  bank 
that  he  should  continue  his  wise  and  judicious  guardianship 
as  its  chief  executor  as  long  as  circumstances  will  permit. 

"  We  recognize  the  fact  that  twenty-five  years  of  constant 
direction  over  affairs  as  large  and  important  as  are  here 
implied,  entitle  him,  when  he  shall  finally  demand  it,  to  the 
enjoyment  of  the  rest  and  leisure  to  which  we  all  look  for- 
ward as  the  just  reward  of  long  continued  and  faithful 
work.'" 

Mr.  Nickerson,  honored  throughout  the  world 
of  finance,  threw  his  cloak  on  the  shoulders  of 
his  lieutenant,  and  retired  from  the  presidency  of 
the  bank  whose  career  he  had  made  so  successful 
on  July  8,  1 891,  as  the  extracts  that  appear  below, 
taken  from  the  records  of  the  bank,  will  explain : 


"  To  THE  Directors  of  the  First  National  Bank  of 

Chicago  : 

'•  Gentlemen, — Referring  to  my  communication  of  January 
22,  last,  in  which  I  stated  that  if  then  elected  president  of 
this  bank,  it  would  be  with  the  understanding  and  notice 
that  I  should  have  the  privilege  of  rcsignmg  at  any  time 
during  the  ensuing  year.  That  time  has  now  arrived,  and 
I  hereby  tender  my  resignation  and  ask  its  acceptance,  to 
take  effect  on  and  after  July  8,  next. 

"Yours  very  respectfully, 
"  (Signed)  S.  M.  Nickerson." 

'■Resolved,  That  the  thanks  of  the  stockholders  of  this  bank 
are  justly  due  to  Mr.  Samuel  M.  Nickerson  for  the  efficient 
and  faithful  manner  in  which  for  so  many  years  he  has  dis- 
charged the  duties  of  president  of  this  institution. 

"  In  accepting  thisresignation  this  day  tendered,  this  board 
desires  to  place  on  record  its  high  appreciation  of  his  admin- 
istration. We  congratulate  ourselves,  however,  that  in  his 
retirement  from  the  office  of  president,  the  bank  will  still 
retain  him  as  director,  the  wise  counsel  which  his  long 
experience  has  so  well  qualified  him  to  give." 


NORMAN    B.   REAM, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


A  NATIVE  of  the  Keystone  State,  born  in 
Somerset  county,  Pennsylvania,  Novem- 
ber 5,  1844.  He  is  a  son  of  Levi  and  Highly 
(King)  Ream.  -The  Reams  are  of  German  ex- 
traction, but  the  ancestors  of  our  subject  had 
left  the  fatherland  many  years  ago,  and  had  emi- 
grated to  this  country  in  the  early  days  of  its 
colonization,  settling  first  in  eastern  Pennsylvania 
and  subsequently  in  Somerset  county, 


business  affairs  was  such  that  he  soon  became 
actively  engaged  in  business  pursuits.  His  first 
venture  being  that  of  taking  ambrotypes,  in 
which  he  was  most  successful.  His  friends,  how- 
ever, endeavored  to  discourage  him,  but  without 
avail,  for,  determined  to  succeed,  he  soon  accu- 
mulated sufficient  means  to  start  in  business  for 
himself.  Possessed  of  great  patriotism,  and  a 
desire    to    serve    his    country,    he    informed    his 


Brought  up  on  his  father's   farm,  young  Ream  parents  of  this  conclusion,  and  they,  emulated  by 
acquired    habits    of  thrift   and    industry,    which,  the  same  spirit  rs  himself,  readily  gave  their  con- 
when  he  came  to  face   the  serious  work    of  life,  sent  and  blessing. 
were  of  incalculable  value  to  him.  Enlisting  September  i,  1861,  he  assisted  in  the 

His    educational    advantages  were   few ;  those  raising  of    Co.    H,   85th   Penn.   Volunteers,   and, 

procurable  in  the  common  schools   of    the  neigh-  though  offered  a  commission,  he  preferred,  for  the 

borhood,  to<Tether  with  a  course  of  instruction  at  time  being,  to  remain  a  private.    His  thoroughness 


a  normal  institute,  comprised  about  all  he  received. 
But  even  these  opportunities,  small  as  they  were, 
he  so  improved  upon,  and,  during  the  time  devoted 
to  his  studies,  he  pursued  them  so  assiduously, 
and  with  so  much  perseverance  and  intelligence, 
that  at  the  early  age  of  fourteen  he  became  a 
teacher  in  one  of  the  neighboring  schools.  His 
aspirations  were  all  for  adopting  a  business  career, 
as  opposed  to  that  of  the  necessarily  somewhat 
circumscribed  and  narrow  sphere  of  a  farmer's 
life.     His    early    development    and    aptitude    for 


and  enterprise  in  his  military  career,  and  his  pro- 
ficiency in  military  affairs,  were  such  that  they  were 
quickly  acknowledged  by  continual  promotion. 
Wounded  at  Whitmarsh  Island,  Ga.,  February  22, 
1864,  and  again  at  Wearbottom  Church,  Va., 
June  17,  of  the  same  year,  and  so  badly  this  time 
that  he  was  incapacitated  from  further  duty,  and 
resigned  in  August,  1864. 

On  his  return  home  he  attended  the  Pittsburg 
Commercial  College,  afterwards  becoming  en- 
gaged as  a  clerk  in  Harnedsvillc,  where  he  remained 


BIOORAPHICAL  DICTIOSARY  ASD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


until  September,  1866.  Then  becoming  anxious 
to  try  his  fortune  in  the  West,  at  this  time  opening 
out,  and  offering  to  young  men  of  pluck  and  grit 
numerous  chances  for  a  successful  career.  Locat- 
ing at  Princeton,  111.,  he  obtained  the  position  of 
clerk  in  a  general  store.  Shortly  afterwards  he 
purchased  his  employer's  stock,  and  thus  became 
actively  engaged  on  his  own  account.  Ten  months 
later  he  was  so  unfortunate  as  to  be  burned  out 
losing  almost  everything. 

In  January,  1868,  he  went  to  Iowa,  and  located 
at  Osceola.  Becoming  actively  engaged  in  the 
grain  and  implement  business  he  met  with  much 
success.  But  a  succession  of  poor  crops  rendered 
those  whom  he  had  given  considerable  credit 
unable  to  meet  their  obligations,  and  this  caused 
him  temporary-  embarrassment  (1870),  but  such 
was  his  well-known  integrity  and  honesty  that,  at 
this,  the  most  critical  period  of  his  Hfe,  these 
qualities  were  of  inestimable  value  to  him.  In 
1871  he  decided  to  remove  to  Chicago,  and  shortly 
after  arriving  in  this  city  he  formed  a  partnership 
with  Mr.  Coffman,  under  the  firm  name  of  CofT- 
man  &  Ream,  live  stock  commission  merchants. 
Having  a  large  acquaintance  with  stock-raisers 
throughout  the  West,  Mr.  Ream  received  from 
them  heavy  consignments  of  stock  from  time  to 
time,  and  it  was  not  long  before  he  regained  his 
former  position  ;  and  he  had  no  sooner  done  this 
than  he  proceeded  to  extinguish  the  indebtedness 
incurred  while  in  Iowa,  not  resting  until  he  had 
paid  of?  not  only  the  principal,  but  the  interest 
from  the  time  of  his  arrival  in  Chicago  also;  and 
the  fact  of  his  having  done  this  is  conclusive 
proof  of  the  sterling  honesty  and  integrity  whicli, 
not  only^  then  but  ever  since,  has  been  so  character- 
istic of  Norman  B.  Ream.  Continuing  his  connec- 
tion with  Mr.  Coffman  until  1878,  although  retiring 
from  active  participation  in  1875,  in  which  year 
he  became  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Trade.  He 
became  a  member  of  the  firm  of  Geo.  C.  Ball  & 
Co.,  but  in  1877  withdrew  from  this  firm,  and  com- 
menced business  on  his  own  account,  under  the 
style  of  N.  B.  Ream  &  Co.,  and  this  continued 
until  1884,  when  he  withdrew  from  active  business 
connection,  the  firm  then  becoming  R.  W.Clark  & 
Co.,  Mr.  Ream  being  special  partner.  This  con- 
nection, however,  was  severed  in  1889,  as  in  the 
previous  year  was  his  connection  with  the  com- 
mission  firm  of  H.   H.  Carr  &  Co.     His  connec- 


tion with  the  Board  of  Trade  is  well  known.  His 
first  operation  on  the  "  Board  "  was  crowned  with 
the  greatest  success,  and  he  soon  became  known 
as  an  operator  of  more  than  excellent  judgment, 
and  of  great  perception  and  foresight.  His 
operations  have  always  been  noted  for  their  mag- 
nitude, and  for  the  splendid  manner  in  which  they 
have  been  carried  through.  In  fact,  such  has 
been  Mr.  Ream's  success  that  he  has  long  been 
numbered  amongst  the  most  extensive  and  suc- 
cessful operators  on  the  Chicago  Board  of  Trade, 
and  ranks  financially  amongst  the  millionaires  of 
this  city.  He  has  filled  the  office  of  vice-presi- 
dent of  the  Call  Board,  and  were  it  not  for  his 
many  business  and  other  engagements  he  would 
have  filled,  as  he  has  been  so  often  urged  to  do, 
numerous  positions  of  a  like  nature.  Possessed 
of  numerous  farms,  ranches,  etc.,  he  has  been 
(since  1868)  an  extensive  breeder  and  rearer  of 
stock.  At  one  time  president  of  the  Western 
Fire  Insurance  Co.,  which,  in  1883,  he  assisted  in 
organizing ;  he  ultimately  sold  out  his  interests  in 
this  company. 

Though  having  retired  from  active  participation 
in  the  commission  business,  he  is  still,  though  not 
an  active,  one  of  its  best  known  and  respected 
members. 

Devoting  his  present  attention  to  his  many  pri- 
vate enterprises,  his  mental  qualities  are  such 
that  he  grasps,  intuitively,  all  the  intricacies  of 
business  propositions,  many  of  which  would  seem 
futile,  even  to  one  of  more  than  ordinary  intelli- 
gence and  business  capacity.  Combining  these 
qualities,  as  he  does,  with  those  of  remarkable 
energy  and  dispatch,  he  rarely  fails  in  bringing 
matters  to  a  successful  issue. 

Married  February  17,  1876,  to  Miss  Carrie  T. 
Putnam  (a  direct  descendant  of  the  well-known 
General  Putnam,  of  Revolutionary  fame),  at  Madi- 
son, N.  Y.  Mrs.  Ream  is  the  daughter  of  Dr. 
John  Putnam,  a  prominent  physician  of  that  city, 
and  is  a  lady  of  more  than  ordinary  attainments. 
There  have  been  born  seven  children  by  this  mar- 
riage, viz.:  Marian  B.,  Fanny  M.,  Norman  P., 
Robert  C,  Edward  K.,  Louis  M.  and  Henry 
K.  Ream,  all  of  whom  are  living. 

A  director  of  the  First  National  Bank  of  Chi- 
cago;  also,  a  director  of  the  Illinois  Central  Rail- 
road Co.  He  is  also  vice-president,  and  one  of 
the  largest  and   most    influential    stockholders  of 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOAARY  AAD  PUJiTKAJT  GALLERY. 


the  Rookery  Building — without  a  doubt,  the 
most  extensive  and  finest  office  building  in  the 
world.  In  itself  a  fitting  memorial  to  the  enter- 
prise and  great  business  perception  of  him  who 
has  been  so  prominently  identified  with  it.  In 
connection  with  Mr.  W.  E.  Hale  (of  the  Hale 
Elevator  Co.),  Mr.  Ream  built  what  is  probably 
at  present  the  finest  hotel  in  the  West,  viz.,  the 
"  Midland,"  at  Kansas  City,  and,  together  with 
Mr.  Hale,  he  also  controls  the  street  railways  of 
Toledo,  O.  At  one  time  a  well-known  and  exten- 
sive operator  on  the  New  York  Stock  Exchange, 
he  has  recently  retired  from  active  operations. 

A  member  of  the  Chicago,  Calumet  and  Wash- 
ington Park  clubs,  he  has  long  been  prominently 
identified  with  the  same. 

A  member  of  the  Odd  Fellows'  and  Masonic 
societies  for  very  many  years,  he  is  at  present  a 
member  of  Mount  Joy  Commandery,  No.  53,  K. 
T.,  and  in  these  circles,  as  in  all  others,  there  is 
no  member  who  is  more  highly  respected,  whose 
advice  is  more  cordially  welcomed,  or  is  more 
worthy  of  honor,  than  is  Norman  B.  Ream. 

Mr.  Ream  (though  not  a  member)  is,  together 
with  his  family,  who  are  members  of  the  Second 
Presbyterian  church,  a  constant  attendant  at 
same.  A  man  of  high  principles,  the  cause  of 
religion  has  ever  found  in  him  a  warm  supporter 
and  practical  sympathizer. 

Politically   a    Republican,  though   thoroughly 


independent  at  times  in  his  political  views,  Mr. 
Ream  does  not  believe  in  voting  for  a  Republican 
measure  merely  because  it  is  Republican,  or  i> 
advocated  by  the  Republican  party.  He  is  one 
of  those  who  reserve  to  themselves  the  right  to 
form  an  opinion,  independent  of  party  or  creed, 
and  having  formed  that  opinion,  believes  in  main- 
taining it ;  and  were  there  more  of  his  stamp,  our 
country  to-day  would  be  in  a  better  condition, 
both  morally  and  politically.  While  taking  con- 
siderable interest  in  affairs  political,  he  is  in  no 
sense  a  politician,  in  the  usually  accepted  meaning 
of  the  word,  and  has  never  sought  or  desired 
office  of  any  kind. 

A  gentleman  of  great  wealth,  very  generous 
and  liberal  to  all  objects  of  a  charitable  or  benev- 
olent nature,  he  is  one  of  those  void  of  ostenta- 
tion or  display,  seldom  allowing  his  right  hand  to 
know  what  his  left  hand  doeth. 

In  concluding  this  somewhat  incomplete  sketch 
of  Mr.  Ream's  life,  incomplete  because  it  would 
require  a  good-sized  volume  to  do  him  thorough 
justice,  what  an  example  has  he  not  shown  to 
young  America?  Prominent  amongst  all  the 
prominent  citizens  of  Chicago,  a  man  whose 
honesty  amongst  all  the  phases  of  life  has  always 
remained  unquestionable.  Asa  citizen  of  Chicago, 
and  as  one  who  is  typical  of  her  growth,  Norman 
B.  Ream  requires  no  further  introduction  at  our 
hands. 


EDWIN     WALKER, 


CHICAGO,  ILL. 


EDWIN  WALKER  was  born  in  Genesee 
county,  New  York,  and  is  now  sixty  years 
of  age.  His  father  was  a  native  of  New  Hamp- 
shire, but  removed  to  New  York  when  but 
eighteen  years  of  age.  He  was  a  man  of  great 
energy  of  character  and  strict  integrity,  and 
enjoyed  the  fullest  confidence  of  all  who  knew 
him.  He  was  a  farmer,  and  a  soldier  in  the  war 
of  1812.  He  died  in  the  year  1887  at  the  age  of 
ninety-two. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  received  a  thorough 
academic  education,  and  at  an  early  age  adopted 
the  law  as  his  profession.  He  prosecuted  his 
professional    studies  in    Batavia,   N.  Y.,   and  was 


admitted  to  the  bar  in  the  city  of  Buffalo,  N.  Y.. 
in  1854.  Soon  after  his  admission  to  the  bar  he 
made  his  way  westward,  first  locating  at  the  city 
of  Logansport,  in  the  State  of  Indiana,  where  he 
commenced  the  prosecution  of  his  profession, 
remaining  there  until  1865. 

At  the  very  commencement  of  his  professional 
career  he  wisely  recognized  that  the  law  is  a 
"jealous  mistress,"  and  will  not  tolerate  a  divided 
love.  Professional  success  being  his  only  ambi- 
tion, he  steadily  refused  the  alluring  offers  of 
political  office,  and  early  in  his  professional  life,  by 
close  application  and  assiduous  work,  attained  an 
enviable  prominence  at  the  Indiana  bar,  and  dur- 


^^^^-^e^^ 


BIOGR.irillCAL   DICTIOXARV  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


27 


ing  his  years  in  that  State  he  laid  well  and  securely 
the  foundations  upon  which  he  has  reared  his  pro- 
fessional  reputation. 

In  i860  he  was  appointed  general  solicitor  of  the 
Cincinnati,  Richmond  &  Logansport  Railroad  Co. 
In  1865  this  road  was  extended  to  Chicago,  under 
the  name  of  the  Chicago  &  Great  Eastern  Rail- 
way Co.,  when  his  office,  together  with  the  general 
offices  of  the  company,  was  removed  to  Chicago. 
From  that  date  he  has  been  a  resident  of  this  city, 
and  in  active  prosecution  of  his  profession.  In 
1870  this  road  was  merged  with  and  made  a  part 
of  the  Pennsylvania  system,  Mr.  Walker  retaining 
his  connection  with  the  legal  department  until 
the  year  1883.  In  1869  he  was  appointed  gen- 
eral solicitor  of  the  Chicago,  Danville  &  Vincennes 
Railroad  Company,  and  in  1870  the  Illinois  solici- 
tor of  the  Chicago,  Milwaukee  and  St.  Paul  Rail- 
road Company,  with  which  road  he  has  been 
intimately  connected  for  more  than  twenty  years, 
and  still  retains  the  same  position.  He  is  also 
special  counsel  for  several  insurance  companies 
and  other  corporations. 

Mr.  Walker  has  been  so  long  and  so  promi- 
nently connected  with  railroads  that  he  is  most 
widely  known  as  a  corporation  lawyer,  and  his 
reputation  as  such  is  of  the  highest  character.  He 
has  prominently  appeared  in  most  of  the  impor- 
tant railroad  litigation  in  our  State  and  Federal 
courts,  and  his  skill  and  ability  are  attested  by  so 
many  reported  cases  that  he  has  become  an 
authority  upon  all  the  varied  and  intricate  ques- 
tions of  corporation  law.  In  general  practice  he 
has  a  large  clientage.  He  is  popular  with  the  bar, 
and  has  the  confidence  of  the  bench  whenever 
and  wherever  he  appears.  He  has  attained  his 
early  ambition — he  is  recognized  as  one  of  the 
leaders  of  the  Chicago  bar. 

While  he  has  been  thoroughly  devoted  to  his 
profession,  he  has  also  been  connected  with  many 
business  enterprises.  More  than  twenty  years 
ago  he  formed  a  co-partnership  with  Col.  W.  P. 
Rend,  in  the  coal  and  transportation  business. 
The  firm  of  W.  P.  Rend  &  Co.  is  one  of  the  best 
known  in  the  West,  and  is  an  extensive  operator 
in  Ohio  and  Pennsylvania.  The  relations  between 
these  two  men  have  been  of  the  most  intimate 
character,  and  during  their  long  co-partnership 
nothing  has  occurred  to  mar  tiie  friendship  so 
early  formed. 


Politically,  Mr.  Walker  has  ever  been  a  Repub- 
lican, but,  while  shrinking  from  political  office  and 
party  strife,  he  has  always  been  ready,  regardless  of 
politics,  when  circumstances  seemed  to  warrant 
it,  to  join  with  independent  citizens  in  move- 
ments to  secure  the  correction  of  local  abuses. 

He  has  been  prominently  identified  with  the 
World's  Fair  from  its  inception.  He  was  chair- 
man of  the  first  sub-committee  on  legislation, 
having  charge  of  the  work  in  Washington  while 
Congress  was  considering  the  selection  of  a  loca- 
tion ;  and  when  Chicago  was  finally  chosen,  he 
was  one  of  the  committee  selected  to  frame 
necessary  and  proper  legislation.  He  was  elected 
a  director,  made  chairman  of  the  Committee  on 
Legislation,  and  is  a  member  of  the  Executive 
and  Conference  Committees. 

In  the  year  1857  Mr.  Walker  was  married  to 
Miss  Lydia  Johnson,  daughter  of  Col.  Israel 
Johnson,  a  prominent  citizen  and  successful  mer- 
chant of  Logansport.  She  lived  but  two  years 
after  their  removal  to  Chicago,  but  during  the  few 
years  of  their  married  life  she  became  endeared 
to  a  large  circle  of  social  friends,  and  promoted 
in  every  possible  way  the  success  of  her  husband. 
Of  this  union  three  sons  were  born — the  two 
eldest,  Edwin  C.  and  J.  Brandt,  are  married,  and 
have  pleasant  homes  in  Chicago.  They  are  asso- 
ciated together  in  business  under  the  firm  name 
of  Walker  and  Company,  and  are  successful  com- 
mission merchants.  The  youngest  son,  W^ilmer 
Earl,  a  boy  of  great  promise,  died  in  his  twent\- 
first  year,  at  the  commencement  of  his  Senior  year 
at  Yale  College.  His  attainments  were  of  a  high 
order,  and  he  was  being  carefully  educated  and 
trained  for  the  legal  profession. 

In  1870  Mr.  Walker  married  Mrs.  Desdemona 
Kimball,  daughter  of  Major  Samuel  Edsall,  one 
of  the  oldest  and  best  known  citizens  in  public 
and  social  life  of  the  city  of  Fort  Wayne,  Indiana. 
Few  women  in  Chicago  have- a,  larger  circle  of 
social  and  admiring  friends  than  Mrs.  Walker, 
and  none  could  more  worthily  preside  over  the 
pleasant  home  of  the  successful  lawyer,  made 
more  attractive  by  the  presence  of  her  two 
daughters,  Alma  L.  and  Louise  E.  Kimball. 

Mr.  Walker  is  a  member  of  the  Grace  Episco- 
pal church  of  this  city,  and  during  the  past  seven- 
teen years  has  been  an  active  officer  of  the 
church,   either    vestryman    or    warden.     Though 


28 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


past  the  prime  of  life,  his  physical  health  is  such 
that  his  friends  may  reasonably  anticipate  many 
more  years  of  active  and  useful  work.  Although 
a  member  of  many  prominent  social  clubs  of  the 
city,  he  best  enjoys  himself  with  his  family  and 
friends  in  his  attractive  home  on  ^Michigan  avenue, 
participating  in  such  social  events  as  his  profes- 
sional and  other  duties  will  permit.    Fond  of  trav- 


el, he  seeks  each  summer  some  place  of  rest  and 
pleasure,  either  in  this  country  or  in  Europe,  con- 
stantly forming  new  friendships  and  associations. 
This  is  a  brief  sketch  of  the  life  of  a  successful, 
self-made  man,  and  this  is  characteristic  of  many, 
who,  by  their  incessant  activity  and  worthy  ambi- 
tion, have  given  this  young  city  its  present  promi- 
nence among  the  cities  of  the  world. 


COL.  WILLIAM   P.  REXD, 


CHICAGO,  ILL. 


COSMOPOLITAN  in  character,  and  possess- 
ing much  that  is  metropolitan  in  appear- 
ance, Chicago  numbers  amongst  her  most  honored 
and  eminent  citizens  many  of  those  who  first  saw 
the  light  of  day  in,  and  whose  early  associations 
are  closely  linked  with,  the  land  of  the  shamrock, 
and  that  fair  isle  beyond  the  sea — Ireland.  Of 
all  the  ■  citizens  of  Chicago,  however,  who  lay 
claim  to  the  honor  of  having  been  born  in  the 
Emerald  Isle,  there  is  probably  no  one  better 
known,  more  highly  respected,  or  whose  career 
has  been  more  successful,  not  only  in  a  commer- 
cial and  social  sense,  but  in  a  military  and  politi- 
cal sense  also,  than  has  that  of  Col.  VVm.  P.  Rend. 
A  native  of  Country  Leitrim,  Ireland,  he  was 
born  Feb.  lO,  1840.  His  father,  Ambrose  Rend, 
was  a  substantial  farmer,  while  his  mother,  Eliza- 
beth (Cline)  Rend,  was  a  daughter  of  Mr.  Hugh 
Cline,  who  for  years  held  the  responsible  and 
important  position  of  steward  of  one  of  the  larg- 
est and  oldest  estates  in  Ireland.  Removing  t(5 
this  country  in  1847,  our  subject  being  at  this 
time  but  seven  years  of  age,  his  parents  settled  at 
Lowell,  Mass.,  where  he  spent  his  early  years,  and 
where  he  received  his  education,  graduating  from 
the  high  school  of  that  city  at  the  age  of  seven- 
teen. Leaving  •school,  shortly  afterwards  he  de- 
cided to  try  his  fortune  in  New  York  City,  hav- 
in<T  gained  considerable  business  experience, 
especially  in  the  dry  goods  line,  during  the  eve- 
nings and  holidays  while  resident  at  home.  Ar- 
riving at  New  York,  with  but  scanty  means,  he 
found  it  necessary  to  procure  a  position  as  early 
as  possible.  Commencing  with  the  stores  on 
Broadway,  he  endeavored  for  some  time  to  find 
an  opening,  but   without  success,  and  seeing  his 


small  means  fast  dwindling  away,  he  made  for 
New  Jersey,  determined  to  accept  whatever  em- 
ployment chanced  to  o'ffer  itself ;  and  this  time, 
pluck  and  determination  won,  for  on  the  day 
after  his  arrival  there  he  secured  the  position  of 
school-teacher  in  the  city  of  New  Brooklyn,  which 
position  he  occupied  for  twelve  months.  Re- 
signing his  position  as  school-teacher,  his  inten- 
tion was  to  locate  in  South  Carolina.  Desiring, 
however,  to  visit  an  old  friend  of  his,  and  one 
with  whom  he  had  been  intimately  acquainted, 
when  resident  in  Lowell,  Mass.,  he  visited,  en 
route,  Baltimore,  and  here  his  attention  was 
drawn  to  an  advertisement  for  a  teacher,  inserted 
in  one  of  the  local  papers  by  the  trustees  of  the 
school  district  near  West  River,  Anne  Arundel 
county,  Maryland.  Applying  for  the  position — 
his  application,  by  the  way,  being  one  of  seventy — 
he  was  selected  to  fill  the  vacancy,  remaining 
here  over  three  years,  his  scholars  being  princi- 
pally the  children  of  prominent  and  wealthy 
slave-holders  and  proprietors  of  large  plantations. 
At  the  house  of  one  of  the  latter  he  boarded  and 
made  his  home,  spending  his  evenings  and  other 
spare  time  in  classical  studies,  with  a  view  of  en- 
tering an  advanced  class  in  a  neighboring  college, 
and  from  the  president  of  St.  John's  College  he 
received  much  assistance,  valuable  advice,  and 
much  practical  aid  and  sympathy — it  being  Mr. 
Rend's  custom  at  this  time  to  ride  to  and  fro 
(a  distance  of  over  ten  miles),  on  Saturday  after- 
noon, for  this  purpose,  intending  to  complete  his 
studies,  and  to  eventually  occupy  a  superior  posi- 
tion. Just  about  this  period,  however,  the  war 
broke  out.  At  the  time  his  most  intimate  friends 
and   associates  were  slaveholders.     He  liked  the 


y^^-^^ 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARV  A.\D  PORTRAIT  GAI.LICRV. 


31 


South  and  the  southern  people,  but  abhorred 
secession.  He  believed  that  he  owed  it  as  a  high 
and  sacred  duty  to  volunteer  his  services  in  the 
cause  of  the  Union,  and  for  the  protection  of 
the  American  flag. 

Upon  the  firing  on  Fort  Sumter,  he  decided 
to  relinquish  his  position  as  school-teacher,  and 
shortly  afterwards  joined  the  army,  receiving 
from  the  governor  of  Maryland  permission  to 
organize  a  company  at  Annapolis.  But  as  was  to 
be  expected,  at  the  first  commencement  of  the 
war,  the  cause  of  the  Union  and  Union  sentiment 
generally  was  but  very  weak  in  this  locality,  and 
his  efforts  not  meeting  with  that  immediate  suc- 
cess which  his  ardent  nature  desired,  he  abandoned 
this  undertaking.  Still,  however,  determined  to  do 
what  he  could,  and  to  aid  the  Union  cause,  whose 
side  he  had  espoused,  and  whose  principles  he  be- 
lieved in,  and  for  whose  supremacy  he  was  willing 
to  risk  even  life  itself,  if  need  be,  he  went  to 
Washington,  and  here  joined  the  Fourteenth 
New  York  Volunteers  (one  of  the  infantry  regi- 
ments organized  about  this  time),  previous  to 
the  first  battle  of  Bull  Run,  and  remained  with 
his  company  until  the  expiration  of  his  term  of 
enlistment,  serving  most  of  his  time  as  a  non- 
commissioned officer.  He  was  in  a  number  of 
the  most  prominent  battles  in  which  the  Army 
of  the  Potomac  was  at  this  time  engaged,  in- 
cluding Hanover  Court  House,  Second  Bull  Run, 
Mechanicsville,  Gaines  Mills,  Malvern  Hill,  the 
battles  of  Antietam,  Fredericksburg,  Chancellor- 
ville,  etc.,  and  the  battles  before  Yorktown,  etc. 
He  was  the  first  man  in  his  regiment  who  was 
struck  by  a  bullet  during  the  siege  of  Yorktown, 
though  not  seriously  wounded.  During  the  battle 
of  Malvern  Hill  a  portion  of  his  pants  was  shot 
away,  while,  as  is  well  known,  the  "  Fourteenth" 
suffered  heavily  in  killed  and  wounded,  and  in  that 
battle  alone  lost  one-third  of  the  entire  number  en- 
gaged. His  many  hair-breadth  escapes,  the  many 
narrow  and  close  calls  he  received,  and  the  incidents 
and  dangers  through  which  Col.  Rend  at  this  time 
passed,  would  fill  a  much  larger  space  than  we 
now  have  at  our  disposal.  His  time  of  enlist- 
ment having  expired,  he  was  finally  mustered 
out  of  service,  afterwards  paying  a  brief  visit  to  his 
friends  in  Massachusetts.  Here  at  a  social  gath- 
ering, he  became  acquainted  with  a  lady  for 
whom  he  formed  a  strong  attachment,  the  result 


of  which  was  a  speedy  engagement.  With  the 
promptitude  of  action  and  sincerity  of  mind  so 
characteristic  of  him,  then  as  now,  he  proposed 
marriage,  and  was  accepted,  agreeing  to  defer  the 
ceremony  for  twelve  months  or  so,  and  believing 
the  West  to  offer  good  opportunities  for  a  young 
man  to  engage  in  the  struggles  of  life,  and  as 
affording  good  and  rapid  chances  of  advancement, 
he  immediately  made  for  Chicago,  arriving  here 
during  the  latter  part  of  the  war,  and  the  day 
following  secured  a  position  in  the  surveyor's  de- 
partment of  a  railroad  company  locating  a  line 
from  Madison  to  Winona.  Mr.  Rend,  having  a  fair 
theoretical  knowledge  of  surveying,  and  a  natural 
fondness  and  aptitude  for  mathematics,  he  de- 
termined to  take  this  up  as  a  profession,  and  to 
turn  his  knowledge  in  this  direction  to  a  good 
and  practical  account,  continuing  in  this  occu- 
pation until  winter  set  in  and  necessitated  the 
abandonment  of  the  survey  until  the  following . 
spring.  Returning  to  Chicago,  he  soon  secured  a 
position,  this  time  in  the  freight  depot  of  the 
North-Western  Railway  Company,  being  appoint- 
ed foreman  of  this  department.  And  it  was  while 
here  that  Mr.  Rend  perhaps  formed  the  basis  of 
his  fortune,  for  in  conjunction  with  the  cashier  of 
this  depot  he  started  a  line  of  teams,  and  thus 
inaugurated  a  business,  which  in  course  of  time 
(owing  to  its  rapid  developments  and  increase) 
necessitated  his  close  and  individual  attention, 
for  his  position  with  the  railway  company  had 
insured  him  plenty  of  work  in  this  direction,  and 
enabled  him  to  build  up  a  remunerative  and  suc- 
cessful business.  Finding  his  capital  increasing, 
and  the  opportunities  good,  while  his  capacity 
for  work  seemed  even  then,  as  now,  almost  un- 
limitable,  he  decided  to  embark  in  the  coal 
trade,  taking  as  partner  Mr.  Edwin  Walker,  who 
has  now  been  for  o\er  twenty  years  intimately 
connected  with  him,  not  only  in  financial  matters, 
but  in  the  closer  friendship  of  private  life.  It 
was  not  long  ere  the  firm  of  W.  P.  Rend  &  Co. 
became  the  largest  merchants  engaged  in  the 
Eastern  soft  coal  trade  in  the  whole  West,  intro- 
ducing also  not  only  the  far-famed  "  Hocking 
Valley"  coal  in  this  city,  and  in  the  markets 
having  their  headquarters  in  Chicago,  but  were 
the  first  who  recognized  its  various  qualities,  and 
through  whose  instrumentality  the  first  train  load 
was  brought  from  that  locality.     And  thus  their 


32 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  A.\D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


business  grew  and  developed,  until  at  last  they 
found  it  necessary  to  open  up  and  operate  mines 
in  Ohio  and  Pennsylvania,  in  order  to  keep  pace 
with  the  extensive  demand  which  their  business 
had  established.  At  present  Mr.  Rend  is  person- 
ally the  proprietor  of  three  of  the  largest  mines 
in  western  Pennsylvania,  owns  a  half  interest  in 
three  mines  in  Ohio,  the  owner  of  two  mines  in 
Ohio,  and  a  half  owner  of  two  others  in  Pennsyl- 
vania, whose  combined  output  give  employment 
to  over  two  thousand  men.  He,  individually, 
and  his  firm  own  seventeen  hundred  and  fifty 
freight  cars,  employed  in  the  transportation  of 
their  product.  Having  headquarters  at  Chicago, 
their  main  operations  are  in  the  markets  of  the 
various  Northwestern  States.  The  total  output  of 
their  mines  exceed  one  million  tons  per  annum, 
their  shipments  extending  to  Canada,  where  they 
sell  to  railroads  and  to  dealers,  while  they  supply 
with  coal  large  manufactories  of  Ohio,  Illinois, 
and  many  other  States.  They  also  have  supplied 
for  years  several  railroad  companies  with  the 
entire  fuel  used  on  their  lines.  From  Mr.  Rend's 
mines  in  Pennsylvania,  large  amounts  of  coal  are 
sent  by  rail  to  Cleveland  and  Erie,  and  thence  to 
Duluth  and  various  ports  on  Lakes  Michigan  and 
Superior.  Besides  the  interests  already  named, 
Mr.  Rend  is  extensively  engaged  in  the  production 
of  natural  oil  from  several  wells  sunk  on  his  Laurel 
Hill  mining  property  in  western  Pennsylvania. 

His  property  is  in  the  heart  of  the  great  oil 
belt  lying  partly  in  Washington  and  partly  in 
Allegheny  county,  Pennsylvania,  and  which  has 
become  the  most  prolific  and  most  wonderful  oil- 
producing  territory  ever  yet  discovered  in  this 
country.  In  spite,  however,  of  the  seemingly 
unlimited  demands  upon  his  time — and  being 
engaged  in  and  conducting  such  an  extensive  busi- 
ness as  he  does — Col.  Rend  still  manages  to  find 
time  to  devote  to  many  matters  of  public  import- 
ance. His  advocacy  of  the  temperance  cause  is 
well  known,  and,  though  believing  more  in  the 
effects  of  moral  suasion,  rather  than  compulsory 
and  legal  means,  he  is,  however,  now,  and  always 
has  been,  an  ardent  champion  of  its  principles, 
and  it  was,  in  fact,  at  his  suggestion  that  Bishop 
Ireland,  of  St.  Paul,  sent  Father  Cotter  (now 
Bishop  of  Winona)  on  a  temperance  crusade 
throughout  Ohio  and  Indiana,  with  the  result  that 
seventeen  thousand  took  the  pledge,  while  upon 


Father  Cleary's  continuation  of  this  good  work, 
over  seventy-two  thousand  names  were  added  to 
the  temperance  cause,  the  whole  expense  of 
which  crusade  was — let  it  be  said  to  his  credit — 
borne  by  Col.  Rend. 

Several  years  ago  our  subject  was  elected  by 
the  Second  Regiment  Illinois  State  Volunteer 
Infantry'  as  lieutenant-colonel  of  this  regiment. 
and  this  position  he  retained  for  a  number  of 
years. 

Of  much  literary  ability,  he  is  a  frequent  con- 
tributor to  the  press,  on  political  and  other  sub- 
jects of  a  public  nature,  while  he  is  extremely 
fond  of  mathematical  subjects,  and  reads  the  Latin 
classics,  in  the  original,  with  ease  and  fluencv. 
Politically,  he  is  independent,  but  at  a  time  w  as 
prominently  identified  with  the  Republican  part\'. 
He  is  a  believer  in  men  and  measures,  rather  than 
in  party.  Frequently  approached  with  a  view  tc 
nomination  for  the  mayoralty  and  other  promi- 
nent positions,  he  has  hitherto  steadily  declined 
to  allow  his  name  to  be  used  in  this  connection. 
Holding  and  exercising  a  potent  influence  in  labor 
matters,  he  has  always  taken  a  deep  interest  in  all 
subjects  and  problems  affecting  the  interests  of 
employer  and  employ^,  while  he  has  succeeded  in 
assisting  to  establish  much  friendly  intercourse 
between  the  miners  and  employers  throughout 
the  coal  regions  of  many  States.  Si.x  years  ago, 
aided  by  a  few  friends,  he  succeeded  in  the  inau- 
guration of  a  movement  of  industrial  conciliation 
in  the  mining  regions  of  Ohio  and  Pennsylvania. 
That  it  has  been  successful  (though  previously  un- 
tried in  this  country)  is  saying  but  little,  while  its 
influence  and  result  have  been  in  every  way  satisfac- 
tory, and  have  much  tended  to  maintain  that  good 
feeling  which  should  exist  between  miners  and 
operators.  He  is  a  strong  believer  in  arbitration 
and  councils  of  conciliation,  as  opposed  to  lock- 
outs and  strikes.  He  was  the  first  president  of  a 
meeting  held  some  years  ago  for  this  purpose,  and 
sent  the  first  address  that  was  ever  issued  in  be- 
half of  this  movement,  and  by  his  speeches  and 
writings  in  the  public  press  has  helped,  to  no  small 
extent,  to  mold  a  sentiment  favorable  to  this  solu- 
tion of  what  had  hitherto  been  a  problem  of  con- 
siderable diiificulty.  This  movement  has  prevented 
strikes  and  labor  conflicts  in  western  Pennsylvania 
and  throughout  Ohio  in  nearly  all  of  the  lead- 
ing mining  districts  for  five  years,  while  prc\-iousl\- 


tHOGRAPHlCAL  DICTIOXARV  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


33 


one  or  more  strikes  occurred  every  year.  Tlie 
results  being  so  beneficial  to  the  cause  of  labor,  it 
may  be  imagined  in  what  esteem,  high  respect 
and  confidence  Col.  Rend  is  held  by  the  miners  of 
this  country,  and  by  a  body  of  men  for  whom  he 
has  done  so  much.  If  evidence  were  needed  on 
this  point  we  have  but  to  mention  one  case,  and 
it  is  similar  to  numerous  others,  where  the  miners 
of  Northern  Illinois  selected  Col.  Rend  as  their 
representative,  a  former  miner,  by  name  of  Will- 
iams, representing  the  operators,  and  Lyman  J. 
Gage,  Esq.,  forming  the  third  party,  at  an  arbitra- 
tion case  which  was  intended  to  act  as  a  test  for 
the  settlement  of  the  entire  mining  question  in 
Northern  Illinois.  Six  years  ago  one  of  the  most 
bitter  struggles  that  has  ever  taken  place  between 
capital  and  labor  occurred  in  the  Hocking  Valley 
region  of  Ohio.  Taking  sides  with  the  men, 
believing  them  at  the  time  to  be  in  the  right,  he 
had  as  opponents  forty  coal  operators,  backed  up 
by  a  number  of  railroad  companies,  and  in  par- 
ticular the  Hocking  Valley  Railroad  Co.  This 
company  becoming  so  incensed  at  his  (Col.  Rend's) 
action  in  the  matter,  endeavored  to  vent  their 
spleen  on  him  by  refusing  to  allow  him  cars,  and 
by  advancing  the  freight  rates  and  otherwise 
restricting  his  business  operations.  They  at- 
tempted to  make  it  impossible  for  him  to  suc- 
cessfully operate  his  mines,  but  in  this  they  failed. 
Col.  Rend  was  not  the  man  to  bow  submissively 
to  this  or  any  other  company,  being  aware  that  he 
but   exercised  the  rights  of  any  ordinary  citizen 


in  doing  what  he  did.  Entering  an  action  in  the 
Federal  courts,  he  petitioned  for  and  obtained  a 
mandatory  injunction  compelling  the  railroad 
company  to  furnish  him  cars  at  the  usual  terms. 
Firmly  maintaining  his  original  position,  he  com- 
pelled the  company  also  to  recognize  and  to  pay 
that  due  respect  to  his  interests  which  the  magni- 
tude of  his  operations  warranted.  A  strong  and 
firm  believer  in  legal  methods,  his  position  once 
clear,  and  his  cause  just,  he  is  aggressive  and 
extremely  positive  in  character,  and  though  his 
necessity  of  recourse  to  law  has  been  but  little 
whenever  such  necessity  occurs,  he  is  seldom  to 
be  found  on  the  losing  side. 

Of  medium  height,  robust  build,  and  somewhat 
fair  complexion,  he  is  of  a  sanguine  highly  ner- 
vous temperament,  possessing  much  foresight, 
keen  perception  and  administrative  ability  of  no 
mean  order;  he  is  extremely  energetic  and  a  great 
worker. 

He  is  a  Catholic  in  religion.  As  is  well 
known,  he  is  singularly  free  from  all  religious  prej- 
udice, a  hater  of  bigotry  in  every  form,  and 
one  who  abhors  religious  controversy,  and  every- 
thing which  tends  to  create  animosity  and  ill- 
feeling  between  citizens  and  people  of  a  com- 
mon country. 

Married  December  27,  1864,  to  Miss  Elizabeth 
C.  Barry  (born  in  Nova  Scotia  and  of  Irish 
parentage).  Their  home  at  153  Ashland  avenue  is 
noted  for  its  elegance  and  comfortable  sur- 
roundings. 


WM.  C.  D.  GRANNIS, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


w 


M.    C.    D.    GRANNIS,    one   of   the   most  Our  subject  received  his  school  education   in 

prominent  bankers  of  Chicago,  is  a  Can-      his  native  town,  and  at  the  age  of  nineteen  began 

store. 
He  continued  in  this  occupation  for  seven  years, 
until  1852,  when  he  determined  to  seek  an  oppor- 
tunity to  advance.  Following  this  idea,  he  came 
to  Chicago  and  accepted  a  position  in  a  clerical 
capacity  in  the  wholesale  grocery  establishment 
of  M.  D.  Gilman  &  Co.      He  continued  with  this 


adian  by  birth,  having  been  born  in  the  town  of      his  business  career  as  clerk  in  a  local  dr 
Hatley,  Province  of  Quebec,  in  1826. 

His  parents,  Wm.  Grannis  and  Nancy  M.  (Dus- 
tin)  Grannis,  were  natives  of  the  United  States, 
having  been  reared  in  the  State  of  New  Hamp- 
shire. His  grandfather.  Moody  Dustin,  was  an 
ensign   in    the    Revolutionary  war,    receiving  his 


commission  in  1775  from  John  Hancock.  The  firm,  and  guarded  their  interests  so  faithfully  and 
interesting  document  conveying  this  commission  well,  that  he  made  his  services  almost  indispensa- 
is  now  in  the  possession  of  Mr.  Grannis.  ble  to  them,  and  they  concluded  to  take  him  into 


34 


BIOGRAFIIICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


the  firm,  offering  him  a  partnersliip.  He  availed 
himself  of  the  proposition,  and  entered  the  busi- 
ness, whicli  was  then  continued  under  the  style  of 
Gilman,  Grannis  &  Farwell. 

Mr.  Grannis  continued  in  the  wholesale  grocery 
business  until  1879,  when  he  retired  to  devote  his 
entire  time  to  his  banking  interests,  he  having 
been  a  director  in  the  Union  National  Bank  since 
1873.  ^^  1880  he  was  elected  vice-president  of 
that  financial  institution.  Having  fulfilled  his 
duties  in  such  a. manner  as  to  meet  with  the  ap- 
proval of  the  directorate  of  the  bank,  they  further 
honored  him,  in  June,  1883,  by  tendering  him  the 
presidential  chair,  which  he  accepted  and  occupied 
until  1885,  when  he  resigned  his  position  and  sev- 
ered his  connection  with  the  Union  National  Bank, 
and  organized  the  Atlas  National  Bank,  of  which 
institution  he  has  been  the  presiding  officer  and 
controlling  spirit  ever  since. 

During  the  forty  years  of  Mr.  Grannis'  business 
career  that  have  been  passed  in  Chicago,  his  busi- 
ness record  has  been  unsullied  and  is  clean.  His 
reputation  both  for  ability  and  integrity  is  of  the 
very  highest.  In  the  executive  position  he  occu- 
pies in  the  bank  that  he  organized,  he  uses  all  of 
the  faculties  that  have  made  him  the  acknowledged 
peer,  if  not  the  superior,  of  any  financier  in  the 
city  of  Chicago  to-day,    and    the   success  of  the 


Atlas  National  Bank  is  acknowledged  by  all  to  be 
due  to  the  liberal,  yet  conservative,  policy  of  its 
presiding  officer,  W.  C.  D.  Grannis. 

He  is  connected  with  several  outside  corpora- 
tions, being  a  director  in  the  Libby,  McNeill  & 
Libby  Co. ;  is  also  connected  with  the  Union 
Rendering  Company,  and  the  treasurer  of  the 
Oakwood  Cemetery  Association.  In  social  cir- 
cles he  is  both  very  widely  and  favorably 
known.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Chicago,  Com- 
mercial, Washington  Park  and  Iroquois  Social 
Clubs. 

Mr.  Grannis  has  assisted  both  with  purse  and 
hand  many  worthy  enterprises;  he  was  one  of 
the  contributors  to  the  Manual  Training  School. 

In  18 —  he  married  Miss  Clara  J.  Brown.  They 
have  three  children,  Jane  E.  Grannis,  Maud  Marj- 
Grannis,  and  Uri  Balcom  Grannis. 

Such  is  a  brief  sketch  of  his  biography.  He  is 
a  man  of  sound  business  principles,  who  has.  b\- 
his  own  exertions  and  indomitable  pluck,  pushed 
himself,  step  by  step,  to  the  high  position  which 
he  now  holds,  and  it  is  acknowledged  by  the  busi- 
ness men  and  leading  financiers  of  this  city  that 
there  does  not  exist  in  the  city  of  Chicago,  to- 
day, a  man  deserving  of  a  higher  place  amongst 
its  representative  men,  than  does  our  worthy 
subject,  William  C.  D.  Grannis. 


WILLIAM  C.    GOUDY, 

CHICAGO,  ILL. 

THAT  William  C.  Goudy  is  a  man    of  great  mitted.     We  need  only  give,  as  simply  as  possi- 

and   commanding  ability   is,   beyond    ques-  ble,  the  outlines  of    the    life    and    activity    which 

tion,  the  verdict  of  every  company  of  intelligent  have  led  up  to  the  position  which  he  now  occupies, 

men  in  any   part  of  this  country.     Such,  indeed,  William  C.  Goudy  was  born  in  Indiana,  on   the 

is  the  respect  with  which  his  name  is  spoken,  and  fifteenth  of  May,    1824.     His  mother,  Jane  Ains- 

such    the    eminence    of   those    with    which    it    is  lie,    was    of    English    descent,  and    was    born    in 

coupled,  that  even   a  stranger,  unaquainted  with  Pennsylvania.     His  father,  who  sprang  from   the 

the  details  of  his  life  work,  would  be  at   once  im-  old  Scotch-Irish  ancestry  which  has  furnished  us  so 

pressed  by  its  mention.     It    is   without   surprise,  many  men  of  strong  brain   and  hardy    fibre,  was 

then,  that  in  the  writing  of  a  contemporary,  highly  born  in  Ireland.     Others  of  the  family  resided  in 

distinguished  in  the  same   profession,  we   read  of  Scotland,  and  one   of  this  branch,  John   Goudie, 

him  that :     "  He  realizes  in  a  pre-eminent  degree  might  well  have   been   our  subject's  prototype,  if 


the  loftiest  conception  of  an  attorney,   using  the 
term  in  its  broadest  application." 

The  fame  of  such  a  man  is  not  to  be  increased 
by  reiteration  of  facts  pertaining  to  his  public  and 
professional    career,    known    and    universally    ad- 


we  take  the  humorous  testimony  of  Robert  Burns 
in  the  poem  beginning  : 

"  O  Goudie!  terror  of  the  Whigs, 
Dread  of  black  coats  and  rev'rend  wigs." 

Mr.  Goudv's  father  was  bred  to  the  trade  of  a 


\ 


^  ^. 


% 


BIOuKArniCAL  DICTIOXARV  AM)  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


37 


carpenter,  but  abandoned  this  to  go  into  the 
book-binding  and  printing  business.  In  1833, 
having  removed  to  Jacksonville,  111.,  he  began  the 
publication  of  "Goudy's  Farmers'  Almanac." 
This  was  the  first  magazine  of  its  kind  in  the 
Northwest,  and  became  exceedingly  popular  with 
agriculturists.  In  1834,  in  company  with  Samuel 
S.  Brooks,  he  undertook  the  publication  of  a 
Democratic  paper  at  Jacksonville,  and  to  Messrs. 
Goudy  and  Brooks  is  due  the  enduring  honor  of 
recognizing  and  bringing  to  public  notice  the  ex- 
traordinar\-  merits  of  Stephen  A.  Douglas. 

As  the  son  of  a  printer  already  widely  known, 
it  would  seem  to  have  been  quite  natural  for  Mr. 
Goudy  to  become  a  journalist.  Fortunately,  how- 
ever, his  predilection  for  the  law  was  strong 
enough  to  cause  him  to  disregard  this  opportun- 
ity. To  better  fit  himself  for  his  chosen  profes- 
sion, he  entered  Illinois  College,  at  Jacksonville, 
111.,  whence  he  graduated  in  1845.  That  institu- 
tion has  since  conferred  upon  him  the  degrees  of 
Master  of  Arts  and  Doctor  of  Laws.  He  then 
taught  school  in  Decatur,  111.,  at  the  same  time 
reading  the  elements  of  law.  His  more  advanced 
studies  were  pursued  in  the  office  of  Judge 
Stephen  T.  Logan,  for  many  years  a  partner  of 
Abraham  Lincoln. 

In  1847  Mr.  Goudy,  having  removed  to  Lewis- 
town,  111.,  was  admitted  to  the  bar.  He  entered 
into  partnership  with  the  well-known  Hon.  Heze- 
kiah  M.  Wead,  and  stepped  at  once  into  profes- 
sional prominence.  He  very  soon  became  active 
in  the  political  affairs  of  the  district,  and  in  1853 
was  elected  State's  attorney  of  the  Tenth  Judicial 
Circuit.  This  position  he  resigned  in  two  years, 
and  in  1856  was  elected  State  Senator  for  the  Dis- 
trict of  Fulton  and  McDonough.  During  this 
period  of  service  as  senator  occurred  the  memora- 
ble contest  between  Lincoln  and  Douglas. 

It  was  a  time  fraught  with  the  most  weighty 
and  important  issues  which  have  ever  confronted 
us  as  a  nation,  and  the  young  legislator  was  a 
participator  in  the  events  which  formed  the  pre- 
lude to  the  greatest  occurrence  in  the  histor>'  of 
the  United  States.  To  his  great  credit  be  it  said 
that  he  was  a  worthy  coadjutor  of  men  like  Judge 
Gillespie,  N.  B.  Judd,  Samuel  W.  Fuller  and  ex- 
Governor  Palmer  during  those  stirring  days. 

Perhaps  no  fact  better  proves  the  reality  of 
Mr.  Goudy's  affection  for  his  profession  than  that. 


amid  the  arduous  duties  and  the  many  distrac- 
tions of  politics,  he  still  attended,  with  unchang- 
ing faithfulness,  to  his  law  practice.  He  appeared 
repeatedly  in  the  courts  in  many  different  coun- 
ties of  Illinois,  and  also  in  the  supreme  court  of 
the  State. 

Mr.  Goudy  removed  to  Chicago  in  1859.  He 
has  given  especial  attention  to  the  law  of  real 
property,  upon  which  he  is  one  of  the  highest  au- 
thorities in  the  country.  An  idea  of  his  -work  in 
this  State  may  be  formed  from  the  reports  of  the 
supreme  court  of  Illinois,  in  every  volume  of 
which  for  the  past  thirty-five  years  have  appeared 
cases  argued  by  him.  He  has  appeared  in  the 
higher  courts  of  nearly  every  State  throughout 
the  West,  and  in  the  supreme  court  of  the  United 
States  has  been  leading  counsel  in  many  impor- 
tant cases.  The  recent  enactment  regarding 
"  original  packages  "  is  an  outgrowth  of  a  decision 
in  a  cause  argued  by  Mr.  Goudy  in  the  United 
States  Supreme  Court,  declaring  unconstitutional 
a  statute  of  Iowa  which  prohibited  railroads 
from  bringing  into.xicants  into  that  State.  He 
also  argued  the  famous  Munn  case,  by  which  was 
established  the  power  of  the  States  to  fix  the 
maximum  rates  to  be  charged  by  warehouses,  rail- 
ways, persons  or  corporations  engaged  in  a  pur- 
suit affected  with  a  public  interest.  Another  in- 
stance in  which  Mr.  Goudy  did  effective  service, 
was  in  the  great  railroad  cases  of  Minnesota, 
which  resulted  in  the  annulment  of  the  Minnesota 
statute,  authorizing  the  fi.xing  of  railroad  rates  by 
the  State  Commission.  Many  additional  cases 
m'ight  be  cited,  but  it  is  unnecessary.-  His  work 
is  of  a  nature  which  commands  universal  atten- 
tion, and  the  history  of  his  labors  is  to  be  found 
embodied  in  the  literature  of  law.  For  some 
years  he  has  been  counsel  for  the  Chicago  and 
North-Western  Railway  Company,  which  oper- 
ates one  of  the  largest  railroad  systems  in  the 
country.  In  domestic  life,  Mr.  Goudy  has  been 
particularly  happy.  He  was  married  in  1849  t*^ 
Miss  Helen  Judd,  who  is  a  worthy  sharer  of  his 
success,  as  she  has  been  a  faithful  helpmeet  in  its 
attainment.  They  have  two  children,  a  daughter 
and  a  son. 

Mr.  Goudy  has  always  been  a  staunch  sup- 
porter of  Democracy,  having  cast  his  first  vote 
for  Lewis  Cass  in  184S.  No  better  warrant  of  his 
conscientious  and   distinguished  serxice    need  be 


38 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIO.XARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


had  than  that  when  there  was  a  vacancy  in  the  tribute  of  high  import  had  been  paid  his  fellow 
United  States  Senate,  owing  to  the  death  of  candidate.  It  was  an  expression  in  most  touch- 
Stephen  A.  Douglas,  Mr.  Goudy  was  the  choice  ing  form  of  the  fact  that  among  the  great  men  of 
of  a  large  portion  of  the  Democracy  of  Illinois  as  his  time,  whose  labors  have  rendered  them  not 
Douglas'  successor.  Although  that  honor  was  only  honored,  but  beloved,  his  countrymen  de- 
f^nally  awarded  to  Mr.    Richardson,   of  Quincy,  a  light  to  number  William  C.  Goudy. 


THOMAS  B.  BRVAN. 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


WHEN  the  "  World's  Columbian  Exposition" 
shall  have  finally  closed  its  doors,  and  its 
history  shall  have  been  written  for  the  gratifica- 
tion of  succeeding  generations,  there  is  no  name 
amongst  the  many  prominent  ones  so  closely  con- 
nected with  it  that  will  stand  out  more  bril- 
liantly, or  command  ^rrr7/fr  admiration,  than  will 
that  of  the  Hon.  Thos.  B.  Bryan. 

The  citizens  of  Chicago  are  deeply  indebted  to 
Mr.  Bryan  for  the  magnificent  services  he  ren- 
dered, for  his  ceaseless  and  tireless  work,  and  the 
great  energy  and  devotion  he  displayed  in  ob- 
taining for  this  city  the  much-coveted  prize — the 
Columbian  Exposition.  Mr.  Bryan  has  been  a 
leading  spirit  in  the  matter  from  the  commence- 
ment. In  fact,  it  was  he  who  framed  the  resolu- 
tions presented  at  the  first  citizens'  meeting,  held 
in  the  Common  Council  chamber  on  August  first 
of  last  year,  the  result  of  which  was  that  Chicago 
became  a  candidate,  and  ultimately  the  victor,  in 
one  of  the  keenest  competitions,  probably,  ever 
entered  into  by  American  cities.  Mr.  Bryan's 
ardent  championship  of  Chicago's  claims,  his 
eloquent  appeals  throughout  the  country,  and  his 
masterly  and  unanswerable  reply  to  New  York's 
advocate  and  champion,  the  great  and  only 
Chauncey  Depew,  before  the  Senate  Committee 
at  Washington,  will  be  long  remembered,  and  un- 
doubtedly did  more  than  anything  else  to  secure 
the  prize.  His  presentation  of  Chicago's  claims 
was  so  effective  and  so  adroitly  put,  that  the  re- 
sult was  electrical,  and  even  New  York,  with  all 
her  boasted  superiority  of  social  distinction  and 
commercial  enterprise,  was  forced  to  yield,  and  to 
Mr.  Bryan,  beyond  a  doubt,  is  due  the  credit. 

He  was  born  at  Alexandria,  Va.,  December  22, 
1828;  he  is  the  son  of  Daniel  and  Mary  (Barbour) 
Bryan.     His    parents,   both   on   his    father's    and 


mother's  side,  were  people  of  considerable  cul- 
ture and  influence.  His  father  served  in  the 
Senate  of  Virginia,  and  two  of  his  mother's 
brothers,  James  and  Philip  Barbour,  held  the 
highest  official  positions  under  the  government  of 
that  day  as  Cabinet  Minister,  Speaker  of  the  Na- 
tional House  of  Representatives,  Judge  of  the 
United  States  Supreme  Court,  Minister  to  Eng- 
land, and  as  Governor  of  Virginia.  Our  subject 
graduated  from  the  law  school  of  Harvard  Univer- 
sity in  1848,  and  shortly  afterwards  entered  upon 
the  practice  of  law  in  Cincinnati,  Ohio,  forming  a 
partnership  with  Judge  Hart  of  that  city  in  1849. 
In  1852  Mr.  Bryan  came  west,  settling  in  Chicago 
when  the  city  was  little  more  than  an  overgrown 
village,  and  shortly  afterwards  forming  the  law 
firm  of  Mather,  Taft  &  Bryan,  subsequently 
changed  to  Bryan  &  Borden,  and  still  later  to 
that  of  Bryan  &  Hatch.  He  has  made  ofifice 
counselling  his  specialty,  and  for  forty  years, 
more  or  less,  Mr.  Bryan  has  resided  the  greater 
part  of  his  time  in  Chicago,  with  the  exception  of 
several  years  spent  in  Washington,  Colorado  and 
in  European  travel.  He  succeeded  GovernorShep- 
herd  as  one  of  the  Commissioners  (together  with 
Governor  Denison),  as  executive  of  the  District 
of  Columbia,  His  administration  was  marked  by 
the  same  ability,  honesty  and  prudence  in  expen- 
diture that  has  always  governed  his  actions.  His 
withdrawal,  voluntarily,  from  this  office  was  made 
the  signal  for  a  spontaneous  memorial  from  the 
citizens,  headed  by  the  philanthropist  Corcoran, 
and  signed  by  all  the  bankers  and  prominent 
business  men  of  the  Capital,  and  this  was  pre- 
sented to  him  on  his  vacation  of  the  office  to  re- 
sume his  duties  in  his  adopted  city.  The  founder 
and  promoter  of  many  public  enterprises,  Mr. 
Brvaii's  work  has  alwavs  been    c/owned  w  itb  sue- 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AAD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY 


39 


cess.  A  detailed  list,  even  of  his  public  enter- 
prises, would  fill  more  space  than  we  could  devote 
to  what  is  but,  at  the  best,  a  general  sketch.  But 
while  this  is  so,  there  are  one  or  two  which  de- 
serve and  require  more  than  a  mere  passing 
notice. 

The  originator  and  sole  proprietor  (formerly)  of 
Graceland  Cemeterj-.  Mr.  Brj-an  purchased  this 
tract  of  land,  having  found  that  the  population  of 
the  North  Side  was  inevitably  encroaching  on  the 
old  cemetery  (_which  now  forms  part,  of  Lincoln 
Park),  and,  if  only  from  a  sanitarj-  point  of  view, 
this  was  extremely  undesirable.  Graceland 
alone  (with  its  beautifully  laid-out  and  well-kept 
walks  and  shrubs,  etc.)  would  be  a  worthy  me- 
morial of  his  public  enterprise  and  regard  for  the 
prosperity  and  health  of  the  community  at  large. 
He  also  built  "  Bryan  Hall "'  (the  site  of  which  is 
now  occupied  by  the  Grand  Opera  House),  and 
here  many  a  memorable  war  meeting  was  held, 
and  innumerable  entertainments  for  patriotic  ob- 
jects. Mr.  Bryan  was  president  of  the  great 
Northwestern  Fair  for  the  relief  of  soldiers  of 
the  Union  in  1865,  for,  though  a  Southerner  by 
birth,  all  his  affiliations  and  sympathies  had  ever 
been  with  the  cause  of  the  Union.  As  the  direct 
result  of  his  presidency,  the  Fair  yielded  over 
8300,000  to  the  invalid  soldiers'  fund — such  was 
the  repose  placed  in  his  integrity,  and  in  his 
faculty  of  harmonizing  the  conflicting  interests  of 
the  various  officers  and  committees.  If  still  yet 
another  monument  to  his  patriotism  and  loyalty 
were  required,  the  Soldiers'  Home,  built  under  his 
direction  and  with  money  advanced  by  him,  is  that 
monument,  and  for  many  years  its  president,  his 
work  on  its  belialf  was,  and  is,  unflagging.  In 
fact,  his  distinguished  and  arduous  service  during 


the  war  was  such  that  no  honors  were  esteemed 
too  great,  and  amongst  others  accorded  him  was 
that  of  being  elected  a  member  of  the  Loyal 
Legion,  etc.  It  was  to  Mr.  Bryan's  forethought 
and  enterprise  that  Chicago  owed  the  Fidelity 
Safe  Depository,  which  passed,  unscathed, 
through  the  flames  of  187 1,  and  was  the  means  of 
saving  many  millions  to  the  citizens. 

Mr.  Bryan  married  in  1850  Miss  Byrd  Page,  of 
Virginia,  the  issue  being  a  son — Charles  P.  Bryan, 
now  a  member  of  the  Illinois  Legislature,  and 
formerly  of  that  of  Colorado,  and  who  by  profes- 
sion is  a  journalist  and  magazine  writer  of  consid- 
erable repute — and  a  daughter. 

As  a  speaker,  Mr.  Bryan  is  vigorous,  eloquent 
and  convincing,  one  who  controls  his  audience, 
and  rarely  fails  to  carry  his  point;  and,  in  addi- 
tion, one  who  seldom  speaks  unless  he  has  some- 
thing to  say  well  worth  the  hearing.  His  ban- 
quet and  other  public  speeches — unpremeditated 
as  many  of  them  are — bristle  with  eloquent 
phrases  and  happy  allusions,  while  they  are 
marked  with  that  good  sense  and  general  culture 
which  is,  and  always  has  been,  so  characteristic  of 
Thomas  B.  Bryan. 

As  First  Vice-President  of  the  "  World's  Co- 
lumbian Exposition,''  unanimously  elected  to 
that  office,  he  is  the  right  man  in  the  right  place, 
and  with  him  in  this  position,  there  need  be  no 
fear  for  the  success  of  such  a  fair  as  the  world  has 
never  yet  seen  ;  and  if  it  be  successful,  as  it  un- 
doubtedly will  be,  to  Thomas  B.  Bryan  must  be 
given  the  greater  credit,  for  in  him  Chicago  has 
a  citizen  who  is,  and  always  has  been,  devoted  to 
her  welfare,  and  no  man  has  worked  more  assidu- 
ously for  her  good,  or  with  greater  results,  than 
has  the  subject  of  our  sketch. 


JOHN    P.   BARRETT, 

CHICAGO,   ILL. 

JOHN  P.  B.ARKETT,  superintendent  of  the  America,  in  the  Pacific  ocean,  fell  from  the  mast- 
Fire  .Alarm  Telegraph  of  Chicago,  is  a  native  head  and  broke  his  arm  and  leg.  In  August. 
of  Auburn,  New  York.  While  he  was  yet  a  1862.  he  returned  to  Chicago,  and  was  appointed 
child,  his  parents  removed  to  Chicago,  where  a  member  of  the  Fire  Department,  serving  as 
John  received  a  good  common  school  education,  watchman  for  "  No.  8"  and  "  No.  3."  In  1S64. 
and  "ran"  with  "Niagara"  No.  3.  In  1858,  he  he  was  given  charge  of  the  City  Hall  bell  and 
went    to  sea,  and    while    off    the   coast  of  South  held  that  position  one  year. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


In  1865,  Chicago  adopted  the  Fire  Alarm  Tele- 
graph system.  Under  the  charge  of  E.  B. 
Chandler,  superintendent,  Mr.  Barrett  became  an 
efficient  operator,  and  upon  the  retirement  of 
Mr.  Chandler  in  May,  1876,  he  was  promoted  to 
the  position  of  superintendent  and  has  continued 
to  hold  it  until  the  present  time  (1892). 

Mr.  Barrett  has  not  rested  satisfied  with  ha\- 
ing  acquired  a  well-deserved  reputation  as  an 
executive  officer,  but  since  he  has  been  at  the 
head  of  this  department  has  accomplished  many 
important  reforms  and  become  quite  an  in- 
ventor. With  his  instrument  called  the  "  joker," 
the  alarm  is  received  at  each  engine  house 
the  same  instant  it  is  turned  in  at  any  box, 
thereby  obviating  the   necessity  of   waiting   for 


an  alarm  to  strike  on  the  gong  from  the  general 
office. 

Mr.  Barrett  was  the  originator  of  the  Police 
Patrol  Service,  now  being  generally  introduced 
throughout  the  United  States,  and  also  originated 
the  plan  of  placing  all  wires  under  ground,  there- 
by removing  unsightly  poles  from  the  streets;  of 
operating  city  plants  for  lighting  the  streets  b\- 
electricity,  and  of  the  bridge  telephone  service  for 
controlling  navigation  in  the  river  and  harbor. 
Mr.  Barrett  is  also  Chief  of  the  Electrical  Depart- 
ment of  the  World's  Columbian  Exposition. 

Mr.  Barrett  was  married  April  20,  1868,  and 
has  had  eleven  children,  eight  of  whom  are  living. 
He  is  a  life  member  of  the  Paid  Fire  Department 
Benevolent  Association. 


DAVID    BRAINARD    DEWEY, 


CHICAGO,  ILL. 


AMONG  those  who  have  achieved  positions  of 
eminence  by  reason  of  their  unswerving 
integrity  and  remarkable  financial  and  executive 
ability,  none  are  more  worthy  of  prominent  men- 
tion than  the  subject  of  this  sketch.  Like  many 
of  his  cotemporaries  among  the  successful  men  of 
the  present  day,  Mr.  Dewey  traces  his  ancestry  to 
the  early  Puritan  settlers  of  Massachusetts.  His 
ancestor,  Thomas  Dewey,  settled  in  Dorchester  in 
1630,  and  in  that  vicinity  the  Dewey  famih- 
resided  for  many  years,  the  subject  of  this  sketch 
being  born  in  Pittsfield,  Berkshire  County,  Massa- 
chusetts, on  May  28,  1839.  His  father,  Mark 
Dewey,  was  a  merchant  of  prominence,  noted  for 
his  high  Christian  character  and  intrepid  honesty. 
His  mother,  Sarah  M.  Dewey,  nee  Grinncll,  came 
from  a  family  well  and  favorably  known,  and  was 
a  woman  of  decided  character  and  ability. 

Young  Dewey  obtained  his  elementary  education 
in  the  common  school  and  academy  of  his  native 
town.  At  the  age  of  fifteen  he  came  West  to  meet 
and  assume  the  responsibilities  of  his  future  career 
among  strangers.  His  first  employment  was  upon 
a  Western  farm.  From  his  .seventeenth  to  his 
twenty-first  N'car,  he  taught  .school  winters,  thereby 
enabling  himself  to  take  a  summer  course  in  col- 
lege. The  difficulties  by  which  he  was  beset  in 
his  carl\-  struLri/les  to  obtain  a  livelihood  and   edu- 


cation developed  in  him  the  .strong  characteristics 
that  are  aptly  termed  "  Western,"  and  which  are 
identified  with  the  possession  of  ner\'e,  activity 
and  e.xhaustless  energy.  Law  was  his  chosen  pro- 
fession, but  after  a  severe  hemorrhage  caused  by 
addressing  a  large  assemblage  of  people  for  a 
Fourth  of  July  celebration,  in  the  open  air,  his 
physicians  decided  that  his  lungs  would  not  per- 
mit him  to  follow  what  then  seemed  to  be  the 
natural  bent  of  his  mind.  He  was  a  remarkably 
eloquent  and  forcible  speaker,  full  of  zeal  and 
energy,  able  to  hold  his  own  in  any  argument,  and 
it  is  the  unanimous  opinion  of  those  who  knew 
him  well  that  when  he  abandoned  the  law  the 
legal  profession  w  as  deprived  of  a  member  who 
would  have  become  one  of  its  brightest  lights. 
At  the  age  of  seventeen  he  entered  Whcaton 
College,  but  did  not  remain  to  finish  the  course. 
The  commencement  of  the  War  of  the  Rebellion 
found  him  one  of  the  verj-  first  to  respond  to 
Lincoln's  call  for  troops,  and,  upon  his  enlistment, 
he  was  made  a  sergeant  of  Companj"  A,  Second 
Regiment  of  Illinois  Cavalry.  In  this  capacitj- 
he  .served  his  country,  until  at  the  end  of  about  a 
year  a  severe  wound  compelled  his  retirement  and 
prevented  his  again  entering  the  service,  when  the 
commission  of  major  was  tendered  him.  Not 
only  was  he  prompt    in   enlisting  himself,  but  his 


I 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARV  A.\D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


43 


eloquent  speeches  and  patriotic  fervor  inspired 
others  to  rally  for  the  country's  defense. 

In  politics  he  has  always  been  a  Republican, 
castintj  his  first  vote  for  Abraham  Lincoln. 

In  1862  he  was  married  to  Miss  Nettie  A. 
Springer,  of  Rockford,  Illinois,  a  lady  of  excellent 
family  and  delightful  home  and  social  qualities. 
They  have  had  five  children,  of  whom  two  are 
living — Nettie  D.,  now  Mrs.  H.  S.  Farwcll,  and 
David  B.,  Jr.,  a  lad  of  three  and  a  half  years  of 
age. 

After  pursuing  various  occupations,  in  all  of 
which  he  was  successful,  in  1871  he  transferred 
liis  business  interests  to  Chicago,  entering  the 
mortgage  loan  business,  and  established  his  home 
at  Evanston,  where  he  has  bought  and  sold  large 
quantities  of  real  estate,  making  valuable  improve- 
ments which  have  greatly  added  to  the  beauty  of 
that  charming  suburb.  Among  these  improve- 
ments is  included  the  home  where  he  now  resides 
1)11  Maple  avenue.  His  home  has  ever  been  a 
delightful  resort  for  the  many  friends  of  the  family, 
and  its  doors  have  always  been  hospitabl)-  open. 
Mr.  Dewey  has  always  been  a  public-spirited, 
aggressive  citizen,  actively  identified  with  the 
progress  of  the  times,  serving  efficiently  in  the 
various  offices  of  the  Council,  Board  of  Educa- 
tion and  Church  Trustees,  ever  unselfishly  devoting 
himself  to  others'  interests.  In  1876  he  associated 
w  ith  himself  Hon.  John  L.  Beveridge,  ex-Governor 
of  Illinois,  and  opened  the  private  banking  house 
of  Beveridge  &  Dewey,  which  continued  its  suc- 
cessful career  until  1886,  when  he  organized  the 
American  Exchange  National  Bank.  His  busi- 
ness career  since  that  time  has  been  identified 
with  the  history  of  that  institution,  and  a  sketch 
of  his  life  would  not  be  complete  without  some 
reference  to  the  history  of  the  bank.  Upon  its 
organization,  Mr.  Dewey  was  elected  vice-presi- 
dent and  acknowledged  financial  manager.  The 
bank  opened  its  doors  for  business  May  10,  1886, 
and  at  once  secured  a  large  and  profitable  business. 
His  reputation  was  already  so  well  established 
among  financial  men  that  applications  came  in  for 
nearly  four  times  the  amount  of  stock  represented 
by  the  capital  of  the  bank.  During  the  early 
days  of  the  bank's  careOr,  an  event  occurred  which 
called  into  play  all  those  cautious  and  conserva- 
tive traits  which  enabled  him  to  so  manage  its 
affairs  in  the  gravest  crisis  of  its  history  that  it  is 


to-day  the  acknowledged  peer  of  any  financial 
institution  in  the  city.  The  story  of  the  bank, 
briefly  told,  is  that  on  June  9,  1887,  during  the 
[)rogrcss  of  the  famous  Harper  wheat  corner,  Mr. 
Dewey  was  suddenly  prostrated  and  confined  to 
his  bed  by  a  severe  illness.  On  the  15th,  while 
still  confined  to  his  home,  his  associate  officers 
cashed  the  celebrated  Fidelity  National  Bank 
fraudulent  drafts  to  the  amount  of  $400,000, 
which,  with  other  complications,  nearly  cost  the 
bank  its  life.  Mr.  Dewey  proved  his  remarkable 
nerve  and  devotion  to  his  friends  and  associates 
by  returning  to  the  bank  on  June  20,  against  the 
direct  orders  of  his  physicians  and  with  great 
danger  of  fatal  results  to  himself.  This  prompt 
action  of  his,  however,  undoubtedly  saved  the 
institution  from  utter  wreck.  So  great  was  the 
confidence  in  him  that  upon  his  return  the  with- 
drawal of  deposits  ceased  and  money  was  freelj- 
ofTered  from  many  sources.  Those  who  knew  the 
man  believed  that  he  would  find  a  way  to  save 
the  bank  from  ruin,  and  they  were  not  disap- 
pointed. 

The  failure  of  C.  J.  Kershaw  &  Co.,  who  kept 
an  account  with  the  American  Exchange  National 
Bank,  involved  it  in  extensive  and  complicated 
litigation,  which,  with  other  almost  insurmount- 
able obstacles,  would  ha\e  di.scouraged  any  man 
of  ordinary  pluck  and  ability.  It  is  a  well-recog- 
nized fact  that  to  Mr.  Dewey  was  wholly  due  the 
conception  and  execution  of  the  plan  which  lifted 
the  bank  from  the  wreck  and  disaster  in  which  it 
was  plunged  and  placed  it  among  the  solid  finan- 
cial institutions  of  Chicago.  Upon  his  retirement 
from  the  bank  the  press  of  Chicago  and  financial 
publications  in  New  York,  Boston  and  London 
gave  him  very  flattering  notices.  Mr.  Dewey's 
proposition  to  make  an  assessment  of  thirty  per 
cent,  upon  the  stock  was  promptly  responded  to, 
and  then  the  battle  for  restoration  was  vigorously 
prosecuted,  and,  to  those  most  familiar  with  the 
facts  of  that  history,  his  success  stands  a  marvel- 
ous achievement.  Another  notable  incident  con- 
nected with  the  struggle  of  the  bank  at  this  time 
was  the  famous  suit  against  the  Fidelity  National 
Bank  of  Cincinnati,  which  was  finally  carried 
through  the  various  courts  to  the  Supreme  Court 
of  the  United  States,  and  a  victory  won  by  the 
American  Exchange  National  Bank  which  was  of 
the  most  profound  interest  to  bankers' and   busi- 


44 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


ncss  men  generally.  The  bank  showed  its  ability 
to  recuperate  from  its  losses  and  exhaustive  legal 
expenses  by  earning  and  paying  ever  since  that 
almost  fatal  panic  a  continuous  yearly  dividend  of 
six  per  cent.,  in  addition  to  which  it  has  placed  to 
the  credit  of  its  surplus  funds  and  undivided 
profits  over  $250,000.  These  results  speak  vol- 
umes for  the  sagacious  management  of  the  bank, 
and  forcibly  endorse  the  wisdom  of  its  stock- 
holders in  placing  Mr.  Dewey  in  full  charge  as 
president,  which  was  done  immediately  after  the 
commencement  of  the  troubles  which  followed 
the  cashing  of  the  Fidelity  drafts.  The  heavy 
duties  and  intense  anxiety  connected  with  the 
reorganization  and  recuperation  of  the  bank 
depleted  Mr.  Uewey"s  health,  and  made  a  tempo- 
rary retirement  from  close  confinement  to  busi- 
ness a  necessity.  After  the  bank  was  fully  relieved 
of  all  complications  growing  out  of  its  misfortunes 
in  1887,  Mr.  Dewey  frequently  expressed  a  desire 
to  be  relieved  from  the  active  duties  and  respon- 
sibilities of  the  presidency,  and  finally  decided 
to  retire,  which  he  did  on  August  i,  1891.  and 
in  this  connection  it  is  proper  to  give  the  follow- 
ing resolutions  which  were  unanimously  adopted 
by  the  Board  of  Directors  of  the  American  Ex 
change  National  Bank  at  a  meeting  held  in  Jul>-, 
1 891  : 

WherE.\S,  David  B.  Dewey.  President  of  the  American 
Exchange  National  Bank,  has  from  time  to  time,  and  es- 
pecially during  the  last  year,  intimated  his  desire  to  be 
relieved  from  the  exacting  burdens  and  cares  of  his  office, 
and  mainly  for  reasons  connected  with  his  bodily  health ; 
and 

Whereas,  It  has  come  to  the  knowledge  of  the  Board  of 
Directors  that  this  desire  has  been  intensified  by  the  assur- 
ance of  his  physician  that  the  day  was  not  far  off  when,  if 
not  voluntarily,  he  would  be  compelled  to  desist  from  these 
labors  ;  now,  therefore,  be  it 

Resolved,  That  in  our  association  with  Mr.  Dewey  during 
the  last  five  years  he  has  become  greatly  endeared  to  us  as  a 
friend;  his  companionship  has  been  a  pleasure  and  delight; 
we  have  learned  to  confide  in  his  judgment  as  a  clear-minded 
and  conscientious  business  man.  Times  of  trial  and  days  of 
adversity  have  strengthened  our  faith  in  his  unswerving  in- 
tegrity and  thorough  loyalty  to  all  the  interests  of  this  bank. 
The  days  have  not  always  been  bright,  nor  the  skies  without 
their  clouds,  but  in  the  experiences  that  brought  so  much  of 
anxiety  and  apprehension,  the  bonds  of  personal  friendship 
and  mutual  confidence  have  grown  all  the  stronger.  We  de- 
sire to  assure  him  that  whenever  it  shall  seem  to  him  best  to 
retire  from  the  executive  chair  of  this  bank  he  will  take  with 
him  our  warmest  regard  and  a  confidence  in  his  executive 
ability  and  personal  integrity  that  has  become  all  the  stronger 


by  reason  of  the  obstacles  overcome  and  mipedimcnts  sur- 
mounted, all  of  which  gives  assurance  of  stability  and  a  per- 
manent growth  as  to  the  future  of  the  bank. 

The  Board  ot  Directors  are  not  unmindful  of  the  extraor- 
dinary services  of  Mr.  Dewey  that  were  crowned  with  the 
most  important  results  in  the  matter  of  the  troubles  ot  four 
years  ago,  and  it  is  only  an  act  of  simple  justice  that  we 
record  our  grateful  remembrance  of  his  personal  sacrifice  and 
service  through  those  times  of  perplexity  and  difficulty,  and 
to  hope  that  whatever  may  be  his  relation  to  us  he  will  at 
least  consent  to  remain  on  the  Board  of  Directors. 

Mr.  Dewey  has  been  for  many  years  a  promi- 
nent Mason,  and  on  November  17,  1890,  there  was 
held  at  the  Evanston,  Illinois,  Masonic  Temple  a 
memorial  service  in  commemoration  of  the  services 
of  Sir  Knight  Dewey  in  securing  a  charter  for  the 
Evanston  Commandery.  There  was  placed  in  the 
walls  of  the  Asylum  a  marble  memorial  tablet 
bearing  the  name  of  Dewey,  and  in  the  library  a 
fine  crayon  portrait.  The  feelings  of  his  INIasonic 
brethren  can  best  be  evidenced  by  quoting  direct 
from  the  pages  of  the  memorial  book  published 
giving  an  account  of  the  proceedings.  In  the 
dedication  of  the  volume,  Hon.  Charles  G.  Neely 
said :  "  In  recognition  of  one  who  so  pre-emi- 
nently labored  to  secure  our  Masonic  home, 
wheru  we  may  meet  in  m\'stic  association  the 
friends  and  companions  of  our  youth,  and  in 
honor  of  him  who  does  in  his  life  so  highly  exem- 
plify the  noble  principles  of  character  building 
and  friendship  therein  made,  there  has  been  placed 
in  the  walls  of  the  Asylum  a  marble  meiriorial 
tablet  bearing  the  name  '  Dewey,"  and  in  our 
hearts  most  truly  indeed  are  his  work  and  worth 
remembered." 

Eminent  Sir  Charles  G.  Haskin  said  :  "  We  have, 
therefore,  Sir  Knight  Dewey,  as  a  tribute  of  our 
respect  and  admiration  for  those  knightly  qualities, 
placed  in  the  walls  of  our  Asylum  a  memorial 
Maltese  cross  bearing  your  name,  and  in  our  par- 
lors your  portrait,  not  only  to  show  our  esteem 
and  brotherly  love  for  yourself,  but  to  perpetuate 
the  memory  of  those  qualities  of  heart  and  mind 
the  exercise  of  which  has  so  much  been  a  pleasure 
to  \ou  and  at  the  same  time  the  means  of  pro- 
viding for  the  fraters  of  Evanston  a  home." 

Past  Eminent  Sir  Robert  Hill :  "  My  first  intro- 
duction to  Sir  Knight  Dewey  was  upon  the  first 
organization  of  this  Commandery,  or  rather  before 
its  organization,  and  the  impression  I  gained  of 
him  then  was  that   he  was  a  manly  man    and    a 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  A.\D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


45 


knightly  man.    That  impression  has  remained  witii 
me  ever  since." 

Sir  H.  H.  C.  Miller:  "In  all  his  planning  and 
doing,  he  was  absolutely  unselfish.  To  his  indom- 
itable energ>-.  persistent  effort,  successful  planning, 
large  personal  influence  and  eloquent  words  on  the 
floor  of  the  Grand  Commandery  on  that  memo- 
rable day  in  October,  1885.  when  the  fight  was 
finally  won,  we  are  chiefly  indebted  for  the  e.xist- 
ence  of  Evanston  Commandeiy." 

Sir  C.  H.  Remy :  "  A  man,  Sir  Knights,  ener- 
getic, persevering,  faithful,  loyal,  true,  bravely 
meeting  discouragements,  overcoming  all  obstacles, 
with  the  windows  of  his  life  shut  against  despair, 
never  faltering,  never  failing,  always  brave,  gallant 
and  chivalrous,  and  winning  a  success  that  in  every 
sense  symbolizes  the  great  virtues  of  true  knight- 
hood." 

Sir  E.  S.  Weeden  :  "  We  erect  here  a  memorial 
stone  to  the  most  noble  of  virtues — tireless  self- 
sacrifice  for  the  good  of  others.  And  we  write 
upon  it  the  name  '  Dewey.'  We  meet  to-night  to 
honor  one  who  has  been  foremost  in  founding  this 
noble  order  in  our  peerless  village  home.  We 
honor  him  because  he  has  most  faithfully  exem- 
plified the  principles  of  our  order.  His  labors  in 
securing  our  charter  were  tireless,  his  self-sacrifice 
boundless,  his  faith  limitless,  and  his  final  triumph 
over  seeming  impossibilities  most  signal  and  com- 
plete." 

Sir  Frank  P.  Crandon :  "  Brother  Dewey.  I  con- 
gratulate you  upon  the  respect  and  well-founded 
esteem  and  the  constant  \eneration  of  your 
brother  Sir  Knights.  May  you  always  realize,  as 
I  believe  you  now  realize,  that  your  place  in  their 
hearts  is  established  and  that  your  fame  in  their 
hands  is  secure." 

Sir  Volney  W.  Foster:  ''I  am  especially  glad 
to  make  a  memory  for  this  man." 

Sir  George  S.  Baker:  "It  is  fitting  that  we 
should  in  some  manner  signalize  and  commemo- 
rate the  knightly  ser\'ices  of  our  frater.  Sir  Knight 
Dewey.  Let  us  especially  rejoice  that  we  dedi- 
cate here  no  memorial  of  departed  worth,  but  that 
the  same  patience  and  perseverance,  the  same 
faith  and  magnanimous  valor  are  still  with  us, 
ready  to  take  up  the  sword,  if  need  be,  or  plead 
our  cause  in  fitting  words." 

Sir  L.  W.  Conkcy :  "How  beautiful,  simple 
and  striking  is  this  tablet  we  see  on   the  walls  of 


this  dear  templar  home  of  ours!  'Dewey.'  What 
does  this  mean?  To  us  who  know  this  Sir  Knight, 
this  Christian  gentleman,  who  loves  ever>-thing 
that  is  good  and  true,  it  means  much." 

Sir  M.  B.  lott :  "Through  Xhe  untiring  efforts 
and  unwearied  zeal  of  this  beloved  Sir  Knight, 
Evanston  is  in  possession  of  a  commander)-. 
This  is  but  one  of  his  many  laudable  deeds,  and 
to  know  is  but  to  love  him." 

Sir  James  H.  Raymond  :  "  I  have  the  most 
unbounded  confidence  and  the  warmest  admiration 
in  and  for  his  integrity  and  his  absolute  devotion 
of  mind,  body  and  estate  to  all  persons  and  plans 
in  which  he  has  confidence." 

Sir  W.  S.  Mellen :  "If  ever  knight  possessed 
knightly  virtues  to  make  him  the  peer  of  any 
king.  Sir  Knight  Dewey  is  the  man.  With  a  heart 
as  tender  as  a  woman's,  with  a  hand  always  open 
to  aid  those  in  trouble  or  distress,  and  with  a  soul 
brave  and  true  to  every  con\iction  of  right,  any 
man  can  be  proud  of  his  friendship,  and  those  who 
are  so  blessed  can  rejoice  in  his  love.  In  the 
many  years  I  have  known  Sir  Knight  Dewey,  and 
in  which  there  have  grown  up  between  us  friendly 
ties  of  more  than  ordinarj-  strength,  I  have  learned 
to  judge  him  as  a  man  far  abo\'e  the  ordinary-. 
Positive  in  his  con\ictions,  tender  in  his  loves, 
loyal  in  his  friendships,  a  knight  beyond  reproach. 
Would  there  were  more  such  men  in  the  world  I 
If  there  were  such  men  in  the  world  to  hold  the 
balance  of  power,  corruption  would  die  from  lack 
of  sustenance,  the  jail  doors  rot  off  their  hinges, 
and  wrong  in  high  places  be  unknown." 

Sylvester  F.  Jones,  D.  D. :  "In  honoring  him 
you  honor  yourselves.  If  the  establishment  of 
your  commandery  in  Evanston  was  a  work  of 
difficulty,  requiring  energv',  patience  and  persist- 
ence, combined  with  moral  courage,  he  was  just 
the  man  for  the  work.  I  have  found  in  him  these 
qualities  in  a  very  marked — in  fact,  exceptionally 
marked — degree  ;  qualities  which  may  be  summed 
up  in  one  word,  a  word  lustrous  in  earth  and 
Heaven — fidelity." 

Rev.  N.  D.  Hillis:  "  Happy  is  he  who  gathers 
as  he  goes  such  symmetry  and  shapeliness,  such 
temper  and  quality,  and  measures  out  such  sym- 
pathy and  justice  as  evoke  from  comrades  and 
neighbors  such  tributes  of  praise." 

The  abo\e  quotations  from  eminent  Sir  Knights 
show  this  man's  character,  and  are  an  endorsement 


46 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


beyond  question.  In  all  the  relations  of  life, 
whether  of  a  business  or  social  nature,  his  charac- 
ter has  been  beyond  reproach,  and  his  integrity 
has  never  been  questioned.  His  loyalty  to  every 
interest  committed  to  his  care  has  led  him  to 
assume   burdens  from  which  men  would  shrink. 


Charitable  at  all  times  and  to  all  people,  he  is  rec- 
ognized as  the  firm  friend  and  gallant  defender  of 
the  poor,  towards  whose  needs  he  has  ever  gen- 
erously contributed  in  time  and  money.  It  is  a 
life  notably  worthy  of  emulation  by  all  who  would 
have  it  truthfully  said  of  them,  "Well  done," 


HON.  VAN    HOLLIS   HIGGINS, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


AMONG  the  successful  and  distinguished  men 
of  Chicago,  none  deserves  ^  more  honorable 
mention  than  he  whose  name  heads  this  biogra- 
phy. A  native  of  Genesee  county,  New  York,  he 
was  born  February  20,  1 821,  the  son  of  David 
and  Eunice  (Sackett)  Higgins.  His  father  was  a 
native  of  East  Haddam,  Conn.,  and  a  farmer  by 
occupation  ;  he  settled  in  Cayuga  county.  New 
York,  in  1814;  later  removed  to  Genesee  county, 
but  afterwards  returned  to  Cayuga  county  and 
died  there  in  1827.  His  mother,  a  native  of  Ver- 
mont, died  in  1847.  She  was  a  daughter  of  Will- 
iam Sackett  and  sister  of  the  Hon.  William  A. 
Sackett,  now  a  resident  of  Saratoga,  and  formerly 
member  of  Congress  from  Seneca  county,  New 
York.  David  and  Eunice  Higgins  had  eight  sons, 
of  whom  our  subject  was  the   fifth. 

He  received  his  primary  education  in  the 
public  schools  of  Auburn  and  Seneca  Falls,  New 
York,  and  at  the  early  age  of  twelve  years  en- 
gaged in  business  at  the  last  named  place,  as 
a  clerk  in  the  store  of  his  eldest  brother. 
Four  years  later,  in  1837,  prompted  by  an  am- 
bition for  a  field  of  action  where  his  powers 
might  have  full  and  free  scope,  he  removed  to 
Chicago,  where  his  brother,  A.  D.  Higgins,  had 
established  himself  in  1835  as  proprietor  of  a 
general  store,  and  with  whom  he  associated  him- 
self as  an  assistant.  Chicago  then  had  le.ss  than 
five  thousand  inhabitants.  After  leaving  school 
he  persisted  in  keeping  up  his  studies,  devoting 
all  his  spare  time  to  that  end,  and  during  the  win- 
ter of  1837-8  taught  a  district  school  in  Vermilion 
county,  Illinois,  with  much  success. 

Prior  to  this  time  his  brother  had  become 
publisher  of  the  Missouri  Argus,  a  daily  paper 
of  St.  Louis,  Mo.,  then  a  prosperous  city  of 
some    fifteen   thousand    inhabitants,    and    in    the 


spring  of  1839  our  subject  went  thither  and 
spent  a  year  in  reportorial  work.  He  after- 
wards engaged  in  mercantile  business  at  St. 
Louis'  on  his  own  account,  and  although  the 
venture  proved  a  financial  success,  he  was  not 
satisfied,  and  yielding  to  a  long  cherished  desire 
to  enter  the  legal  profession,  voluntarily  sold  out 
his  business  and  turned  his  attention  to  the  study 
of  law.  In  the  spring  of  1842,  being  then  twenty- 
one  years  of  age,  he  went  to  Iroquois  county, 
Illinois,  and  there  continued  his  legal  studies,  and 
a  few  months  later  was  duly  admitted  to  the  bar. 
He  practiced  one  year  at  Middleport,  and  in  1845 
removed  to  Galena,  Illinois,  where,  in  the  follow- 
ing year,  he  associated  himself  with  O.  C.  Pratt. 
Esq.,  afterwards  a  judge  of  the  Supreme  Court  of 
Oregon,  and  later  judge  of  one  of  the  District 
Courts  at  San  Francisco,  Cal.  This  partnership 
continued  till  1849.  ^I''-  Higgins  continued  the 
practice  of  law  at  Galena  with  constantly  increas- 
ing success  and  popularity  till  1852,  and  during 
his  residence  there  was  for  two  years  City  Attor- 
ney. Returning  to  Chicago,  which  had  grown  to 
be  a  city  of  thirty  thousand  inhabitants,  he  soon 
afterwards  formed  a  partnership  with  Messrs. 
Cor>-don  Beckwith  and  B.  F.  Strother,  under  the 
firm  name  of  Higgins,  Beckwith  and  Strother. 
The  firm  prospered  from  the  start  and  soon  came 
to  be  one  of  the  most  prominent  in  Chicago. 

Mr.  Higgins  had  never  sought  the  honors  or 
emoluments  of  office,  although  from  the  beginning 
of  his  career  as  a  lawyer  he  had  taken  an  active 
interest  in  political  matters.  With  the  more  intel- 
ligent class  of  his  fellow-citizens,  by  whom  he  was 
naturally  looked  to  as  a  leader,  he  was  opposed  to 
the  repeal  of  the  Missouri  Compromise  and  the 
extension  of  slavery,  and  upon  the  formation  of 
the  Republican  party    in    1856,  he  became    identi- 


C^'c.^/i^/^ 


^^  f 


BIOGR.irHICAL  DICTIOXARY  A.\D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


49 


fied  with  it,  and  two  years  later  was  elected  to  the 
General  Assembly  of  Illinois  on  the  Republican 
ticket.  In  the  legislature  he  held  a  commandin'^ 
position,  and  became  known  as  a  high-minded, 
patriotic  and  impartial  legislator,  and  at  the  close 
of  his  term  he  was  elected  judge  of  the  Superior 
Court  of  Chicago  by  an  overwhelming  majority. 

During  the  period  of  the  civil  war.  Judge 
Higgins  was  conspicuous  for  his  zeal  in  the 
cause  of  the  Union.  He  was  a  warm  personal 
friend  and  staunch  supporter  of  President  Lincoln, 
and  in  word  and  deed  lent  himself  to  the  support 
of  the  measures  inaugurated  by  those  who  were 
in  accord  with  the  President  in  his  work  of  saving 
the  Union.  He  early  saw  the  necessity  of  organi- 
zation among  Union  men,  and  was  largely  instru- 
mental in  forming  the  Union  Defense  Committee 
of  Chicago,  which  may  justly  be  classed  with  the 
Union  League  and  other  leading  organizations  that 
rendered  such  cfificient  service  and  contributed  so 
largely  to  the  success  of  the  Union  cause.  Judge 
Higgins  was  prominent  as  a  member  of  the  exec- 
utive committee  of  this  organization,  and  by  his 
counsels  and  work  rendered  ser\-ices  in  raising  and 
equipping  recruits,  furnishing  supplies  and  cloth- 
ing, helping  the  sick  and  wounded  and  comforting 
the  bereaved,  that  gained  for  him  a  high  place  in 
the  esteem  of  his  fellow-citizens,  as  a  patriot  and 
philanthropist. 

In  the  fall  of  1865,  Judge  Higgins  resigned 
from  the  bench,  and  forming  a  partnership  with 
the  Hon.  Leonard  Swett  and  Col.  David  Quigg, 
under  the  firm  name  of  Higgins,  Swett  and 
Quigg,  resumed  the  practice  of  law.  This  relation- 
ship continued  until  1872,  when  he  withdrew  from 
the  firm  to  accept  the  presidency  of  the  Babcock 
Manufacturing  Company.  Four  years  later,  on 
January  1st,  1876,  he  withdrew  from  active  parti- 
cipation in  the  affairs  of  this  company,  and  took 
charge  of  the  financial  department  of  the  Charter 
Oak  Life  Insurance  Co.  for  the  Western  States. 
Judge  Higgins,  as  proprietor  of  Rose  Hill  Ceme- 
tery Co.,  has  been  at  the  head  of  that  organization 
since  1872,  and  since  1880  has  been  president  of 
the  National  Life  Insurance  Company  of  the 
United  States,  the  only  life  insurance  company 
in  existence  chartered  by  Congress.  He  is  also 
president  of  the  Fidelity  Safe  Deposit  Company 
of  Chicago ;  is  a  member  of  the  Chicago  Har 
Association,  of  the  American  Har  Association  and 


of  the  American  Academy  of  Political  and  Social 
Science,  and  was  one  of  the  charter  members  of 
the  Chicago  Historical  Society.  He  is  a  man  of 
genial,  sunny  nature  and  social  qualities  of  a  high 
order,  and  finds  time  to  indulge  his  social  tastes, 
being  a  member  of  the  Kenwood  Club,  the  Wash- 
ington Park  Club,  the  Union  League  Club,  and 
president  of  the  Hyde  Park  Suburban  Club. 
Throughout  his  busy  life,  Judge  Higgins  has  been 
an  enthusiastic  lover  of  mechanical  arts  and  has 
devoted  much  time  to  mechanical  pursuits,  and  in 
gratifying  his  tastes  in  this  direction  has  invented 
and  patented  a  number  of  important  mechanical 
appliances.  In  forming  an  estimate  of  the  char- 
acter of  Judge  Higgins,  one  cannot  but  be  im- 
pressed with  his  varied  talents  and  qualities.  The 
late  Emery  A.  Storrs  speaking  of  him,  said,  "  He 
is  a  man  of  great  public  spirit,  and  is  in  feeling 
and  character  a  typical  Western  man.  From  the 
beginning.  Judge  Higgins  has  seen  with  a  vision 
clearer  than  most  men,  not  only  the  probabilities 
but  also  the  possibilities  of  the  West ;  and  what  a 
quarter  of  a  century  and  more  ago  he  so  clearly 
saw,  and  what  he  so  confidently  prophesied,  he  has 
diligently  worked  to  realize."  Throughout  his 
life  he  has  been  a  diligent  student,  and,  especially 
in  the  line  of  his  profession,  has  given  to  his  intel- 
lectual tastes  the  fullest  scope.  Endowed  by 
nature  with  a  legal  and  judicial  mind,  he  engaged 
in  his  professional  work  with  a  zeal  and  love  that 
could  not  but  lead  to  the  highest  attainments 
and  win  for  him  an  honorable  name.  He  was 
especially  noted  for  his  pains-taking  in  the  prepa- 
ration of  his  cases,  and  by  reason  of  his  thorough 
knowledge  of  the  law,  performed  his  professional 
work  with  an  ease  and  naturalness  that  marked 
him  as  a  master  and  leader.  Possessed  of  a  pro- 
digious memory,  he  was  enabled  to  recall  de- 
cisions and  precedents  at  will,  so  that  on  the 
bench  he  was  able  to  dispatch  the  busines*  of  his 
court  with  rapidity ;  and  so  thorough  was  his 
comprehension  of  legal  principles,  and  such  his 
conscientious  regard  for  the  duties  of  his  high 
ofirtcc,  that  he  made  few  mistakes  of  judgment 
and  his  decisions  were  rarely  reversed.  As  a 
judge  he  dealt  with  law  not  merely  in  the  abstract, 
but  applied  its  principles  with  discretion  and 
justice,  in  which  he  was  greatly  aided  by  his 
thorough  acquaintance  with  business  and  business 
methods.     In  judicial   manner  he   was  a   model : 


50 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


courteous  and  affable,  patient  and  attentive  to  all, 
he  knew  no  favorites;  and  no  lawyer  practicing 
in  his  court  ever  had  just  cause  to  complain  of 
unfair  treatment.  A  point  presented,  though  new 
and  seemingly  opposed  to  the  current  authority, 
received  his  careful  attention  and  if  reason  justi- 
fied, was  fearlessly  sustained.  Always  deeply 
interested  in  young  men,  his  position  on  the  bench 
afforded  him  many  opportunities  of  aiding  and 
encouraging  the  younger  members  of  the  bar  who 
appeared  before  him.  Comparatively  few  of  those 
who  practiced  before  him  are  still  members  of  the 
Chicago  bar  ;  but  wherever  they  are,  his  profound 
learning,  patient  forbearance,  uniform  courtesy 
and  genial  yet  dignified  manner,  will  ever  be  held 
in  honor  and  grateful  remembrance. 

In  personal  appearance  Judge  Higgins  is  tall 
and  well  proportioned  and  has  a  commanding  and 
dignified  bearing,  with  features  marked  by  firm- 
ness and  decision  of  character,  yet  softened  by 
culture  and  amiabilit}-  of  manner.  His  life  has 
been  one  of  constant  activity ;  and   in   whatever 


position  placed  he  has  shown  himself  master  of  it, 
achieving  both  distinction  and  success.  Public- 
spirited,  large-hearted  and  high-minded,  his  public 
acts  and  private  life  alike  have  contributed  to  the 
welfare  of  his  fellows,  and  it  is  but  fitting  and  just 
to  say  that  he  holds  a  first  place  among  the 
honored  men  who  have  made  it  possible  for  their 
adopted  city  to  attain  to  the  high  position  she 
now  holds  among  the  leading  cities  of  our  land ; 
while  among  his  personal  friends  and  acquaint- 
ances, he  is  loved  and  revered  for  his  kindly,  noble 
deeds  and  manly  qualities  of  mind  and  heart. 
Although  his  life  has  been  so  full  of  activity,  yet 
he  has  alwaj's  cherished  a  love  for  home  and  no- 
where finds  greater  enjoyment  than  when  gathered 
with  his  family,  or  entertaining  his  friends  around 
his  own  fire-side  and  hospitable  board. 

Judge  Higgins  has  been  twice  married;  first  in 
1847  to  Mrs.  E.  S.  Alexander,  of  Jacksonville, 
Illinois,  who  died  in  1882.  In  1883,  '^^  ^^'^s  mar- 
ried to  Miss  Lena  Isabel  Morse,  a  daughter  of  Mr. 
A.  C.  Morse,  of  San  Francisco,  California. 


JOHN   CRERAR. 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


BY  the  death  of  an  upright  and  honorable  citi- 
zen, the  community  sustains  an  irreparable 
loss,  and  is  deprived  of  the  presence  of  one  whom 
it  had  come  to  look  upon  as  a  guardian,  benefactor 
and  friend.  Death  often  removes  from  our  midst 
those  whom  we  can  ill  afford  to  spare  ;  whose 
place  it  is  difficult  to  fill ;  whose  lives  and  actions 
have  been  all  that  is  exemplary  of  the  true  and 
thereby  really  great  citizen,  and  whose  whole 
career,  both  business  and  social,  serves  as  a  model 
to  the  young  and  as  a  rejuvenation,  as  it  were,  to 
the  aged.  Such  a  career  sheds  a  brightness  and  a 
lustre  around  everything  with  which  it  comes  in 
contact.  It  creates  by  its  usefulness  and  general 
benevolence  a  memory  whose  perpetuation  does 
not  depend  upon  brick  or  stone,  but  upon  the 
spontaneous  and  free-will  offering  of  a  grateful 
and  enlightened  people. 

By  the  death  of  John  Crerar,  October  19,  1S89, 
the  city  of  Chicago  lost  one  of  its  most  respected 
and  prominent  citizens.  Born  in  New  York  City 
in    1827,    h.is    parents    were    Scotch,    and    he    in- 


herited from  them  the  sterling  characteristics  of 
that  vigorous  race.  Educated  in  the  schools  of 
that  city,  he  at  length  engaged  in  business  there 
and  became  a  member  of  the  firm  of  Jesup, 
Kennedy  and  Co.  He  was  prominent  there  both 
in  business  and  social  affairs,  and  possessing  a 
large  circle  of  friends,  he  kept  up  his  acquaintance 
with  many  of  them  until  the  day  of  his  death. 

In  1862,  Mr.  Crerar  located  in  Chicago,  in  which 
cit}'  he  resided  ever  after.  He  was  the  senior 
of  the  well-known  firm  of  Crerar,  Adams  and 
Co.,  and  one  of  the  incorporators  of  the  Pullman 
Palace  Car  Co.,  of  which  he  was  a  director.  He 
was  also  a  director  of  the  Chicago  and  Alton 
Railroad  Co.;  the  Illinois  Trust  and  Savings 
Bank;  the  Chicago  Relief  and  Aid  Society;  the 
Presbyterian  Hospital ;  vice-president  of  the 
Chicago  Orphan  Asylum,  and  president  of  the 
Chicago  and  Joliet  Railroad  Co.  He  was  also 
connected  with  many  other  organizations  and 
was  a  member  of  the  Chicago,  Calumet  and 
Union  Clubs.     He  was   a   frequent   attendant   at 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


the  meetings  of  the  Commercial  and  Literary 
clubs  and  evinced  much  interest  in  their  literary 
exercises. 

In  speaking  of  Mr.  Crerar's  death.  Mr.  J.  Mc- 
Gregor Adams,  who  for  a  quarter  of  a  century 
had  been  his  partner  and  intimate  friend,  said  : 
"  I  have  been  a  partner  and  friend  of  Mr.  Crerar 
for  twenty-five  years  and  his  loss  is  a  severe  blow 
to  me.  He  was  a  big-souled,  generous  man, 
liberal  in  all  things,  and  one  whose  friendship  was 
a  thing  to  be  prized  and  to  be  proud  of.  He  was 
a  philanthropist  of  the  noblest  type,  and  did  a 
wonderful  amount  of  good  in  a  quiet  way.  For 
twenty-five  years  he  and  I  have  been  business 
partners,  and  during  that  long  period  we  never 
had  a  quarrel  or  dispute  in  any  way.  That 
thought  will  always  be  sacred  in  my  memory  and 
form  one  of  my  most  pleasant  recollections  of 
him.  To  his  employees  he  was  always  the  same — 
pleasant,  genial  and  approachable.  Frank  and 
outspoken,  decided  in  his  views,  he  never  hesi- 
tated to  express  them,  though  it  was  always  done 
in  an  affable  manner.  He  had  a  vein  of  quiet 
humor  that  made  him  a  ver\-  companionable  man. 
Full  of  fun  and  anecdote,  he  dearl)-  loved  a 
good  story.  His  peculiar  manner  of  throwing  back 
the  lapel  of  his  coat  when  telling  a  story  will 
always  be  remembered  by  his  friends." 

In  religious  faith  he  was  a  Presbyterian,  and 
was  a  member  and  regular  attendant  of  the 
Second  Presbyterian  Church,  being  one  of  the 
trustees,  and  always  exhibited  large-hearted  liber- 
ality and  generous  interest  in  its  welfare.  In  poli- 
tics he  was  a  Republican,  though  he  never  held 
ofifice,  with  one  exception.  At  the  last  presiden- 
tial election  he  was  elected  as  the  Presidential 
Elector  from  the  First  District  of  Illinois. 

As  a  citizen  he  was  modest  and  retiring,  but 
always  ready  and  prompt  to  give  of  his  means 
when  calls  for  help  were  made  on  the  city.  After 
the  great  fire  of  't\,  he  was  a  member  of  the 
Relief  and  Aid  Society,  and  gave  valuable  assist- 
ance to  that  noble  organization.  The  contribu- 
tions from  the  New  York  Chamber  of  Commerce 
and  other  donors  to  the  relief  fund  were  entrusted 
to  him. 

The  number  of  organizations  to  which  he  be- 
longed attest  the  respect  and  esteem  in  which  he 
was  held  by  his  associates.  A  man  of  strong 
personality,  refined  and  simple  tastes,  he  enjo\ed 


art,  literature  and  music  ;  of  a  genial  and  happy 
temperament,  he  was  very  sympathetic  and  com- 
panionable. Possessed  of  positive  convictions, 
nothing  could  swerve  him  from  his  sense  of  dut\- 
and  of  right. 

By  his  will — which  was  probated  for  upwards 
of  $3,500,000 — he  left  to  charitable  and  benevo- 
lent institutions  princely  legacies,  amongst  them 
being  the  Second  Presbyterian  Church,  the  Scotch 
Presbyterian  Church  of  New  York,  the  Chicago 
Orphan  Asylum,  the  Nursery  and  Half  Orphan 
As\-lum,  Chicago  Presbyterian  Hospital,  the  Chi- 
cago Historical  Society,  the  Illinois  Training 
School  for  Nurses,  the  Presbyterian  League,  the 
Old  People's  Home,  the  Home  for  the  Friendless, 
the  Chicago  Relief  and  Aid  Societ\-,  the  St.  An- 
drew's Societies  of  Chicago  and  New  York,  the 
Chicago  Manual  and  Training  School,  the  Young 
IMen's  Christian  Association,  the  Chicago  Bible 
Society,  St.  Luke's  Free  Hospital  and  the  Ameri- 
can Sunday  School  Union. 

For  a  monument  to  Abraham  Lincoln  he  gave 
$100,000,  and  over  $2,000,000  for  the  founding  of 
a  free  public  library.  The  bequests  were  divided 
thus:  About  $1,000,000  to  religious,  historical, 
literary  and  benevolent  institutions,  and  to  rela- 
tives and  friends  about  $600,000.  It  was  patriot- 
ism as  much  as  friendship  which  prompted  him 
to  set  apart  $100,000  for  a  colossal  statue  to 
Abraham  Lincoln.  These  gifts  alone  would  have 
endeared  perpetually  his  name  to  the  people  of 
Chicago.  But  even  nobler  than  these,  as  indi- 
cating broader  and  more  enduring  influences,  is 
the  Free  Public  Library  Fund,  that  will  gi\e  to 
the  citj-  one  of  the  most  beneficent  institutions  it 
is  the  privilege  of  any  city  in  the  Union  to  possess. 
By  the  terms  of  this  bequest,  the  books,  period- 
icals, etc.,  are  to  be  selected  with  a  view  to  ex- 
tending a  healthy,  moral  and  christian  tone 
throughout  the  communitj',  and  to  the  e.xclusion 
of  nastiness  and  immorality.  He  requested  in 
his  will  the  following  friends  to  act  as  the  first 
board  of  directors  of  the  librarj-,  viz.:  Norman 
Williams,  Huntington  W.  Jackson,  Marshall  Field, 
E.  W.  Blatchford,  T.  B.  Blackstone,  Robert  T. 
Lincoln,  Henry  \V.  Bishop.  Albert  Keep.  Edson 
Keith,  Simon  J.  McPherson,  John  M.  Clark  and 
George  A.  Armour.  A  remarkable  will  truly! 
One  that  was  marked  by  kindness,  a  loving  re- 
membrance  and    much   generous  sentiment.      A 


52 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AND  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


will  that  shows  the  considerate  spirit  of  the  just 
man,  for  he  provided  for  his  relatives  bountifully, 
and  remembered  his  friends  generously,  while  his 
provision  for  the  poor  and  needy  and  those  of  the 
community  standing  in  need  of  and  worthy  of 
help  was  munificent  and  princely  in  character. 
Letters  testamentary  were  granted  to  Norman 
Williams  (at  whose  residence  Mr.  Crerar  died), 
and  Huntington  W.  Jackson. 

The  last  ten  years  of  his  life  he  lived  at  the 
Grand  Pacific  Hotel,  and  was  well  known  for  the 
regularity  of  his  habits,  and  many  are  the  pleasant 
stories  related  of  him,  all  emphasising  more 
strongly,  if  possible,  his  many  admirable  qualities. 

His  funeral  services  were  held  at  the  Second 
Presbyterian  Church  and  conducted  by  the  Rev. 
Drs.  Patterson  and  McPherson.  His  remains  were 
then  taken  to  New  York  where  similar  services 
were  held  at  the  Scotch  Presbyterian  Church  and 
conducted  by  Rev.  Drs.  Hall  and  Hamilton. 
Both  services  were  largely  attended.  In  New 
York    city    the    flag    of    the    Mercantile    Library 


Association,  of  which  Mr.  Crerar  was  at.  one  time 
president,  was  hung  at  half  mast. 

His  parents  and  two  brothers,  the  only  mem- 
bers of  his  family,  lie  buried  in  Greenwood  Ceme- 
tery, Brooklyn,  and  in  compliance  with  Mr. 
Crerar's  request,  his  remains  were  placed  by  the 
side  of  his  "  honored  mother."  Upon  the  stone 
which  marks  his  grave  are  the  words,  "  A  just  man 
and  one  that  feared  God."  Upon  his  father's  side 
he  left  no  known  relations.  Upon  his  mother's 
side,  her  name  being  Agnes  Smeallie,  there  are 
a  number  of  cousins,  who  reside  in  Schenectady 
and  Delaware  counties,  N.  Y. 

By  the  death  of  Mr.  Crerar  the  church  lost  one 
of  its  most  earnest  and  sincere  supporters,  the 
city  an  honorable  and  upright  citizen,  and  his 
friends  a  warm-hearted  companion.  His  memory 
will  long  be  cherished  and  his  name  often  and 
kindly  spoken  of  by  those  who  knew  him,  also  by 
that  still  larger  circle  for  whom  he  has  done  so 
much,  and  for  whose  welfare  and  happiness  he  was 
an  untiring  worker  to  the  last. 


ANDERSON    FOWLER, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


ANDERSON  FOWLER,  the  managing  direc- 
tor of  the  interests  of  the  celebrated  Fowler 
Bros.  (Limited),  belongs  to  that  hardy  class  of 
American  citizens  who  claim  a  heritage  of  Irish- 
Scotch  ancestry.  His  father,  George  Fowler,  of 
County  Fermanagh,  of  North  Ireland,  traced  his 
ancestry  to  a  reverend  member  of  the  Fowler 
family,  who  was  a  chaplain  in  Oliver  Cromwell's 
army,  and  who  came  to  Ireland  with  that  leader 
and  located  in  that  section  of  northern  Ireland 
in  which,  our  subject  was  born.  The  Fowler 
family  were  celebrated  in  England  long  before 
this,  as  one  of  its  members,  Charles  F'owler,  was 
knighted  during  the  time  of  the  Crusades. 

This  English  yeoman  was  apprised  of  the  ap- 
proach of  the  enemy's  array  by  the  tooting  of  an 
owl,  which  noise  awakened  him  from  his  sleep, 
and  enabled  him  to  give  an  alarm  that  saved  the 
army  from  a  disastrous  surprise.  For  this  action 
he  was  knighted,  and  he  chose  an  owl  as  the  sym- 
bol of  his  coat-of-arms.  This  explains  the  reason 
that    an    owl   is  used   as  the   Fowler  crest.       His 


maternal  ancestors,  Anderson  by  name,  were  of 
the  sturdy  Scotch  race;  thus  it  can  be  seen  that 
our  subject  is  of  the  purest  Anglo-Saxon  extrac- 
tion. 

He  was  born  in  County  Fermanagh,  North 
Ireland,  on  June  16,  1843.  His  school  education 
was  obtained  in  the  public  schools  of  his  native 
section.  When  but  twelve  years  of  age,  he  began 
his  business  career  by  entering  his  father's  busi- 
ness, which  had  been  established  in  1842.  This 
business  was  in  the  wholesale  provision  line,  a  line 
he  has  followed,  with  slight  variations,  ever  since. 
In  1858  George  Fowler,  our  subject's  father,  re- 
tired from  mercantile  life,  and  seven  of  his  sons 
formed  a  co-partnership  and  succeeded  to  their 
father's  business,  organizing  under  the  name  of 
Fowler  Brothers,  and  conducting  a  general  provi- 
sion business. 

Although  but  a  lad  of  fifteen  at  this  time, 
Anderson  Fowler  was  made  a  full  partner,  and 
shared  the  profits  equally  with  his  brothers. 

The  eldest  of  the  sons  of  George  Fowler.  James, 


p 


¥ 


Y^^y^Z^^ 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  A.\D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


is  a  canon  in  the  Church  of  England,  and  was 
never  interested  in  the  mercantile  pursuits  of  his 
brothers.  Upon  the  death  of  his  father,  his 
brothers  having  relinquished  all  their  claims  in  the 
property  to  him,  he  became  possessed  of  his  fath- 
er's landed  estates.  This  estate  is  composed  of 
farm  lands  located  in  North  Ireland,  in  which 
George  Fowler  had  invested  his  fortune  when  he 
retired  from  business  in  1858.  This  property  has 
never  been  a  profitable  investment. 

In  1862  the  Fowler  Brothers  began  operations 
in  the  United  States,  and  at  that  time  were  the 
largest  dealers  in  butter  in  the  world.  In  1863 
they  commenced  business  in  Chicago,  and  since 
then  our  subject  has  divided  his  time  between 
Liverpool,  New  York  and  Chicago.  They  have 
branches  or  agencies  in  all  of  the  large  cities  of 
Europe  and  America,  and  the  supervision  that  he 
has  been  compelled  to  give  these  different  foreign 
agencies  has  forced  him  to  make  no  less  than 
seventy-seven  trips  across  the  Atlantic  Ocean. 

The  Fowler  Brothers  have  always  transacted 
their  business  upon  sound  business  principles,  and 
have  always  believed  that  a  cash  basis  was  the 
best  for  all  concerned.  Therefore,  they  have 
never  purchased  a  dollar's  worth  of  stock  on 
credit.  They  have  always  been  successful,  and 
have  ever  been  esteemed  by  the  mercantile  com- 
munity as  good  and  shrewd  business  managers, 
who  have  invariably  conducted  their  business  in 
the  manner  that  brings  the  best  and  most  remun- 
erative returns. 

In  1890  the  firm  decided  to  dispose  of  a  large 
share  of  their  business  to  a  company,  and  listed 
their  stock  in  the  different  exchanges  throughout 
Europe  and  America.  Although  several  Ameri- 
can houses  had  previously  done  a  similar  thing, 
that  had  proved  disastrous  to  the  investors,  the 
high  esteem  in  which  the  Fowler  Brothers  were 
held  caused  the  first  issue  of  $3,750,000  of  stock 
to  be  applied  for  more  than  twice  over.  No  more 
fitting  testimonial  of  the  high  respect  the  public 
have  for  the  business  principles  and  honor  of  this 
firm  can  be  cited.  The  name  of  the  company 
upon  its  incorporation  became  known  as  the  '•  Fow- 
ler Bros.  Limited,"  and  of  this  gigantic  company, 
with  capital  stock  of  $3,750,000  (with  privilege  of 
increasing  same  to  $4,500,000),  our  subject,  Ander- 
son Fowler,  is  managing  director  and  the  control- 
ling  spirit.     All   of   this   capital  stock,  excepting 


$750,000,  is  held  by  European  in\estors.  One 
cannot  realize  the  magnitude  of  the  business  that 
this  corporation  conducts.  They  have  large  inter- 
ests in  the  different  cities  of  the  United  States 
and  Europe,  but  the  center  of  all  is  in  Chicago. 
They  transport  their  products  from  the  \\'est  to 
the  coast  in  their  own  refrigerator  cars,  which  they 
manufacture  themselves  under  patents  of  which 
they  have  the  control. 

The  distributive  sales  of  this  company  exceed 
the  immense  sum  of  twenty-five  millions  of  dollars 
annually — an  amount  so  large  that  it  cannot  be 
grasped  by  the  average  mind. 

Although  an  Anglo-Sa.xon  by  birth,  he  has 
been  a  citizen  of  this,  his  adopted  countrj-,  for 
nearly  a  quarter  of  a  century,  and  takes  a  deep 
pride  in  being  a  citizen  of  this  Republic.  Politi- 
cally, he  belongs  to  that  great,  intelligent  body  of 
business  men  that  are  known  as  independent. 

In  1877  our  subject  was  married  to  Miss  Emily 
Arthur,  daughter  of  the  Rev.  William  Arthur,  an 
eminent  divine,  of  London.  England.  The  Rev. 
Mr.  Arthur  is  one  of  the  most  prominent  clergy- 
men of  Great  Britain.  He  is  the  author  of  a  num- 
ber of  works  of  great  literary  merit,  the  most 
widely  read  and  most  popular  being  entitled 
"  The  Tongue  of  Fire."  He  was  deeply  interested 
in  the  Union  cause  during  the  War  of  the  Re- 
bellion, and  advocated  both  with  his  pen  and  his 
voice  many  means  to  assist  the  Northern  cause. 
He  used  his  powerful  influence  to  introduce  the 
American  envoys  in  such  manner  as  to  enable 
them  to  settle  the  "  Trent  "  affair,  that  caused  so 
much  disquietude  on  both  sides  of  the  Atlantic, 
both  speedily  and  satisfactorily. 

The  union  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Anderson  Fowler 
has  been  blessed  with  eleven  children,  eight  of 
whom  are  still  living,  and  in  the  circle  of  his 
home,  which  their  happy  voices  and  pleasant, 
cheerful  countenances  enhance  in  happiness,  he 
finds  that  true  content  only  found  by  a  loving 
husband  and  father. 

He  is  a  Methodist,  and  is  ever  ready,  both 
with  purse  and  influence,  to  assist  any  worth)- 
religious  cause. 

Such  is  his  biography.  In  conclusion,  it  can  be 
truthfully  stated  that  Anderson  Fowler  has  ever, 
in  passing  through  life,  used  honorable  principles 
that  place,  him  in  a  high  position  among  the  hon- 
orable business  men  of  the  world.     He  has  ever 


56 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


conducted  his  business  affairs  in  such  manner  as 
to  gain  the  respect  of  the  community :  he  has 
ever  endeavored  to  do  to  others  as  he  would  be 
done  by.  With  an  untarnished  name  and  an  un- 
approachable reputation,  honored    by    his  fellow- 


citizens,  and  revered  by  his  many  friends,  who 
love  him  for  his  sterling  integrity,  there  is  no 
one  who  is  more  entitled  to  a  prominent  posi- 
tion in  this  biographical  work  than  is  Anderson 
Fowler. 


JAMES  W.  SCOTT, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


THE  publisher  of  the  Chicago  Hira/d—]&mcs 
W.  Scott— was  born  in  Walworth  county. 
Wis.,  in  June,  1849,  and  is  the  son  of  D.  Wilmot 
and   Mar\-  C.  Scott.     His  father   was  a  practical 
printer,  and  was  both  the  editor  and  proprietor  of 
newspapers   at    Galena,    III,    for   over   thirty-five 
years.     He  died  in    1888.     Our   subject   received 
his  early  education  in  the  public  schools  of  the 
neighborhood  in  which  he  resided,  and  afterwards 
attended    the    Galena    High    School,    and    subse- 
quently Beloit  College,  Wis.     Having  learned  his 
trade  in  his  father's  office,  he  ultimately  went  to 
New  York  and  engaged  in  floriculture,  and  con- 
tributed while  there   numerous  articles  to  papers 
devoted  to  that  interest.     Leaving  New  York,  he 
became  an  employe  of  the  Government   Printing 
Office    at    Washington.     In    1872,   he    located    in 
Prince  George  county,  Md.,  where  he  published  a 
weekly    newspaper.       But    Mr.  Scott's    ambition 
sought     a    wider    field    than    could    be    obtained 
in  this  State    at    that    period,  and    eventually   re- 
turned to  Galena,   and   together  with    his    father 
started  the  Press.     But  a  still  larger  field  was  yet 
what  he  desired,  and  after  some  twelve  months  or 
so  in  Galena  he  determined  to  locate  in  Chicago, 
which  at  this  time  was  forging  rapidly  ahead,  and 
giving  every  promise  of  a  bright  future,  though  it 
must    be     admitted    that    the   position   this   city 
holds  to-day,  amongst   the  cities  of  the   United 
States,   was    not   even    contemplated  at  this   pe- 
riod (1875),  by  even  the  most    sanguine    of    its 
citizens.     Arriving  here  in  1875,  he  purchased  the 
Daily  National  Hotel  Reporter,  and   by  dint   of 
judicious  management,  it  became  an  almost  im- 
mediate success.     Contemplating  changing  it  from 
a  class  daily  to  a  general  newspaper,  Mr.  Scott, 
however,   ultimately   decided    to  leave  it  to  the 
management  of  his  partner,  F.  W,  Rice,-  who  now 
so  successfully  conducts  it.     Organizing — in  con- 


junction with  several  young  men  from  the  Chicago 
dailies — a  stock  company,  in  May,  188 1,  the 
Chicago  Herald  was  established,  and  in  the  fol- 
lowing year  Mr.  John  R.  Walsh,  the  well-known 
president  of  the  Chicago  National  Bank,  recog- 
nizing in  Mr.  Scott  ability  and  judgment  of  a 
rare  order,  purchased  the  stock  of  those  associated 
with  him,  and  thus  made  the  success  of  same — as 
far  as  matters  of  finance  were  concerned — an 
assured  result.  But  something  more  than  money 
is  required  if  a  paper  is  to  become  a  general  suc- 
cess, and  this  also  Mr.  Walsh  gave  to  Mr.  Scott, 
through  his  long  business  experience  which  cul- 
minated in  many  successes,  but  to  Mr.  Scott 
must  be  attributed  in  a  large  degree  the  suc- 
cess which  has  marked  the  establishment  of, 
and  still  continues  to  make  the  Chicago  Her- 
ald, one  of  this  city's  leading  journals,  and 
the  one  which  possesses  one  of  the  largest 
morning  circulations  in  the  city  of  Chicago. 
Surrounded  by  a  capable  staff,  and  maintaining  a 
liberal  policy  in  news-gathering  and  its  prepara- 
tion for  publication,  Mr.  Scott  himself  overlooks 
the  whole,  and  by  his  judicious  management  and 
mainly  through  his  instrumentality,  it  has  attained 
the  reputation  which  it  to-day  holds  amongst  the 
leading  journals  of  America. 

He  was  recently  elected  president  of  the  Ameri- 
can Newspaper  Publishers'  Association  for  the 
third  time,  and  was  for  three  terms  president  of  the 
Press  Club  of  this  city  (no  other  member  of  the 
club  having  ever  been  given  a  second  term). 
These  elections  amply  attest  the  appreciation  in 
which  he  is  held  by  his  brother  publishers  and 
journalists. 

In  addition,  he  is  president  of  the  United  Press 
—whose  main  offices  are  in  New  York — besides 
being  an  active  or  honorary  member  of  nearly  all 
the  leading  clubs  of   Chicago;  while  he  is  also  a 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


57 


member  of  the  famous  Clover  Club  of  Philadelphia 
and  of  the  New  York  Press  Club. 

In  spite  of  the  repeated  enlargements  of  the 
Herald's  quarters,  they  have  become  totally- 
inadequate  to  meet  its  ever  increasing  require- 
ments, and  in  the  course  of  a  few  months  this 
journal  will  occupy  an  elegant  structure,  designed 
and  erected  expressly  for  it.  The  Evening  Post, 
which  Mr.  Scott,  in  conjunction  with  Mr.  Walsh, 
established  in  April  of  last  year  (1890)  already 
occupies  its  own  building,  and  as  to  its  success,  it 
is  but  another  example  of  what  Mr.  Scott  is 
capable  of  accomplishing  and  of  the  peculiar 
abilities  he  so  amply  possesses  in  connection  with 
the  successful  publishing  and  management  of  im- 
portant journals. 

Mr.  Scott  was  married  April  loth,  1873,10  Miss 
Caroline  R.  Greene,  daughter  of  Daniel  W.  Greene, 
one  of  the  earliest  settlers  of  Du  Page  county. 
Illinois. 


Mr.  Scott  having  recently  been  elected  a  direc- 
tor of  the  Columbian  E.xposition — as  is  generally 
known — was  offered  the  presidency  of  the  World's 
Columbian  E.xposition,  but  owing  to  the  enormous 
pressure  he  already  sustains,  in  connection  with  his 
varied  interests,  he  was  forced  to  decline  the  same. 

Embodying  that  combination  so  rarely  met 
with,  of  the  capable  editor  and  the  shrewd  busi- 
ness manager,  he  is  thoroughly  practical  in  all 
departments,  and  to  this  fact  may,  we  think,  be 
attributed  the  phenomenal  success  which  has  at- 
tended his  career  in  the  city  of  Chicago,  of  which 
city  he  is  a  prominent  and  leading  citizen,  while 
he  also  ranks  as  one  of  the  most  popular  and 
successful  journalists  of  the  country.  In  manner 
courteous  and  affable,  he  is  easily  approached, 
while  he  possesses  an  innumerable  host  of  both 
friends  and  acquaintances.  A  typical  Chicagoan, 
he  is  one  who  is  highly  esteemed,  and  one  whose 
further  success  may  yet  be  looked  for. 


EDWIN    M.  ASHCRAFT. 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


THE  subject  of  this  sketch  was  born  on  a 
farm  near  Clarksburgh,  Harrison  county, 
Virginia,  August  27,  184S,  the  son  of  James  M. 
and  Clarissa  (Swiger)  Ashcraft.  The  family  con- 
sisted of  two  sons  and  two  daughters,  of  whom 
Edwin  is  the  eldest.  His  brother  is  connected 
with  the  Tacoma  Globe,  at  Tacoma,  Washington. 

The  Ashcraft  homestead  was  very  near  the  seat 
of  the  late  War  of  the  Rebellion,  and  several  mem- 
bers of  the  family  fought  on  behalf  of  the  Union 
cause.  Edwin  received  his  early  education  in  the 
public  schools  and  afterwards  entered  Wheeling 
University,  and  subsequently  studied  at  the 
State  University  at  Normal,  111.  During  1S67-68 
and  '69,  young  Ashcraft  taught  school,  devot- 
ing his  leisure  hours  to  the  study  of  law.  In 
1873,  he  passed  his  examination  before  the 
Supreme  Court  at  Springfield,  and  was  admitted 
to  the  bar  of  Illinois,  and  at  once  opened  an  office 
and  began  the  practice  of  his  profession  at  Van- 
dalia,  and  met  with  good  success  from  the  first. 

In  1873,  ^^  ^^'^^  elected  Prosecuting  Attorney 
of  Fayette  county.  III.,  and  held  that  office  three 
years.     In  1876,  he  was  nominated  on  the  Repub- 


lican ticket  as  congressman  from  the  Sixteenth 
Congressional  District,  and  although  unsuccessful, 
such  was  his  popularity  that  he  reduced  the 
former  Democratic  majority  of  his  district  from 
five  thousand  to  fourteen  hundred.  His  oppon- 
ent in  this  contest  was  Mr.  W.  A.  J.  Sparks,  who 
served  as  Land  Commissioner  under  President 
Cleveland. 

Removing  to  Chicago,  April,  1SS7,  he  associated 
himself  with  Messrs.  Cratty  Bros.,  under  the  firm 
name  of  Cratty  Bros,  and  Ashcraft.  On  June  i, 
1S91,  he  withdrew  from  that  firm  and  formed  the 
present  firm  of  Ashcraft  and  Gordon.  Mr.  Ash- 
craft is  distinctively  a  trial  lawyer,  and  from  the 
time  of  his  arrival  in  Chicago,  he  has  been  emi- 
nently successful,  having  all  the  business  he  can 
attend  to,  while  his  reputation  is  such  that  he  is 
in  a  position  to  select  his  cases. 

In  politics  Mr.  Ashcraft  is  a  staunch  Republican, 
and  he  is  a  member  also  of  the  Hamilton  Club. 
He  was  married  in  1875  to  Miss  Florence  R. 
Moore,  daughter  of  Mr.  Risden  Moore,  of  Belle- 
ville, 111.,  by  whom  he  has  four  children,  one  of 
whom  is  a  popular  singer  at  the  Woodlawn  Epis- 


58 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


copalian  Church.  A  man  of  domestic  tastes,  he 
finds  his  truest  happiness  in  the  delights  of  home, 
and  cares  httle  for  poHtical  or  club  life.  He  is  not 
a  member  of  any  church,  but  contributes  liberally 
to  all  worthy  benevolent  and  charitable  objects. 

A  tireless  worker,  persevering  and  industrious, 
he  never  relaxes  his  energy  until  the  case  or  the 
work  he  has  in  hand  is  completed.  He  is  a  force- 
ful speaker,  his  style  of  argument  being  at  once 


clear,  logical  and  convincing.  He  never  resorts 
to  clap-trap,  and  indulges  but  little  in  flowers  of 
rhetoric,  but  in  a  plain,  matter-of-fact  manner 
appeals  to  the  good  sense  and  judgment  of  his 
auditors.  He  is  a  man  of  broad  humanity,  strict 
integrity,  and  great  popularity,  and  counts  among 
his  personal  friends  men  of  all  classes  and  ranks, 
and  is  justly  entitled  to  be  ranked  with  Chicago's 
representative  men. 


EDSON    KEITH, 

CHICAGO,   ILL. 


FOR  thirty-eight  years,  he  whose  name  heads 
this  biography  has  been  a  resident  of  Chi- 
cago, and  as  such  he  has  taken  a  prominent  posi- 
tion amongst  those  who  have  materially  added  to 
the  prosperity  of  the  city,  and  at  the  same  time 
he  has  used  his  most  earnest  efforts  to  better  the 
moral  status  of  the  people. 

In  Barry,  among  the  Green  Mountains  of  Ver- 
mont, on  January  28th,  1833,  Edson  Keith  was 
born.  Through  his  father,  Martin  Keith,  a  New 
England  farmer,  he  traces  his  ancestry  to  Scotland, 
the  town  of  Keith  being  named  after  the  family, 
the  founders  of  the  American  branch  of  which 
were  among  the  early  settlers  of  New  England. 

The  childhood  days  of  Mr.  Keith  were  passed 
by  attending  the  common  schools  in  his  native 
town  and  assisting  his  father  in  his  pastoral  du- 
ties as  much  as  his  age  would  permit.  He  re- 
sided in  Montpelier,  Vermont,  four  years,  and  in 
1854  removed  thence  to  Chicago,  where  his  intro- 
duction to  mercantile  life  was  as  clerk  in  a  retail 
dry  goods  house.  In  1856  he  entered  the  employ 
of  Benedict,  Mallory  and  Farnum,  wholesale  deal- 
ers in  hats,  caps  and  furs,  and  remained  with  that 
firm  as  salesman  and  collector  for  four  years, 
when  he  became  associated  with  his  brother,  O. 
R.  Keith,  Esq.,  and  Mr.  A.  E.  Faxon,  under  the 
firm  name  of  Keith,  Faxon  and  Co.,  jobbers  of 
hats,  caps,  furs,  millinery  and  straw  goods.  In 
1865  Mr.  Faxon  retired  from  the  firm,  and  E. 
G.  Keith,  a  younger  brother  of  our  subject,  was 
admitted  into  co-partnership,  the  style  of  the  firm 
becoming  Keith  Brothers. 

In    1879    O-    R-    Keith    withdrew    from    Keith 
Brothers  and  established  the  wholesale  millinery 


business  of  O.  R.  Keith  and  Co.,  which  continued 
until  1884,  when  the  two  firms  of  Keith  Brothers 
and  O.  R.  Keith  and  Co.  were  consolidated  under 
the  name  of  Edson  Keith  and  Co.  In  1887  the 
corporation  of  Keith  Bros,  and  Co.  was  formed 
to  conduct  a  wholesale  hat  and  cap  business,  and 
our  subject  became  president  of  that  corporation. 
Mr.  Keith  has  other  large  interests,  among  the 
most  important  of  which  are  his  connection  with 
the  Metropolitan  National  Bank,  of  which  he  is  a 
director,  and  his  interest  in  the  firm  of  Keith  and 
Co.,  which  controls  a  large  terminal  grain  elevator. 
He  has  at  various  times  been  active  in  real  estate 
transactions,  and  is  one  of  the  most  sanguine  and 
enthusiastic  believers  in  the  greatness  of  Chicago. 
His  entire  business  interests  have  been  so  con- 
ducted as  to  bring  most  satisfactory  results,  and 
his  reputation  for  straightforward,  honest  dealing 
is  unchallenged. 

Politically,  Mr.  Keith's  sympathies  are  with  the 
Republican  party,  but  he  is  not  bigoted  nor 
bound  strictly  to  party  lines,  believing  always  that 
the  man  best  fitted  for  the  office  should  be  chosen 
by  the  people,  whether  Republican  or  Democrat. 
He  is  interested  in  religious  matters,  but  is  not  a 
member  of  any  church  organization,  and  is  a 
generous  friend  of  charitable  institutions. 

Socially,  Mr.  Keith  is  much  esteemed,  and  for 
three  years  (during  which  time  the  new  home  of 
the  club  was  erected)  he  was  president  of  the 
Calumet  Club.  He  is  also  a  member  of  the 
various  clubs  of  Chicago  and  New  York. 

In  i860  Mr.  Keith  was  married  to  Miss  Wood- 
ruff, daughter  of  one  of  the  earlier  settlers  of 
Chicago.    Their  familv  consists  of  two  sons.    The 


^U^- 


BIOGRAr:uf:AL  DICTIONARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  uALLERV. 


6l 


elder,  Edson,  Jr.,  graduated  from  Yale  in  1884, 
and  spent  three  years  at  the  Columbia  Law- 
School,  in  New  York.  The  younger  son,  \\'altcr 
\\'.,  is  now  a  student  at  Yale. 

Mr.  Keith  is  a  lover  of  art  and  a  student  of 
literature.  He  is  a  friend  of  the  Art  Institute, 
and  was  vice-president  of  that  institution  for  sev- 
eral terms.  He  has  traveled  very  extensively, 
making  annual  trips  to  Europe,  and  by  ming. 
ling  with  the  people  of  the  world  his  mind  has 
been  richly  stored  and  his  views  of  life  broad- 
ened. 

The  Citizens'  Association  of  Chicago  owes  not 


a  little  of  its  prestige  to  the  labors  of  Mr.  Kciili, 
who  assisted  in  its  organization  and  for  three 
years  was  its  president. 

Such  is  the  biography  of  one  of  the  foremost 
men  of  the  West,  who  owes  the  high  position  he 
now  occupies  entirely  to  his  own  exertions  and 
his  honor  and  integrity.  The  teachings  of  his 
parents  were  such  as  to  insi^iru  him  with  love  for 
truth  and  honesty,  and  tiiese  teachings,  combined 
with  a  natural  instinct,  have  made  him  ever  de- 
spise anything  that  had  the  least  taint  of  dishon- 
esty. He  is  a  most  illustrious  prototj-pe  of  the 
self-made  man. 


MALCOLM    M.  JAMIESON, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


IT  has  been  said  that  the  stud)-  of  biography- 
yields  to  no  other  subject  in  point  of  interest 
and  profit ;  and  while  it  is  true  that  all  bio- 
graphies, and  more  especially  those  of  successful 
men,  have  much  in  common,  yet  the  life  sketches 
of  no  two  individuals  are  alike.  Each  has  its 
distinctions  and  various  points  of  interest,  and 
each  is  accordingly  complete  in  itself. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was  born  on  the 
27th  of  May,  1846,  and  is  the  son  of  Egbert  and 
Caroline  (Woodward)  Jamieson,  his  mother  being 
a  daughter  of  Theodore  Woodward,  at  one  time 
president  of  Castleton  Medical  College,  Vermont. 
His  father  was  an  eminent  surgeon  and  a  pro- 
fessor of  surgery  in  both  Castleton,  Vt^,  and 
Albany,  N.  Y.,  medical  colleges,  and  subse- 
quently became  surgeon  of  the  First  Wisconsin 
Regiment. 

Our  subject  is  one  of  nine  children,  of  whom 
four  are  now  living,  his  only  brother  being  ex- 
Judge  Egbert  Jamieson,  of  Chicago.  Young 
Jamieson  received  his  early  education  in  the 
public  and  private  schools  at  Racine,  Wisconsin. 
By  the  death  of  his  father  he  was  thrown  upon 
his  own  resources,  and  at  the  age  of  twenty  years 
began  life  for  himself.  This  was  in  1864.  Going 
to  Chicago,  he  obtained  a  clerkship  with  the 
Chicago  and  Milwaukee  Railroad  Company-,  which 
he  held  some  two  years.  Resigning  this  position, 
he  entered  the  dry  goods  house  of  S.  D.  Jackson 
and    Co..    as  cashier,    and    remained    witli    them 


three  years,  wlien  the  house  failed,  and  through 
the  influence  of  the  senior  partner  he  became 
teller  of  the  Fourth  National  Bank  of  Chicago. 
Two  months  later  that  bank  was  sold  to  the 
Manufacturers'  National  Bank,  and  Mr.  Jamieson 
being  ofTered  a  similar  position  with  that  institu- 
tion, accepted  the  same  and  held  it  until  the 
panic  of  1873  compelled  that  bank  to  go  into 
liquidation.  He  then  became  connected  with  the 
First  National  Bank  of  Chicago,  as  teller,  and 
remained  with  this  bank  until  1886,  when  he 
determined  to  commence  business  for  himself, 
associating  with  himself  Mr.  William  S.  Morse, 
under  the  firm  name  of  Morse,  Jamieson  and  Co. 
They  opened  a  banking  and  brokerage  business 
at  the  corner  of  Dearborn  and  Madison  streets. 
Mr.  Morse  subsequently  withdrew  from  the  busi. 
ness  on  account  of  ill-health,  and  since  his  retire- 
ment Mr.  Jamieson,  in  connection  with  R.  C. 
Nickerson,  Esq.,  and  J.  H.  Waggoner,  late  of  the 
firm  of  W.  G.  McCormick  and  Co.,  has  carried  on 
the  business  under  the  name  of  Jamieson  and  Co., 
it  being  at  this  time  (1892)  located  at  No.  115 
Dearborn  street.  Jamieson  and  Co.  are  promi- 
nent members  of  the  New  York  Stock  E.xchange, 
Chicago  Stock  Exchange  and  Board  of  Trade. 
On  account  of  excessive  competition  Mr.  Jamie- 
son's  friends  tried  to  dissuade  him  from  this  busi- 
ness venture,  but  the  success  that  has  attended 
him  has  proved  the  wisdom  of  his  determination. 
(.Mr.  Jamieson    is   vice-president   of    tlie  Chicago 


62 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  A.\D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Stock  Exchange  and  one  of  its  governing  com- 
mittee.) He  is  also  a  member  of  the  Union, 
the  Germania,  and  the  Athletic  Clubs  of  Chicago. 
He  has  traveled  extensively  both  in  the  United 
States  and  Europe. 

He  holds  the  views  of  the  Universalist  Church 
in  matters  of  religion,  but  is  liberal  in  his  senti- 
ments, and  accords  to  others  that  freedom  of 
choice  which  he  himself  would  desire. 

In  political  matters  he  is  a  Democrat,  though 
he  takes  no  active  part  in  party  affairs. 

He  was  married  in  1872  to  Miss  Julia  S. 
Daniels,    daughter    of    William    Y.    Daniels,    of 


Chicago.    They  have  three  children,  viz.:   Malcolm 
M.,  Jr.,  William  W.  and  Julia  May. 

In  personal  appearance  Mr.  Jamieson  is  rather 
under  the  medium  height,  of  robust  build  and 
light  comple.Kion,  with  a  pleasing  presence  and 
address.  In  manner  he  is  courteous  and  affable, 
genial  and  sociable,  and  possesses  the  happy 
facility  of  making  and  retaining  friends.  The 
architect  of  his  own  fortunes,  he  has  by  perseve- 
rance and  untiring  energy,  combined  with  much 
native  shrewdness  and  more  than  ordinary  ability, 
won  success,  and  is  numbered  amongst  the  repre- 
sentative business  men  of  Chicago. 


CYRUS    HALL   McCORAIICK, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


THE  city  of  Chicago  is  now  and  probably  has 
been  the  home  of  as  many  men  who  have 
quietly  and  persistently,  day  by  day  and  year  by 
year,  wrung  practical  favors  from  perverse  fortune, 
as  any  city  on  the  face  of  the  globe.  Though  not 
a  native  of  either  this  city  or  State,  yet  it  was  in 
the  city  of  Chicago  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  the 
late  respected  Cyrus  H.  McCormick,  resided  for 
thirty-seven  years.  It  was  here  he  erected  the 
mammoth  works  which  to-day  bear  his  name,  and 
although  many  of  his  triumphs  were  undoubtedly 
won,  and  much  of  his  success  gained,  previous  to 
his  location  in  this  city,  it  was,  however,  in  the 
city  of  Chicago  that  Cyrus  H.  McCormick  devel- 
oped and  consolidated  his  immense  enterprises, 
achieved  many  of  his  most  brilliant  triumphs,  and 
dying  bequeathed  to  posterity  a  name  which  will 
remain  a  household  word  during  centuries  yet  to 
come. 

His  life  history  is  that  of  one  of  the  greatest 
inventors  this  century  has  produced.  It  is  the 
life  history  of  one  who  has  done  much  for  the 
advancement  of  civilization,  insured  the  rapid 
development  of  this  great  country,  and  advanced 
the  interests  of  our  greatest  and  principal  indus- 
try, viz.,  that  of  agriculture,  in  a  manner  and  by 
such  means  as  were  not  even  contemplated  in 
the  earlier  decades  of  the  present  century.  He 
added  lustre  to  the  name  of  America  by  the 
benefit  he  conferred  upon  mankind,  while  his 
extensive  philanthropy    and  the    objects    thereof 


will  ever  remain  as  a  perpetual  monument  to  him 
whose  memory  is  still  green  within  the  hearts  of 
thousands  who  enjoy  the  fruits  of  his  genius  and 
whose  paths  through  life  have  been  considerably 
smoothed  as  the  result  of  his  magnificent  liberality 
to  institutions  of  a  benevolent  and  educational 
nature. 

Cyrus  H.  McCormick  was  born  in  Rockbridge 
county,  Virginia,  February  15,  1809.  His  par- 
ents were  both  of  Scotch-Irish  descent.  His 
father,  Robert  McCormick,  was  a  native  of  Rock- 
bridge county,  while  his  mother,  Mary  Ann  (Hall) 
McCormick,  came  from  the  adjoining  county  of 
Augusta,  in  the  same  State.  They  had  eight 
children,  of  whom  our  subject  was  the  eldest. 
Owning  several  farms,  with  .saw  and  grist  mills, 
together  with  blacksmithing,  carpentering  and 
machinery  shops  for  the  repair  and  renewal  of 
such  implements  as  his  business  necessitated  his 
possessing,  Robert  McCormick  had  more  than  a 
merely  local  reputation  for  mechanical  ingenuity  ; 
an  ingenuity  which  subsequently  became  so 
strongly  and  prominently  developed  in  Cyrus, 
the  subject  of  our  present  sketch.  Limited  in  his 
educational  facilities,  Cyrus,  however,  obtained  the 
rudiments  of  a  good  common-school  "education  at 
the  "  Old  Field  School  House,"  and  by  self- 
application  and  study  added  considerably  to  his 
knowledge  gained  therein,  for  he  was  naturally 
bright,  possessing  as  he  did  a  retentive  memory 
and  a  mind  quick  of  observation  and  keen  of  per- 


I 


BIOGRAl'H/CAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


65 


ception.  He  learned  surveying  at  home  while 
recovering  from  a  fever. 

Inheritance  of  traits,  characteristics,  ability,  was 
developed  at  an  early  age  in  young  McCormick, 
for  he  was  barely  fifteen  years  of  age  when  he 
constructed  a  finely-made  grain  cradle  for  his  own 
.use  in  the  harvest  field,  a  cradle  not  quite  as  large 
as  a  man's  full  size,  with  which  he  helped  to  har- 
vest the  crops,  keeping  up  with  the  others.  His 
invention  of  a  hillside  plow,  capable  of  being 
used  either  as  a  right  or  left  hand  plow,  at  the 
will  of  the  operator  (patented  in  183 1),  and 
two  years  later  his  invention  of  a  superior  hori- 
zontal self-sharpening  plow  showed  the  mechan- 
ical bent  of  his  mind,  and  demonstrated  in  no 
uncertain  manner  his  possession  of  genius,  and 
such  as  at  a  subsequent  period  brought  him  fame 
and  honors  of  the  highest  and  most  exclusive 
order. 

It  had  long  been  an  idea  with  young  ^IcCor- 
mick  that  machinerj-  should  supersede  the  old- 
time  method  of  cutting  grain  by  hand  labor.  Its 
possibility  had  often  occurred  to  him.  In  1816 
his  father — who  in  the  meantime  had  invented 
several  valuable  machines,  embracing  threshing, 
hydraulic  and  hemp-breaking,  and  upon  some  of 
which  he  had  obtained  patents — put  to  a  practical 
test  a  machine  of  his  own  invention  for  the  cut- 
ting of  grain,  which,  while  it  failed  to  accomplish 
its  purpose — inasmuch  as  though  performing  its 
work  satisfactorily  upon  standing  grain,  it  was 
unavailable  when  the  same  had  lodged — yet  ac- 
complished something  of  importance,  for  it  was 
the  means  of  drawing  his  son's  mind  to  the  sub- 
ject of  cutting  grain  by  machinery,  and  he  came 
to  the  conclusion  that  the  principle  adopted  by 
his  father  in  the  construction  of  his  machine  was 
radically  wrong.  His  father's  machine  had  up- 
right revolving  cylinders,  provided  at  their  base 
with  knives  like  sickles.  Young  McCormick, 
however,  became  convinced  that  the  true  prin- 
ciple lay  in  the  construction  of  a  machine  which 
would  operate  on  the  grain  as  a  ma.ss,  with  a 
horizontal  reciprocating  blade.  To  think  was 
with  him  but  to  act,  and,  although  remonstrated 
with  by  his  father  for  his  seeming  waste  of  time 
and  abilities,  he  could  not  be  diverted  from  his 
course.  Concluding  that  the  necessary  motion 
to  cut  the  grain  could  be  obtained  by  means  of  a 
crank  attached    to  the   end  of  the    reciprocating 


blade,  he  made  this  one  of  the  principles  of  the 
new  machine,  and  having  at  length  matured  his 
ideas,  he  proceeded  to  transfer  them  into  wood 
and  iron,  and  with  his  own  hand,  and  in  his 
father's  shops,  young  McCormick  made  every 
portion  of  this,  his  first  machine.  It  consisted  of 
three  main  features,  viz.,  a  vibrating  cutting  blade, 
a  reel  to  bring  the  grain  within  reach  of  the  blade, 
and  a  platform  whereon  to  receive  the  falling 
grain.  This  machine,  drawn  by  two  horses,  was 
put  to  a  practical  test  during  the  latter  part  of 
the  harvest  of  1 831,  in  a  field  of  oats  within  a 
mile  or  so  of  the  McCormick  homestead.  Though 
imperfect,  it  proved  remarkably  successful,  and 
we  can  imagine,  though  perhaps  but  faintly,  the 
emotions  of  its  young  inventor  at  perceiving  his 
fondest  hopes  realized.  For  there,  and  in  the 
presence  of  the  neighboring  farmers  who  had  con- 
gregated to  witness  its  trial,  young  McCormick 
had  the  satisfaction  of  witnessing  its  triumph, 
and  of  receiving  the  congratulations  of  those 
present — his  father  being  among  the  number — 
as  the  problem  of  cutting  standing  grain  by  ma- 
chinery had  at  length  been  solved,  and  what  was 
hitherto  but  a  dream  had  now  become  a  certainty. 
Sometimes,  while  e.xperimenting,  his  mother's 
great  interest  in  the  invention  led  her  to  go  to 
the  field  to  watch  the  operation  of  the  machine, 
riding  her  own  favorite  horse — the  same  on  which 
she  rode  Sundays  to  Old  Providence  Church, 

Shortly  after  this  Mr.  McCormick  engaged  in  a 
partnership  for  the  smelting  of  iron  ore,  for  at 
this  period  this  industry  offered  him  a  larger  field 
for  the  exercise  of  his  ambition,  and  also  prom- 
ised to  be  more  profitable  than  the  reaper.  The 
panic  of  1837,  however,  greatly  reduced  the  price 
of  iron,  and  financial  disaster  ruined  the  enter- 
prise. Equal  to  the  occasion,  however,  Mr. 
McCormick  determined  to  sacrifice  all  his  re- 
sources and  to  liquidate  at  any  cost  his  liabilities 
in  connection  therewith,  by  these  means  main- 
tainiivg  the  honor  of  his  name  and  his  character 
as  an  upright  and  honest  man.  In  order  to  pay 
up  the  indebtedness  of  the  iron  business,  he  was 
forced  to  part  with  even  the  farm  which  his  father 
had  given  him,  and  in  doing  this  he  preserved  a 
conspicuous  characteristic  of  his  whole  life — a 
stern  integrity. 

Once  more  he  turned  his  attention  to  the 
reaper.     He    now    started    in    earnest    upon    the 


66 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIO.XARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


manufacture  of  the  invention  over  whose  improve- 
ment he  had  spent  so  much  time  and  thought  in 
the  workshops  on  the  old  homestead,  and  with 
the  assistance  of  his  father  and  two  brothers, 
William  and  Leander,  achieved  important  results, 
considering  the  disadvantages  under  which  the 
business  was  carried  on — made,  as  these  reapers 
were,  by  hand.  In  those  days  there  were  no 
railroads  and  but  few  steamboats,  while  it  was 
necessary  that  the  sickles  should  be  manufactured 
fort}'  miles  away,  and  they  had  to  be  carried  on 
horseback.  However,  notwithstanding  the  many 
difficulties  which  beset  them,  they  succeeded  in 
turning  out  about  ten  machines  per  annum.  Con- 
vinced, however,  that  as  soon  as  their  merits  be- 
came known,  the  demand  would  become  increas- 
ingly great,  with  unremitting  energy  they  kept  on 
manufacturing  and  improving.  In  1844  the  first 
consignment  was  sent  to  the  Western  prairies,  the 
same  being  taken  in  wagons  from  the  workshops 
at  Walnut  Grove  to  Richmond,  Virginia  (a  dis- 
tance of  120  miles),  and  thence  shipped  to  New 
Orleans  and  up  the  Mississippi  and  Ohio  rivers  to 
Cincinnati. 

With  that  keen  perception  which  was  one  of 
his  prominent  characteristics,  Mr.  McCormick 
saw  the  possibilities  of  the  great  West,  and  of  the 
enlarged  sphere  which  it  seemed  to  offer,  and  ac- 
cordingly, in  1846,  he  removed  the  manufacture 
of  his  machines  to  Cincinnati,  Ohio,  going  through 
the  western  country  himself  on  horseback,  ob- 
taining farmers'  orders  for  reapers,  which  he  then 
gave  as  security  to  a  Cincinnati  firm  as  guaran- 
tee of  payment  if  they  would  manufacture  his 
machine  under  his  direction,  they  having  an  outfit 
of  shops,  etc.,  for  manufacturing  purposes,  while 
Mr.  McCormick  had  nothing  but  his  invention. 
In  the  same  year,  and  after  devising  a  number  of 
valuable  improvements  in  connection  therewith, 
he  obtained  a  second  patent  thereon.  The  McCor- 
mick reaper  had  by  this  time  gained  a  wide  and 
favorable  reputation,  and  demands  for  same  were 
constantly  coming  in,  while  the  arrangements 
which  he  made  with  a  firm  at  Brockport,  New 
York,  to  manufacture  the  machines  on  a  royalty, 
with  a  view  of  their  introduction  into  the  then 
great  wheat  fields  of  Central  New  York,  further 
stimulated  and  made  necessary  an  increased  out- 
put. Still  continuing  to  make  improvements 
therein,  in  1847-48  he  obtained  additional  iiatents. 


Chicago  at  this  time  seemed  destined  to  become 
what  it  has  since  proved  to  be  in  reality,  viz.,  the 
commercial  center  of  the  immense  agricultural 
districts  of  the  great  Northwest,  and  in  1847  he 
removed  to  this  city.  The  year  following  his 
location  here,  seven  hundred  reapers  were  built 
and  sold,  and  in  the  following  year  (1849)  the 
sales  amounted  to  over  fifteen  hundred.  Taking 
into  consideration  the  unimproved,  and,  compara- 
tively speaking,  crude  iron  and  wood  working 
machinery  of  those  days,  this  was  a  phenomenal 
achievement,  and  one  worthy  of  him  whose  in- 
domitable energy  and  remarkable  enterprise  sub- 
sequently led  to  such  great  results,  and  became 
the  means  of  making  the  name  of  "  McCormick" 
familiar  in  every  hairlet  and  section  of  the  coun- 
try the  civilized  world  over. 

About  this  time  his  two  brothers,  William  S. 
and  Leander  J.,  became  associated  with  him  in 
Chicago.  The  success  of  the  reaper  being  now 
thoroughly  established  at  home,  Mr.  McCormick 
exhibited  the  machine  at  the  World's  Fair  in 
London  in  185 1,  and  spent  some  time  in  intro- 
ducing the  reaper  to  the  attention  of  European 
agriculturists. 

The  Old  World,  accustomed  as  it  is,  and  was 
even  more  so  at  that  day,  to  look  askance  at 
any  invention  which  seemed  to  promise  a  les- 
sening of  hand  labor,  or  to  deviate  in  any  way 
from  old  and  time-honored  conservative  cus- 
toms, was  at  first  somewhat  inclined  to  be  preju- 
diced against  its  introduction  into  the  field  of 
labor.  As  it  was  with  the  Stevenson  locomo- 
tive, so  it  was  with  the  McCormick  reaper. 
Both,  however,  ha\-e  proved  their  immense  use- 
fulness, have  outlived  the  prejudice  arrayed 
against  them,  and  have  been  the  means  of  ad- 
vancing civilization  b\-  leaps  and  bounds  hith- 
erto undreamed  of. 

The  London  Times,  though  at  first  unfriendly 
and  constantly  prejudiced,  candidly  admitted, 
after  witnessing  its  practical  operation  in  the  field 
before  the  \\'orld's  Fair  jury,  that  the  value  of 
the  McCormick  reaper  was  equal  to  the  entire 
cost  of  the  exhibition. 

Mr.  McCormick's  triumph  was  now  complete. 
Honors  showered  in  upon  him,  and  both  fame 
and  fortune  were  at  his  command,  and  yet  he 
remained  always  the  same  modest,  unassuming 
man. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AND  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


67 


In  1855  the  reaper  was  exhibited  at  the  Uni- 
versal Exposition  of  Paris,  and  here  it  obtained 
the  Grand  Prize.  In  the  Great  World's  Fair  in 
London,  in  1863.  it  received  the  highest  award. 
Twelve  years  later  it  was  again  exhibited  at  the 
E.xposition  held  in  Paris,  and  was  awarded  this 
time,  not  only  the  Grand  Prize,  but  its  inventor 
was  decorated  by  the  Emperor  with  the  Cross  of 
the  Legion  of  Honor — an  honor,  we  need  hardly 
say,  bestowed  upon  few.  We  can  not  in  a  work 
of  this  nature  particularize  fully  the  many  rewards 
which  the  McCormick  reaper  subsequently  re- 
ceived, for  they  were  so  many  and  so  varied  that 
their  mere  enumeration  would  require  more  space 
than  we  have  at  present  at  our  disposal.  Though 
at  first  hampered  by  a  lack  of  capital,  and  isolated 
from  centers  of  communication  and  trade,  and 
also  opposed  by  the  ignorance  of  the  laboring 
classes,  who  feared  the  introduction  of  labor- 
saving  machinery,  and  consequently  were  bitter  in 
their  opposition,  Mr.  McCormick  overcame  every 
obstacle.  His  untiring  energj-  and  great  adminis- 
trative ability  surmounted  ever\-  impediment,  and 
although  Congress  at  first  refused  to  grant  him 
just  patent  protection,  he  eventually  established 
his  claim  thereto,  and  in  the  argument  before  the 
Commissioner  of  Patents,  Hon.  Reverdy  Johnson 
remarked  :  "The  McCormick  reaper  has  already 
contributed  an  annual  income  to  the  whole  coun- 
try of  over  $55,000,000,  which  must  increase 
through  all  time; "  while  the  testimony  of  Hon. 
Wm.  H.  Seward  was  that,  "owing  to  Mr.  Mc- 
Cormick's  invention,  the  line  of  civilization  moves 
westward  thirty  miles  each  year. "  Words  such  as 
these  have  no  uncertain  meaning.  They  are 
authoritative,  definite,  e.xplicit,  and  are  a  glow- 
ing tribute  to  him  whose  benefactions  to  the 
industrial  world  cannot  be  too  highly  estimated, 
nor  are  they  capable  of  being  overstated.  In 
1878  Mr.  McCormick  visited  Paris  for  the  third 
time,  and  there  received  for  his  reaping  and  self- 
binding  machine  a  Grand  Prize  of  the  E.xposition, 
and  the  rank  of  Officer  of  the  Legion  of  Honor 
was  also  conferred  on  him  in  recognition  of  his 
"  having  done  more  for  the  cause  of  agriculture 
than  any  other  living  man,"  at  this  time  being 
also  elected  a  Corresponding  Member  of  the 
French  Academy  of  Sciences.  These  honors 
but  confirmed  the  opinion  already  expressed 
by  two  of  his  countrj-'s  most  famous  statesmen 


with  regard  to  his  invention  and  the  utility 
thereof. 

The  great  fire  of  1 871  consumed,  amongst  the 
many  other  large  buildings,  the  McCormick 
Works  in  this  city.  But  the  smoke  of  its  embers 
had  barely  died  away  before  Mr.  McCormick  com- 
menced to  rebuild.  To-day  the  plant  is  the  larg- 
est, in  output,  of  its  kind  in  the  world,  covering, 
as  it  does,  twenty-four  acres  (including  grounds); 
over  1,500  men  are  employed  therein,  and  the 
yearly  manufacture  now  amounts  to  more  than 
100,000  machines.  They  are  in  use  in  every  sec- 
tion of  the  civilized  world,  and  in  fact  the  sun 
never  sets  without  a  McCormick  reaper  having 
been  at  work  in  some  harvest  field  or  meadow  in 
some  quarter  of  the  earth.  Such  is  the  result  of 
an  invention  which,  beyond  a  doubt,  revolutionized 
the  industrial  world,  and  made  its  inventor  one 
of  the  foremost  men  of  the  present  century — a 
century  which  has  produced  so  many  great  men 
and  so  many  wonderful  inventions. 

Married  in  1858  to  Miss  Nettie  Fowler,  daugh- 
ter of  Melzar  Fowler,  Esq.,  of  Jefferson  county. 
New  York,  he  was  blessed  with  a  family  of  four 
sons  and  three  daughters,  two  of  whom,  a  son 
and  daughter,  died  in  infancy. 

Always  to  the  front,  and  foremost  in  all  good 
works,  he  took  a  keen  interest  in  matters  of  a 
religious  and  educational  nature.  In  1859,  ^•^  the 
General  Assembly  of  the  Presbyterian  Church, 
held  at  Indianapolis,  Mr.  McCormick  offered  to 
endow  the  professorships  of  the  Presbyterian 
Theological  Seminary  of  the  Northwest,  provided 
the  Seminary  was  located  at  Chicago.  These 
conditions  being  gratefully  accepted  by  the 
Assembly,  the  institution  was  accordingly  estab- 
lished in  this  city,  and  since  its  foundation  here 
has  proved  to  be  an  immense  power  for  good, 
while  its  influence  in  promoting  the  cause  of 
Christianity  throughout  the  great  Northwest  can 
probably  never  be  justly  estimated,  for  its  value 
is  incalculable.  In  addition  to  the  original  grant, 
Mr.  McCormick  subsequently  contributed  to  it 
numerous  other  large  donations  from  time  to 
time,  and  to-day  it  stands  forth  as  a  fitting  monu- 
ment to  him  who  had  its  interests  so  much  at 
heart,  and  to  whose  princely  liberality  it  owes  its 
existence. 

Further  evidence  of  his  great  interest  in  relig- 
ious and  educational  work  was  his  purchase  in 


68 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


1872  of  the  Interior,  a  paper  established  in  this 
city  to  represent  the  Presbyterian  Church,  but 
which  had  become  financially  weak,  and  was 
struggling  with  financial  difficulties,  out  of  which 
it  seemed  unable  to  extricate  itself.  To  advance 
the  interests  of  the  Theological  Seminary,  to 
promote  the  welfare  of  the  denomination  gen- 
erally throughout  the  Northwest,  and  to  foster 
the  union  between  the  Old  and  New  schools, 
Mr.  McCormick,  at  the  solicitation  of  many 
friends,  purchased  it,  and  under  his  direction 
the  Interior  became  a  journal  of  vast  influence, 
and  financially  strong. 

A  liberal  contributor  to  two  of  the  colleges 
of  his  native  State  (including  those  located 
in  Lexington  and  Hamden-Sidney).  during  the 
whole  of  his  lifetime  he  bore  in  affectionate  re- 
membrance the  State  of  Virginia,  in  which  he 
was  born,  and  was  ever  most  loyal  and  mindful 
of  her  best  interests. 

■  Of  his  administrative  ability  and  wonderful 
business  capacity  we  have  already  spoken  ;  and 
it  was  undoubtedly  great,  for  amidst  the  various 
labor  agitations  and  conflicts  of  the  last  few  years 
there  has  been  but  little  trouble  amongst  the 
w^orkmen  at  the  McCormick  Works.  Professional 
labor  agitators,  combined  with  external  pernicious 
influence,  however,  threatened  at  one  time  to  sow 
the  seeds  of  discord  amongst  an  otherwise  united 
and  satisfied  body  of  men.  It  resulted,  however, 
in  little  or  no  good  to  the  originators  thereof,  for 
such  was  Mr.  McCormick's  regard  for  justice 
being  done  his  fellow-man,  and  such  his  liberality 
to  those  who  served  for  him,  faithfully,  that  his 
men  had  a  genuine  regard  for  him,  and  this  was 
signalized  upon  more  occasions  than  one,  and  in 
such  a  manner  as  to  leave  no  doubt  as  to  the  sponta- 
neous nature  of  their  feelings  toward  him  and  his 
family.  In  all  his  career  he  was  characterized  by 
firmness,  promptness  and  decision,  and  by  his  un- 
swerving fidelity  to  the  right,  and  his  frank,  fair 
dealings,  he  failed  not  in  impressing  upon  all  with 
whom  he  had  to  do,  the  genuineness  and  worth  of 
his  own  manhood;  while  in  his  character  he  also 
combined  those  qualities  of  heart  and  mind  that 
rendered  him  deservedly  popular  and  secured  to 
him  the  warm  friendship  of  all  who  knew  him. 
Of  him  it  may  in  truth  be  said,  that  the  two 
principal  controlling  points  in  his  life  were  un- 
swerving integrity  and  kindh'  humanity. 


Toward  the  close  of  his  life  Mr.  McCormick 
suffered  considerably.  His  magnificent  intellect. 
however,  never  faltered,  and  to  the  last  he  re- 
mained the  active  head  of  the  great  company 
which  he  had  organized  and  so  successfully  devel- 
oped, and  which  to-day  still  bears  his  name.  He 
is  said  to  have  remarked  upon  one  occasion,  when 
discussing  the  advisability  of  retiring  from  active 
work  at  a  certain  age :  "  I  know  of  no  better 
place  for  a  man  to  die  than  in  the  harness."  And 
thus,  as  if  "to  give  point  to  his  words,  his  wish 
was  fulfilled,  and  he  died  as  he  had  wished  to — 
"  in  the  harness." 

Such  a  career  as  that  of  Cyrus  H.  McCormick 
benefits  not  only  those  who  live  during  his  time, 
but  it  also  produces  beneficial  influences  upon  the 
young  of  future  generations.  An  analysis  of  his 
life  work  bj'  the  youth  of  any  age  will  certainly 
stimulate  the  most  thoughtful  and  energetic  to 
exert  themselves  to  parallel  his  record.  Cyrus 
H.  McCormick  was  possessed  of  most  of  those 
traits  of  character  that  assure  men  of  success  in 
business  life  and  endear  their  names  to  those 
with  whom  they  are  brought  into  contact.  He 
was  honored,  not  only  in  social  circles,  but  also 
by  those  who  labored  for  him  in  minor  capaci- 
ties. 

His  death  took  place  May  13,  1884.  The  city 
of  Chicago  has  ofttimes  been  called  upon  to  la- 
ment the  death  of  many  of  those  who  had  been 
numbered  amongst  its  most  esteemed  and  re- 
spected citizens — many  of  those  who  had  been 
pioneers  in  the  work  of  its  foundation  and  large 
contributors  to  the  various  enterprises  which  had 
aided  in  creating  for  this  city  the  reputation  she 
has  for  many  years  enjoyed  and  so  fully  main- 
tained. Yet  we  question  very  much  whether  the 
death  of  any  citizen  of  this  great  city  was  ever 
so  generally  regretted  as  that  of  the  late  Cyrus 
Hall  McCormick.  His  death  was  not  only  a 
great  loss  to  this  city,  but  by  his  decease  the 
United  States  of  America  lost  one  of  its  great- 
est inventors,  one  of  the  most  enlightened  bene- 
factors, and  a  man  whom  the  present  century 
may  be  justly  proud  of  having  produced  and  en- 
couraged. 

In  the  city  of  Chicago  the  evidences  of  sorrow 
in  the  hearts  of  the  multitude  that  congregated 
to  pay  their  last  tribute  to  his  memory  were  to  be 
seen  upon  every  hand.     Press  and  pulpit,   not  to 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


69 


mention  different  organizations,  added  their  tes-  the  honored  of  the  nation,  and  its  perpetuity  will 
timony  to  his  worth,  and  to-day  the  name  of  remain  unchanged  so  long  as  a  blade  of  grass  or 
"  McCormick  "    stands    high    upon    the    roll    of     an  ear  of  grain  shall  continue  to  grow. 


CHARLES   K.  GILES, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


CHARLES  K.  GILES,  fourth  son  of  Prescott 
and  Elmira  (Stratton)  Giles,  was  born  at 
Athol,  Massachusetts,  on  August  2,  1S40.  He 
traces  both  his  paternal  and  maternal  ancestrj-  to 
the  early  Puritan  settlers  of  New  England,  one 
of  his  forefathers  arriving  in  the  JNIayflower. 

His  early  life  was  uneventful.  His  elementary 
education  was  obtained  in  the  village  school, 
which  fitted  him  for  an  academic  course  of  study 
in  the  New  Salem  Academy,  where  he  finished 
his  school  education  and  graduated  in   1S57. 

His  first  experience  in  business  life  was  in  the 
same  line  as  that  he  is  now  in,  and  his  business 
career,  since  the  day  he  launched  upon  the  mer- 
cantile sea,  has  been  identified  with  the  jewelry 
trade,  and  it  is  but  just  to  state  that  he  has  made 
an  enviable  record  for  himself  in  that  line,  the 
house  of  Giles  Bros,  and  Co.  being  to-day  as 
widely  and  favorably  known  with  the  jewelry 
trade  as  any  in  the  United  States.  After  ob- 
taining a  slight  insight  into  the  business,  in  the 
employ  of  his  brother,  Frederick  Giles,  of  Maiden 
Lane,  New  York,  he,  with  another  brother,  Wil- 
liam "A.  Giles,  came  West,  and  began  business  in 
1858  at  McGregor,  Iowa,  under  the  firm  name  of 
Giles,  Brother  and  Company. 

With  foresight  and  good  judgment,  the  Giles 
brothers  perceived  that  Chicago  was  destined  to 
become  the  great  central  distributing  point  of  the 
United  States,  and  accordingly,  in  1S60.  they  re- 
moved thither,  and  established  themselves  in  the 
jewelry  business  at  142  Lake  street,  under  the 
style  of  Giles  Bros,  and  Co.  The  firm  is  still 
(1892)  doing  business  under  that  name,  with  an 
unbroken  record  of  thirty-two  years,  a  record  no 
othei  jewelr}'  house  in  Chicago  can  show,  and  it 
is  doubtful  whether  any  firm  in  any  line  in  this 
city  can  show  a  continuous  existence  under  one 
firm  name  for  that  length  of  time.  The  firm 
prospered  from  the  start.  In  1871  they  removed 
to  No.  79  State  street,  where  everything  they  had 


was  swept  away  in  the  general  conflagration  of 
October  8th  and  9th  of  that  year.  But,  thanks 
to  their  unsullied  record,  they  found  themselves 
with  practically  an  unlimited  credit.  They  re- 
sumed business,  and  had  re-entered  upon  a  pros- 
perous mercantile  career,  when,  in  1874,  their 
prosperity  was  again  interrupted  by  the  destruc- 
tion of  their  building  by  fire.  Since  the  fire  of 
1874  the  prosperity  of  the  house  of  Giles  Broth- 
ers and  Co.  has  been  undisturbed.  In  1882  our 
subject  purcha.sed  a  controlling  interest  in  the 
house  and  formed  a  limited  stock  company,  of 
which  he  is  the  president.  The  marvellous  suc- 
cess of  the  house  of  which  our  subject  has  been 
the  controlling  spirit  for  so  many  years  is  un- 
doubtedly due  to  his  sound  business  principles 
and  honorable  mode  of  conducting  his  business 
affairs.  The  house,  to-day,  is  the  most  widely 
known  and  the  largest  of  its  kind  west  of  New 
York,  and  it  transacts  business  not  only  in  the 
United  States  and  Canada,  but  its  books  contain 
the  names  of  customers  in  the  Sandwich  Islands 
and  other  distant  parts  of  the  globe.  In  1883 
the  house  added  to  their  business  a  diamond-cut- 
ting department,  and  it  is  the  only  establishment 
of  its  kind,  outside  of  New  York,  in  the  United 
States. 

On  March  25,  1873,  Mr.  Giles  was  married  to 
Miss  Mary  Ferry,  daughter  of  W.  H.  Ferry,  of  Chi- 
cago ;  the  union  is  blessed  with  three  daughters. 

In  .social  circles  Mr.  Giles  is  widely  and  favor- 
ably known,  and  is  a  member  of  the  Calumet, 
Electric  and  Union  League  social  clubs.  He  is  a 
prominent  member  of  the  Masonic  fraternity, 
and  has  passed  from  the  Blue  Lodge  through  the 
degrees  of  the  Mystic  Shrine  and  Scottish  Rite. 
Politically,  he  is  a  staunch  Republican. 

He  is  a  man  of  domestic  habits  and  owns 
a  beautiful  home  in  Lake  Forest,  the  most  beau- 
tiful suburb  of  Chicago,  whither  he  repairs  when 
his  business  permits,  and  passes   his    spare   time 


70 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


in  the  circle  of  his  family.  He  is  a  lover  of 
sports,  and  takes  great  interest  in  hunting  and 
fishing.  He  has  visited  most  places  of  interest, 
both  in  this  country  and  in  Europe,  and  gained  a 


vast  store  of  valuable  information.  His  career 
has  been  marked  with  signal  success,  the  result  of 
native  ability  combined  with  business  enterprise, 
perseverance  and  tact. 


GEORGE   SCHNEIDER, 


CHICAGO,  ILL. 


THE  subject  of  this  biography  is  a  fine  repre- 
sentative of  the  German  character,  and 
stands  prominent  among  the  leading  men  of 
Chicago  as  a  journalist,  an  officer  of  the  gov- 
ernment, a  financier,  a  banker,  and  a  private 
citizen. 

A  native  of  Permaseus,  Rhenish,  Bavaria,  he 
was  born  on  December  13th,  1823,  and  is  the  son 
of  Ludwig  Schneider  and  Josephine  (Schlick) 
Schneider.  He  received  his  early  education  in 
the  Latin  school  of  his  native  place,  and  at  the 
age  of  twenty-one  entered  the  field  of  journalism, 
for  which  he  was  eminently  fitted  both  by  nature, 
inclination  and  ability. 

While  acting  in  this  capacity  he  took  a  most 
active  interest  in  the  Revolution  of  Rhenish  Ba- 
varia against  the  tyranny  of  the  Bavarian  govern- 
ment, and  he  was  appointed  commissioner  for 
several  districts  of  the  Provincial  government,  and 
rendered  most  efficient  service. 

When  the  revolt  was  suppressed  by  the  assist- 
ance of  the  Prussians,  that  portion  of  the  insurgent 
army  of  which  Mr.  Schneider  was  an  officer  passed 
into  France,  and  while  there  he  saw  that  the  hope 
for  further  help  in  the  attempted  revolution  was 
vain,  so  he  concluded  to  leave  for  the  United 
States,  and  arrived  in  New  York  in  July,  1849,  his 
only  capital  an  education,  dauntless  courage  and 
determination  to  succeed. 

He  first  went  to  Cleveland,  Ohio,  but  not  find- 
ing a  promising  field  he  pushed  westward  to  St. 
Louis,  Mo.,  and  there  with  his  brother,  who  had 
also  shared  the  ill  fortunes  of  the  Rhenish 
Revolution,  started  the  Ncuc  Zcit,  a  daily  German 
paper  with  liberal  anti-slavery  tendencies.  After 
the  destruction  of  his  establishment  by  fire  in 
1850,  he  accepted  a  professorship  of  foreign  lan- 
guages and  literature  in  a  college  near  St.  Louis, 
but  soon  removed  to  Chicago,  and  began  the 
publication  of   the  Daily  Illinois  Staats  Zcitung, 


which  had  been  previously  published  as  a  weekly 
paper. 

He  took  a  decided  stand  against  the  "  Missouri 
Compromise  "  in  1854,  and  he  was  one  of  a  small 
company  who  called  the  first  meeting  held  to  pro- 
test against  this  slavery-e.xtending  scheme.  His 
outspoken  opposition  brought  upon  him  the  wrath 
of  those  who  favored  the  measure,  and  in  1856  an 
unsuccessful  attack  was  made  upon  his  office,  the 
result  of  which  was  to  increase  the  influence  of 
the  paper  among  all  classes. 

This  opposition  to  the  repeal  of  the  Missouri 
Compromise  resulted  in  the  organization  of  the 
anti-Nebraska  party,  which  afterwards  became  the 
Republican  party.  At  the  convention  held  for 
the  organization  of  this  body,  he  was  a  delegate, 
and  notwithstanding  the  efforts  of  the  "  Know 
Nothings  "  to  secure  the  repeal  or  modification  of 
the  naturalization  laws,  he,  with  the  assistance  of 
Abraham  Lincoln  and  others,  succeeded  in  incor- 
porating into  the  platform  of  the  new  party  a 
plank,  guaranteeing  that  the  rights  enjoyed  by 
foreign-born  citizens  should  not  be  disturbed,  a 
guarantee  which  he,  with  the  assistance  of  the 
Hon.  John  M.  Palmer  and  other  Western  leaders, 
succeeded  in  having  incorporated  in  the  national 
platform  adopted  by  the  Philadelphia  convention 
of  1856,  which  nominated  John  C.  Fremont  for 
President,  and  to  which  convention  Mr.  Schneider 
was  a  delegate  from  Illinois. 

From  1858  to  i860  he  strongly  advocated  the 
nomination  of  Hon.  Wm.  H.  Seward  for  the 
presidency,  believing  him  to  be  the  most  available 
man  for  that  position  at  that  time  ;  but  in  the 
Republican  convention  that  met  in  the  Chicago 
wigwam,  and  of  which  he  was  a  delegate,  he  found 
the  followers  of  his  candidate  in  the  minority ; 
though  disappointed  he  promptly  and  heartily 
supported  Mr.  Lincoln,  between  whom  and  him- 
self a  warm  personal  friendship  existed. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  D/CTIO.XAKV  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


73 


Immediately  after  his  inauguration,  Mr.  Lincoln 
appointed  Mr.  Schneider  consul  to  Denmark,  with 
the  special  mission  of  enlightening  the  popular 
sentiment  of  northern  Europe  to  the  real  merits 
of  the  contest  between  the  United  States  govern- 
ment and  the  rebellious  South.  By  writing  and 
freely  talking  with  the  people,  he  accomplished  his 
mission  satisfactorily. 

Resigning  his  consulship  in  1862,  he  returned 
to  Chicago,  having  in  the  meantime  sold  his 
interest  in  the  Slants  Zcitung.  He  was  ne.xt 
appointed  Collector  of  Internal  Revenue  by 
President  Lincoln,  and  for  four  years  discharged 
the  duties  of  his  office  with  fidelity  and  to  the 
entire  approval  of  the  government.  During  his 
administration  he  introduced  and  strictly  adhered 
to  the  principles  that  are  now  known  as  "Civil  Ser- 
vice Reform,"  selecting  the  men  he  needed  for 
positions  of  trust  with  reference  entirely  as  to 
their  fitness  and  merit. 

After  the  e.vpiration  of  his  term  of  office,  he 
was  elected  president  of  the  State  Savings  Institu- 
tion, which  under  his  management  soon  ranked  at 
the  head  of  all  financial  establishments  of  its 
kind.  Disposing  of  his  interest  in  this  institution 
in  1 87 1,  he  was  elected  president  of  the  National 
Bank  of  Illinois,  a  position  w'hich  he  still  holds. 
This  institution  is  recognized  as  one  of  the  most 
successful  banks  in  the  city,  and  it  is  but  just  to 
say  that  its  high  standing  is  due  to  the  excellent 
judgment,  prudence  and  popularity  of  its  presi- 
dent. 

As  a  business  man  Mr.  Schneider  is  discerning, 
conscientious,  cautious  and  conservative.  As  a 
citizen,  his  sympathies  are  always  on  the  side  of 
good   order,    progress  and    improvement,  and  in 


every  relation  of  life  he  is  uniformly  a  gentleman 
of  honor,  loving  justice  and  doing  right ;  in  all  his 
career  he  has  been  active  in  promoting  the 
interests  of  his  fellow-countrymen. 

In  1877,  Mr.  Schneider  was  tendered  the  posi- 
tion of  United  States  minister  to  Switzerland  by 
President  Hayes,  but  declined  the  offer,  and  in 
1880  was  an  elector-at-large  on  the  Garfield  ticket. 

He  was  for  several  years  president  of  the  Ger- 
man Society  for  the  protection  of  immigrants  and 
the  friendle.ss  of  that  nationality,  and  through  his 
influence  a  bill,  providing  for  the  protection  of 
immigrants  arriving  on  our  shores,  was  passed  by 
Congress. 

Mr.  Schneider  was  married  on  the  6th  of  June, 
1853,  to  Miss  Mathilda  Schloetzer,  daughter  of  Dr. 
Schloetzer,  who  was  government  physician  in  the 
district  of  Rhenish  Bavaria.  The  couple  have  an 
interesting  family  of  seven  children. 

Mr.  Schneider  was  pardoned  many  years  ago 
for  the  part  he  took  in  the  Revolution  of  1849,  '^'^^ 
has  revisited  the  home  and  scenes  of  his  boyhood, 
which  .still  have  for  him  many  sacred  associations. 

It  is  the  lot  of  but  few  men  to  attain  the  high 
position  of  honor  and  distinction  that  the  subject 
of  our  sketch  has  attained  ;  with  him  success  in 
life  has  been  reached  by  his  sterling  qualities  of 
mind  and  a  heart  true  to  every  manly  principle ; 
he  has  never  deviated  from  what  his  judgment 
would  indicate  to  be  right  and  honorable  between 
his  fellow-man  and  himself,  and  now  after  a  long 
and  eventful  life,  he  can  look  back  on  the  past 
with  pride  and  enjoy  the  remaining  years  of  his 
life,  having  gained  for  himself  by  his  honorable, 
straightforward  career  the  confidence  and  respect 
of  the  entire  community  in  which  he  lives. 


JOHN    R.  WILSON, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


FEW  American  journalists  have  risen  to  con- 
spicuous prominence  in  so  short  a  time  as  he 
whose  name  heads  this  sketch.  He  was  born  at 
Hornellsville,  New  York,  on  April  28,  1852,  and 
is  the  son  of  Stephen  L.  and  Harriet  (Smith) 
Wilson,  and  a  nephew  of  Charles  L.  Wilson, 
formerly  editor  and  proprietor  of  the  Chicago 
Evening  Journal.     The   paternal   grandfather  of 


our  subject  was  Judge  John  Q.  Wilson,  of  Alba- 
ny, New  York,  whose  father  was  a  Scotchman, 
who  married  a  Miss  Lush,  of  the  Dutch  Set- 
tlement, New  York.  The  mother  of  our  sub- 
ject was  a  native  of  Schenectady,  New  York, 
whose  grandfather  was  a  soldier  in  the  Revolu- 
tionary War. 

After  closing  his  studies  at  Lima,  New  York, 


L 


74 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOiXARY  A.XD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Mr.  Wilson,  in  July,  iS/i,  removed  to  Chicago 
and  accepted  a  clerkship  in  the  counting  room  of 
the  Chicago  Evening  Journal,  then  under  the 
management  of  his  uncle. 

In  February,  1880,  he  became  associated  as  a 
partner  with  the  late  Andrew  Shuman,  then 
editor-in-chief  of  that  paper,  and  leased  it  for  a 
term  of  three  years,  at  the  expiration  of  which 
time  he  secured  the  controlling  interest  in  the 
company,  which  he  still  retains. 

Under  its  former  management  the  Evening 
Journal,  while  challenging  the  respect  of  its 
readers,  acquired  a  reputation  of  being  extremely 
conservative,  but  under  the  guidance  of  Mr- 
\\'ilson,  who  is  a  man  of  keen  business  tact  and 
progressive  ideas,  it  has  come  to  the  front  rank  as 


a  newspaper  and  a  moulder  of  public  opinion. 
Mr.  Wilson  has  an  aversion  to  mere  sensational- 
ism, but  is  alive  to  the  necessity  of  keeping  in 
touch  with  the  events  of  the  times  and  giving  to 
his  readers  all  the  legitimate  news  of  the  day,  and 
has  gathered  around  him  a  corps  of  accomplished 
writers  and  news-gatherers,  who,  under  his  intelli- 
gent direction,  have  made  the  Chicago  Evening 
Journal  one  of  the  foremost  and  best  evening 
newspapers  in  the  land.  The  Evening  Journal 
building — just  south  of  the  Tribune  and  Inter 
Ocean  buildings — is  one  of  the  most  imposing 
structures  on  Dearborn  street,  while  its  appoint- 
ments are  in  all  respects  among  the  best. 

In  October,  1885,  Mr.  Wilson  was  married  to  a 
Miss  Ripley,  of  Grand  Rapids,  Michigan. 


HON.    IRUS    GOV, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


THE  spirit  of  self-help  is  the  source  of  all 
genuine  growth  in  the  individual,  and  as 
exhibited  in  the  lives  of  many,  it  constitutes  the 
true  source  of  national  strength. 

The  record  of  the  subject  of  this  sketch  enti- 
tles him  to  a  prominent  place  in  the  present  work, 
for  his  life  is  an  example  of  the  power  of  patient 
purpose,  resolute  working,  and  steadfast  integrity, 
and  illustrates  in  no  uncertain  manner  what  it  is 
possible  to  accomplish  when  perseverance  and 
determination   form  the  keynote  of  a   man's  life. 

He  was  born  in  Chenango  county,  New  York. 
July  25,  1832,  and  is  the  son  of  John  and  Almira 
(Pierce)  Coy.  His  father  was  a  soldier  in  the  war 
of  1 8 12,  and  a  man  much  respected  in  his  day. 
Receiving  his  early  education  in  the  common- 
schools  of  the  neighborhood,  young  Coy  after- 
wards entered  Central  College,  Courtland  county, 
New  York,  and  was  graduated  therefrom  in  1853. 
His  desire  was  to  fit  himself  for  the  legal  profes- 
sion, and  in  order  to  get  money  he  engaged  as  a 
day  laborer  in  the  hay  and  harvest  field,  and  in 
the  fall  of  that  year,  with  but  fifty  dollars  in  his 
possession,  came  to  Illinois  and  engaged  as  a  clerk 
in  a  dry  goods  .store.  From  his  earnings  while 
thus  employed  he  saved  enough  to  defray  his  ex- 
penses through  the  New  York  State  and  National 
Law  School,   at    Poughkecpsie,    New  York,  and 


after  completing  his  studies,  was  admitted  to  the 
bar  at  Albany,  New  York,  in  1857.  Returning  to 
Illinois,  he  located  in  Kendall  county,  and  with 
but  thirty-fi\e  dollars  in  cash,  a  suit  of  clothes 
and  a  few  te.Kt-books,  he  started  in  to  compete 
with  the  skill  and  experience  of  the  profession. 
Success,  however,  seemed  to  be  with  him  from 
the  outset,  for  he  soon  acquired  a  lucrative  prac- 
tice, and  it  was  not  long  ere  he  became  the  lead- 
ing lawyer  in  that  .section  of  the  State,  and  such 
was  his  ability  and  reputation  that  his  counsel  was 
sought  by  those  far  and  near,  and  during  his  resi- 
dence in  that  county  he  was  engaged  in  every 
trial  of  any  note  before  the  courts  of  his  circuit. 
The  esteem  in  which  he  was  held  in  Kendall  coun- 
ty may  be  gathered  from  the  fact  that  he  repre- 
sented that  county  in  the  State  Legislature  of 
l86g  and  1870,  where  he  became  an  influential 
leader;  and  it  was  said  that  during  these  sessions 
no  important  measure  could  be  passed  unless 
aided  by  his  influence  and  counsel,  while  many 
of  his  speeches  were  undoubtedly  among  the 
most  eloquent  ever  delivered  in  the  Illinois  Legis- 
lature. And  it  may  be  truly  said  that  no  constit- 
uency ever  had  a  more  faithful  servant  than  Ken- 
dall county  had  in  Mr.  Coy,  or  any  State  a  more 
zealous  legislator — in  the  best  sense  of  the  term — 
than  had  the  State  of  Illinois. 


'/r2^</  /^. 


V 


BIOGRAPHICAI.  niCTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


77 


In  1871,  Mr.  Coy  removed  to  Chicago  and  has 
been  attorney  for  the  Union  Stock  Yards  and 
Transit  Company  since  that  time.  And  as  evi- 
dence of  his  ability  as  a  legal  adviser,  it  is  suffi- 
cient to  say  that  for  twenty  years  he  has  had  the 
management  of  the  legal  business  of  that  vast 
corporation,  with  its  complicated  system  of  rail- 
roads, with  a  thousand  employes  handling  live 
stock,  the  value  of  which  amounts  to  one-half  the 
entire  commerce  of  Chicago.  Yet  during  that 
entire  time  the  company  has  had  but  one  final 
judgment  rendered  against  it. 

Mr.  Coy  is  a  Republican  and  has  been  active  in 
political  matters.  He  was  a  Presidential  Elector 
during  the  campaign  of  1872,  and  voted  for  Gen. 
Grant.  During  the  campaign,  Mr.  Corwin,  who 
was  a  candidate  for  Congress  from  La  Salle  county 
in  his  district,  in  making  his  speaking  appoint- 
ments, on  every  occasion  advertised  Mr.  Coy  to 
speak  at  the  same  time  and  place,  and  always 
arranged  for  him  to  speak  last  on  account  of  his 
ability  to  interest  and  hold  an  audience.  Tiic 
meetings  were  large  and  enthusiastic. 

On  the  evening  before  election,  in  speaking  to 
some  of  his  friends  about  his  canvass,  Mr.  Cor- 
win said  :  "  The  most  wonderful  thing  to  me  is 
the  fact  that  during  the  whole  two  months  on  the 
stump  after  making  my  .speech,  I  have  sat  down 


and  listened  to  a  speech  from  Mr.  Coy,  and 
every  evening  he  has  given  us  something  new; 
and  the  last  evening  I  was  more  interested  and 
amused  at  his  speech  than  on  any  other  occa- 
sion. It  was  like  listening  to  a  new  speaker 
every  evening." 

Mr.  Coy  was  married,  in  1859,  to  Miss  Julia  A. 
Manchester,  who  is  a  lady  of  much  refinement, 
highly  educated  and  exceedingly  accomplished, 
and  who  adorns  her  home  with  all  the  graces  of 
true  womanhood.  They  ha\e  two  sons  and  two 
daughters. 

Mr.  Coy  is  a  man  of  commanding  presence  and 
pleasing  address,  being  six  feet  in  height  and  well 
proportioned,  and  carries  in  his  clear-cut  features 
the  marks  of  intellectual  vigor.  He  is,  further- 
more, a  man  of  broad  culture  and  elevated  tastes, 
and  possesses  a  knowledge  of  the  law  and  a  com- 
mand of  language  that  give  him  unusual  power 
as  an  advocate.  He  has  a  genial  social  nature, 
enjoys  good  fellowship  and  is  a  most  companion- 
able friend,  and  by  his  manly  qualities  and  up- 
right life  has  won  the  highest  respect  and  love  of 
a  wide  circle  of  acquaintances  and  friends.  His 
life  has  been,  in  the  best  sense,  a  success,  and  fur- 
nishes an  example  of  energy,  perseverance  and 
loyalty  to  principle  and  a  noble  purpose  worthy 
of  emulation. 


COL.   DANIEL  W.    MUNN, 


CHICAGO,  ILL. 


AMONG  the  lawyers  of  Chicago  who  have 
achieved  success  by  their  own  excellence, 
ability,  and  energy,  the  subject  of  this  sketch 
occupies  a  conspicuous  place. 

He  has  a  wide  range  of  legal  learning  and  is 
familiar  with  the  theories  and  technicalities  of  his 
profession.  He  is  lucid,  logical  and  eminently 
practical  in  making  application  of  the  law  to  the 
facts,  and  his  judgment  is  good.  His  political 
speeches  are  often  adorned  with  rhetorical  figures, 
but  in  his  legal  arguments  he  is  direct,  pointed 
and  strong.  His  mind  is  vigorous  and  active  and 
its  rich  and  varied  resources  are  always  at  his 
command.  His  perceptions  are  prompt  and  acute, 
and  he  readily  separates  the  practical  from  the 
speculative.       The    light  which    illuminates    his 


mind  is  kindled  in  his  heart,  where  it  shines  with 
brightest  luster.  He  possesses  in  a  high  degree 
that  rare  talent,  genuine  wit ;  it  is  playful  and 
spirited,  clastic  and  recreative.  He  can  be 
sarcastic  when  occasion  calls  for  sarcasm,  and 
ridicule  is  a  formidable  weapon  in  his  hands.  In 
his  satire  there  mingles  sometimes  the  sprightli- 
ness  and  vivacity  of  Horace,  at  others,  the  serious 
and  terrible  severity  of  Juvenal. 

He  is  a  native  of  the  Green  Mountain  State, 
and  was  born  in  Orange  county,  in  1834.  He 
began  his  education  in  the  public  .schools  of  his 
native  town,  and  was  afterward  graduated  from 
Thetford  Academy.  He  went  to  Indiana  in 
1852,  engaged  in  teaching  two  years,  and  initiated 
himself  into  the  theory  and  practice  of  the  law. 


78 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


In  1855  he  went  to  Coles  county,  Illinois,  and 
continued  his  legal  studies  under  Judge  Stark- 
weather, and  was  admitted  to  the  bar  in  1858. 
He  first  began  to  practice  his  profession  at  Hills- 
boro,  111.,  and  soon  won  the  respect  of  the  bar  as 
a  young  man  of  ability,  and  became  known  as  a 
brilliant  advocate. 

Impelled  by  the  spirit  of  patriotism  that  has 
always  characterized  the  sons  of  Vermont,  he,  in 
1862,  entered  the  126th  Regiment  Illinois  Volun- 
teer Infantry,  as  adjutant,  and  the  next  year  was 
appointed  colonel  of  the  First  Regiment  Alabama 
Cavalry,  but  was  compelled  to  decline  the  ofifice 
on  account  of  failing  health. 

Returning  to  Cairo,  Illinois,  he  resumed  the 
practice  of  law,  and  also  edited  the  Cairo  Daily 
Neivs.  In  1866  he  was  elected  to  the  State 
Senate,  being  the  first  Republican  ever  elected 
from  that  district,  and  during  his  four  years'  ser- 
vice there,  he  made  a  record  of  which  he  may 
justly  be  proud.  He  was  placed  on  several  im- 
portant committees,  and  his  counsels  were  always 
sought  on  all  important  matters  of  legislation. 
His  speech  on  the  adoption  of  the  fourteenth 
amendment  was  one  of  the  most  powerful  and 
forcible  efforts  ever  made  before  the  Illinois 
Legislature. 

He  was  nominated  for  Congress  in  1871  on  the 
Republican  ticket,  and  made  a  gallant  fight 
against  immense  odds,  but  was  defeated  by  a 
small  majority,  greatly  reducing  the  usual  sweep- 
ing Democratic  majority  of  his  district.  Presi- 
dent Grant  appointed  him  Supervisor  of  Internal 


Revenue  the  same  year,  his  jurisdiction  extending 
over  Illinois,  Michigan  and  Wisconsin,  with  head- 
quarters in  Chicago. 

As  a  campaign  speaker,  Col.  Munn  has  but  few 
equals;  lucid,  logical  and  forcible,  he  is  always  in 
demand,  and  has  rendered  his  party  valuable 
service.  In  all  of  the  political  campaigns  in  the 
last  twenty  years  his  eloquent  voice  has  been  heard 
in  nearly  all  of  the  northern  States. 

He  has  been  eminently  successful  since  coming 
to  Chicago  in  1875,  and  has  won  a  large  number 
of  important  cases ;  among  these  may  be  men- 
tioned the  Clark-St.  Peter  murder  trial,  in  which 
Col.  IMunn  defended  and  cleared  Mrs.  Clark, 
charged  jointly  with  Joseph  St.  Peter  with  the 
murder  of  her  husband,  this  too,  with  the  police 
and  detective  forces  earnestly  opposing  him. 
The  Dunn  murder  case  was  another  decided  \ic- 
tory  in  the  Criminal  Court  for  Col.  Munn.  Dunn 
was  indicted  for  killing  Elliott,  the  prize  fighter. 
After  a  long  and  hotly  contested  trial,  Dunn  was 
acquitted  by   the  jury. 

His  most  important  victory  was  in  the  pros- 
ecution of  the  hog  stealers  at  the  stockyards, 
which  resulted  in  sending  seven  persons  to  the 
penitentiary,  notwithstanding  a  most  powerful 
array  of  the  most  eminent  members  of  the  Chi- 
cago bar  on  the  side  of  the  defendants. 

Col.  Munn's  experience  in  the  Criminal  Court  is 
probably  greater  than  that  of  any  other  lawyer  at 
the  bar  in  the  Northwest,  and  the  court  records 
show  an  almost  phenomenal  success  for  him  in 
criminal  cases. 


SAMUEL   E.   GROSS, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


SAMUEL  E.  GROSS  was  born  November  11, 
1843,  at  the  Mansion  Farm,  on  the  banks  of 
.  the  Susquehanna,  near  the  town  of  Dauphin, 
Penn.,  and  is  the  son  of  John  C.  and  Elizabeth 
(Eberly)  Gross.  He  is  a  descendant  of  Captain 
John  Gross,  of  Huguenot  ancestry,  a  captain  in 
the  Revolutionary  War.  Captain  Gross  was  our 
subject's  great-grandfather,  his  captain's  commis- 
•sion  bearing  date  November  25,  1776.  Captain 
Gross,  after  the  war,  settled  in  Dauphin  county, 
where  he  owned  large  farm  and  milling  properties. 


On  his  maternal  side  he  is  a  descendant  of  a 
sturdy  German  family,  who  settled  in  Pennsyl- 
vania in  1726,  and  who  have  contributed  so  much 
to  the  building  up  and  general  welfare  of  that 
State.  In  1845,  Samuel's  parents  moved  from 
Dauphin  county,  Penn.,  to  Bureau  county.  111.,  and 
later  to  Carroll  county,  in  which  places  he  received 
his  early  education,  common  school  and  academic. 

In  i86i,when  but  seventeen  years  of  age,  Sam- 
uel enlisted  in  the  Forty-first  Illinois  Volunteer 
Infantry,  but  was  shortly  mustered  out  on  account 


s.y.^^. 


^j^^^ 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIO.XARV  A.XD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


8i 


of  his  being  under  the  limit  of  age  for  enlistment. 
In  1863,  while  he  was  attending  Whitehall  Acad- 
emy, Pennsylvania,  the  Confederate  armies  invad- 
ed Pennsylvania.  His  inheritance  of  patriotic 
ardor  from  Captain  Gross  of  Revolutionary  fame 
inspired  him  to  re-enlist,  this  time  in  Company  D, 
of  the  Twentieth  Pennsylvania  Cavalry,  in  which 
he  was  commissioned  first  lieutenant  June  29,  1863, 
one  of  the  youngest  holders  of  that  rank  in  the 
L'nion  service.  He  served  in  the  pursuit  of  Lee 
after  Gettysburg,  and  in_  special  detached  service, 
cavalry  scouting  and  guerilla  fighting,  through  the 
remainder  of  1863. 

On  P^ebruary  21,  1864,  he  was  promoted  to  the 
captaincy  of  Company  K,  in  the  same  regiment, 
ana  served  with  his  command  through  Virginia, 
in  1864-5,  taking  active  part  in  the  battles  of 
Piedmont,  Lynchburg,  Ashby's  Gap,  Winchester, 
and  many  other  battles,  and  was  mustered  out  ai 
the  close  of  the  war,  July  13,  1865. 

For  a  man  of  his  nature  and  training,  no  place 
seemed  to  offer  such  attractions  as  Chicago,  w  hich, 
though  yet  in  its  infancy,  was  rapidly  developing, 
and  Captain  Gross  moved  there  in  1865,  entering 
the  L^nion  College  of  Law,  whence  he  was  gradu- 
ated and  admitted  to  the  bar  in  1866.  Even  ear- 
lier than  this,  however,  he  had  begun  investing  in 
real  estate  by  buying  a  few  lots,  the  opening  of  a 
business  which  afterward  expanded  to  huge  pro- 
portions. Without  abandoning  his  law  practice, 
he  gave  more  and  more  attention  to  realty,  and  in 
1868-9  he  took  an  active  part  in  the  establish- 
ment of  the  immense  park  and  boulevard  system 
which  is  a  unique  feature  of  Chicago. 

At  the  time  of  the  great  fire  of  1871,  Mr.  Gross 
had  an  office  at  the  corner  of  Clark  and  South 
Water  streets.  During  the  terrible  night  of  the 
8th  and  9th  of  October  he  held  his  office  as  long 
as  it  was  tenable,  then  gathered  up  his  legal  and 
business  papers,  abstracts  of  title,  etc.,  crossed  the 
river  in  a  row-boat,  and  deposited  them  on  board 
of  a  tug-boat,  which  evaded  the  flames  and  re- 
turned the  precious  documents  safely  three  days 
later.  Even  before  he  recovered  the  papers  he 
had,  with  characteristic  courage,  enterprise  and 
activity,  recommenced  his  real  estate  business. 

From  1873  to  1879,  dullness  reigned  in  Chicago. 
Mr.  Gross  practiced  his  profession,  studied  science, 
art,  literature  and  political  economy,  and  wrote 
articles  which  were  an   important  contribution  to 


the  literature  of  these  subjects.  He  also  gave 
some  attention  to  mechanics  and  took  out  several 
patents  for  mathematical  instruments,  improve- 
ments in  street  paving,  etc.  But  real  estate 
was  his  favorite  subject.  He  had  an  abiding 
faith  in  the  future  of  his  adopted  city,  which  his 
later  experience  has  more  than  justified.  The 
purchase  of  agricultural  land  and  its  transforma- 
tion into  city  lots  became  a  pursuit — almost  a 
passion.  "  New  Cit}',"  in  the  southwestern  sub- 
urbs; "  Gross  Park,"  in  the  north  ;  "Brookdale," 
"Calumet  Heights"  and  "  Dauphin  Park,"  in  the 
south  ;  "  Under  the  Linden,"  in  the  northwest — 
these  are  only  a  few  of  his  enterprises.  Not  con- 
tent with  merely  staking  out  building  sites,  he 
built  upon  them,  and  houses  by  the  thousand — 
from  cottage  to  mansion — owe  their  construction 
to  him. 

In  1889  he  capped  the  climax  to  his  enterprise 
by  his  institution  of  Grossdale,  west  of  the  city 
limits,  where  he  transformed  over  five  hundred 
acres  of  land  (nearly  a  mile  square)  from  farm  to 
city.  Samuel  E.  Gross  will  need  no  finer  monu- 
ment than  this  to  carry  his  name  to  posterity. 
Thirty  thousand  lots  sold,  seven  thousand  houses 
built,  sixteen  separate  suburban  towns  and  cities 
instituted  and  built — these  are  his  trophies.  His 
success  is  due  primarily  to  his  own  natural  quali- 
ties, secondarily  to  his  reliance  on  the  passion 
which  exists  in  every  true  American  to  oivn  his 
home,  a.  passion  which  Mr.  Gross  has  done  perhaps 
more  to  gratify  than  has  any  other  man  of  any  age 
or  country.  He  has  not  done  this  service  without 
reaping  the  deserved  reward,  his  fortune  being 
estimated  to-day  (1892)  at  $3,000,000  or  more. 

He  is  engaged  in  many  business  and  social  en- 
terprises, for  instance:  Director  in  the  Calumet 
Electric  Railroad  and  the  Chemical  National 
Bank,  member  of  the  Chicago,  Union,  Iroquois, 
Athletic,  Marquette  and  Washington  Park  Clubs, 
patron  of  the  Art  Institute,  the  Humane  and 
other  bene\-olent  societies. 

He  has  travelled  e.xtensivelj-  in  Europe  and  in 
Mexico,  as  well  as  all  over  his  own  loved  land.  In 
1889  he  was  nominated  by  the  "  United  Working- 
men's  Societies"  as  their  candidate  for  mayor  of 
Chicago,  but  declined  in  view  of  the  magnitude 
and  pressing  nature  of  his  engagements. 

Mr.  Gross  married,  in  1874,  Miss  Emily  Brown 
(of  English  parentage),  a  lady  of  personal  attrac- 


82 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AAD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


tiveness  and  sterling  mind.  They  live  in  a  beauti- 
ful residence  at  the  corner  of  the  Lake  Shore 
Drive  and  Division  street,  now  (i8q2)  the  fashion- 
able quarter  of  Chicago. 

Mr.  Gross'  personal  deportment  is  most  genial 
and  popular. 

It  can  be  truly  said  of  Mr.  Gross  that  he  is  the 
architect  of  his  fortune,  as  he  is  a  self-made  man. 
Few  men  are  more  prominent  or  more  widely 
known  in  the  great  city  of  Chicago  than  he  ;  his 
transactions   are  on   an   immense   scale,  and    his 


popularity  well  deserved,  as  in  him  are  em- 
braced the  characteristics  of  an  unbending  in- 
tegrity, unabating  energy  and  industry  that 
never  flags. 

He  is  public-spirited  and  thoroughh'  interested 
in  whatever  tends  to  promote  the  moral,  intellec- 
tual and  material  welfare  of  Chicago.  Broad  and 
liberal-minded,  he  is  ever  willing  to  aid  those  who 
are  less  fortunate  in  life. 

He  has  carved  for  himself  a  name  that  will  ever 
be  identified  with  the  history  of  Chicago. 


HON.  JAMES   R.   DOOLITTLE, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


JAMES  R.  DOOLITTLE  was  born  during  the 
presidency  of  James  Madison,  the  third  suc- 
cessor to  Washington.  Living  through  the  suc- 
cessive terms  of  the  last  nineteen  presidents ; 
engaged  in  calling  conventions,  forming  parties 
and  writing  platforms,  when  Blaine,  Garfield  and 
Cleveland  were  boys,  he  stands  to-day,  as  lawyer, 
jurist  and  statesman,  at  the  ripe  old  age  of  seven- 
ty-six, one  of  the  few  surviving  links  of  our  ear- 
lier with  our  present  national  history.  Ranked 
amongst  the  ablest  lawyers  in  the  forties,  ap- 
pointed Judge  in  the  fifties,  and  elected  United 
States  Senator  in  the  sixties,  he  holds  an  honored 
place  in  the  history  of  this  country.  Active 
during  two  generations  in  making  and  adminis- 
tering the  law,  earnest  in  the  development  of  the 
vast  resources  of  the  country,  and  enthusiastic  in 
the  defense  of  Constitutional  liberty,  Judge  Doo- 
little  enjoys  the  honor,  esteem  and  confidence  of 
his  fellow  countrymen. 

He  was  born  January  3,  1815,  at  Hampton, 
Washington  county.  New  York.  His  father, 
Reuben  Doolittlc,  upon  emigrating  to  Genesee 
county,  in  Western  New  York,  became  a  farmer, 
mill  owner,  and  merchant,  in  prosperous  circum- 
stances. His  mother,  .Sarah,  m'e  Rood,  was  an 
estimable  lady  who  ilevoted  herself  to  domes- 
tic duties  and  to  the  education  of  her  children, 
and  instilling  into  their  minds  the  principles 
of  honor  and  virtue.  James  R.  was  the  eldest 
son  in  a  family  of  four  boys  and  two  girls. 
After  the  usual  preliminary  education,  he  was 
sent  to  Geneva  College,   in  Western  New  York, 


and  early  began  to  show  that  ability  which 
distinguished  him  in  after  years.  Gifted  with  a 
retentive  memory  and  a  clear  understanding,  com- 
bined with  a  genius  for  hard  work  and  diligent 
application,  he  easily  led  his  class,  and  graduated 
with  honors. 

Having  chosen  the  law  as  a  profession,  he  stud- 
ied its  theory  and  practice  with  the  Hon.  Har\ey 
Putnam,  at  Attica,  New  York,  and  with  the  Hon. 
Isaac  Hills,  of  Rochester,  New  York,  and  was 
admitted  to  practice  by  the  Supreme  Court  of 
New  York  in  1837.  It  was  not  long  before  the 
young  lawyer  was  recognized  as  one  of  the  com- 
ing men  of  the  profession.  His  thorough  knowl- 
edge of  the  principles  of  common  law  and  his 
facility  in  applying  them,  aided  by  an  extensive 
and  varied  course  of  reading,  a  pleasing  and 
musical  voice  and  an  easy  and  fluent  delivery, 
marked  him  as  one  destined  for  certain  and  rapid 
preferment. 

About  this  time  he  removed  to  Warsaw,  Wy- 
oming county.  New  York,  where  his  ability  was 
soon  recognized  and  rewarded  ;  and  although  a 
Democrat,  he  was  elected  District  Attorney  by  a 
Whig  constituency.  Having  discharged  the  du- 
ties of  that  important  office  with  satisfaction  to 
the  people  and  credit  to  himself,  Mr.  Doolittlc,  in 
1 85 1,  went  to  Racine,  Wisconsin,  and  there  prac- 
ticed his  profession,  and  in  a  short  time  was 
ranked  among  the  ablest  lawyers  of  that  State, 
and  retained  by  Governor  Farwell  in  cases  involv- 
ing the  interests  of  the  Commonwealth  and  intri- 
cate questions  of  law.     It    is   unnecessary  to  say 


^^^^■55! 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  A.\D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


85 


that  his  practice  became  large  and  lucrative,  and 
that  experience  developed  the  legal  ability  already 
recognized. 

In  1855.  Mr.  Doolittle  was  elected  Judge  of  the 
First  Judicial  Circuit  in  Wisconsin.  No  higher 
or  more  pleasing  tribute  can  be  paid  to  a  lawyer 
than  his  elevation  to  the  bench.  As  such.  Judge 
Doolittle  accepted  it  and  applied  all  his  knowl- 
edge and  experience  to  the  discharge  of  his  du- 
ties. In  this  case  the  office  sought  the  man,  and. 
what  is  more,  sought  the  right  man.  For  three 
years  he  discharged  the  important  duties  of  his 
trust  with  ability,  simplicity  and  dignity.  He 
had  the  rare  power  of  combining  the  "  Siiavitcr 
in  modo,  fortitcr  in  re''  When  he  resigned,  in 
1856,  he  received  the  highest  encomiums  from 
the  press,  the  people,  and  the  profession.  No 
sooner  had  Judge  Doolittle  laid  down  one  honor 
than  another  was  given  to  him.  In  January.  1857. 
the  Legislature  of  Wisconsin  elected  him  United 
States  Senator,  and  re-elected  him  in  1863  to  the 
same  office.  The  period  during  which  he  was  in 
the  Senate  was  the  most  momentous  since  the 
founding  of  the  Republic,  and  may  be  divided 
into  three  epochs :  1st.  Before  the  war.  when  the 
question  was  the  extension  of  slavery.  2d.  Dur- 
ing the  war,  the  period  of  secession.  3d.  After 
the  war,  when  the  issue  was  reinstatement  or 
reconstruction.  Each  of  these  periods  was  fraught 
with  danger  to  the  Republic,  and  grave  responsi- 
bilities rested  on  the  representatives  of  the  people. 
In  this  crisis,  the  patriotism,  ability  and  integrity 
of  the  young  senator  soon  became  conspicuous. 
Grasping  the  situation  with  almost  prophetic  intu- 
ition, he  used  the  whole  force  of  his  great  intelli- 
gence, the  powerful  influence  of  his  classic  elo- 
quence, and  supplemented  both  with  the  untarn- 
ished honor  of  his  spotless  character,  in  the 
endeavor  to  prevent  the  threatened  disruption. 
When  the  endeavor  to  secure  peace  with  honor 
failed,  and  the  tocsin  of  civil  war  smote  the  ear 
with  its  invitation  to  deadly  strife,  he,  like  every 
patriotic  citizen,  accepted  the  challenge  and  de- 
voted himself  unsparingly  to  the  preservation  of 
the  Union.  Later,  when  the  terrible  struggle. 
involving  the  loss  of  hundreds  of  thousands  of 
human  lives,  was  over,  came  the  period  of  rein- 
statement when  the  great  moral  force  and  patri- 
otic fire  of  Senator  Doolittle  was  stimulated  to 
rouse  the  country  to  the  duty  of  the  hour.     His 


eloquent  and  forcible  speeches  of  that  time  are 
historic  evidence  of  his  foresight  and  statesman- 
ship. As  a  member  of  the  Committee  of  Thir- 
teen, appointed  by  the  Senate  to  devise  a  plan  to 
prevent  disruption,  he  labored  for  that  object  with 
all  his  power  of  mind  and  body.  When  war 
became  inevitable,  he  used  his  whole  strength  to 
defeat  the  rebel  arms.  When  the  war  was  over, 
he,  as  a  representative  of  the  people,  counselled 
moderation  and  reconstruction.  Taking  the  con- 
stitution for  his  guide,  and  acting  from  sincere 
conviction,  he  strove  then,  as  through  his  whole 
life,  for  the  eternal  principles  of  truth  and  justice. 
If  Judge  Doolittle  were  to  publish  his  speeches, 
they  would  be  read  with  eagerness  as  historic  evi- 
dence on  many  subjects  now  in  dispute.  He  was 
chairman  of  the  joint  committee  appointed  to 
inquire  into  the  condition  of  the  Indians  in  Kan- 
sas, Colorado  and  New  Mexico.  The  published 
report  of  this  committee  is  the  most  exhaustive 
and  valuable  that  has  ever  been  compiled  on  the 
subject. 

It  would  be  trespassing  on  the  domain  of  his- 
tory to  recount  here  the  calls  to  conventions 
written,  the  speeches  delivered,  the  public  men 
with  whom  he  has  worked,  and  the  political  issues 
he  has  originated  or  supported.  It  is  only  neces- 
sary to  add  that  Judge  Doolittle's  life  has  been 
busy,  honorable  and  useful ;  and,  as  expressed  by 
a  friend  of  his,  "  Like  a  clear  limpid  stream  where- 
in you  can  see  the  form  and  color  of  the  peb- 
bles at  the  bottom  and  through  whose  meander- 
ing course  no  sediment  appears." 

Judge  Doolittle  is  a  man  of  fine  physical  devel- 
opment. Even  now,  at  the  age  of  nearly  four 
score,  he  is  a  man  of  powerful  build,  with  pleas- 
ing and  expressive  features.  His  voice  is  still 
strong  and  sonorous.  When  a  younger  man  he 
must  have  been  trumpet-tongued.  He  had  the 
"  powers  of  speech  that  stir  men's  blood  "  and 
he  retains  that  power  still.  The  annexed  por- 
trait is  a  good  likeness  of  the  Judge  at  the  pres- 
ent time  (1892),  and  from  it  one  may  conjecture 
what  he  was  half  a  century  ago.  Yet  it  is  not 
alone  the  features,  the  voice,  or  the  figure  that 
challenges  attention,  but  there  is  a  force  of  char- 
acter that  impresses,  an  influence  that  impels,  and 
a  magnetism  that  attracts.  No  man  during  the 
past  fifty  years  has  addressed  larger  masses  of 
people  or  has  addressed,  on  political   subjects,  as 


86 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


many  people.  He  is  a  master  of  the  art  of  rhet- 
oric. His  language  is  clear,  simple  and  graceful, 
and  he  leads  his  auditors  through  a  long  argu- 
mentative path,  decked  with  classic  allusions,  that, 
like  flowers  on  the  border  of  a  stream,  seem  to 
be  native  there. 

He  is  very  happy  in  epigram.  After  Abraham 
Lincoln's  second  nomination  for  the  presidency  a 
cabal  was  formed  in  this  State,  with  the  hope  of 
forcing  him  to  retire.  At  a  mass  meeting,  where 
one  of  the  discontents  had  been  the  first  speaker 
and  had  delicately  hinted  at  the  desirability  of 
Mr.  Lincoln's  retirement.  Judge  Doolittle,  who 
had  listened  with  feelings  more  easily  imagined 
than  described,  was  called  as  the  second  speaker. 
There  was  a  vast  audience  of  probably  twenty 
thousand  people,  who  listened  to  the  previous 
speaker  in  ominous  silence.  The  Judge  arose. 
and  in  slow,  clear,  solemn  tones,  and  with  his 
right  hand  raised  to  heaven,  said  :  "  Fellow-citi- 
zens: I  believe  in  God  Almighty,  and,  under 
Him.  I  believe  in  Abraham  Lincoln."  The  spell 
Avas  broken  and  the  vast  audience  cheered  for 
fully  half  an  hour.  No  more  was  heard  of  the 
opposition  to  Mr.  Lincoln. 

Ever  since  Judge  Doolittle  retired  from  the 
Senate,  in  1869,  though  retaining  his  homestead 
and  citizenship  in  Wisconsin,  he  has  been  engaged 
in  the  practice  of  law  at  Chicago.  His  first  part- 
nership was  with  Mr.  Jesse  O.  Norton,  under  the 
firm    name    of    Doolittle  &   Norton.     After  the 


great  fire  of  October  8  and  9,  1 871,  he  formed  a 
partnership  with  his  son,  under  the  firm  name  of 
J.  R.  Doolittle  &  Son.  In  1879,  Mr.  Henrj- 
McKey  was  admitted  as  a  partner  in  the  business, 
and  the  firm  name  became  Doolittle  &  McKey. 
After  the  death  of  Mr.  James  R.  Doolittle,  Jr., 
which  occurred  in  1889,  Mr.  Edgar  B.  Tolman  be- 
came a  member  of  the  firm,  and  since  that  the 
firm  name  has  been  Doolittle,  McKey  &  Tolman. 
They  have  a  large  general  practice. 

Judge  Doolittle  suffered  one  of  the  great  afflic- 
tions of  his  lifetime  in  August,  1889,  when  his  son, 
James  R.,  Jr.,  died.  At  the  time  of  his  death  he 
was  a  member  of  the  law  firm  of  which  his  dis- 
tinguished father  is  the  head.  He  was  an  active 
member  of  the  Chicago  Board  of  Education,  and 
devoted  himself  unsparingly  to  the  interests  of 
the  city  and  suburban  schools.  He  was  a  man  of 
great  ability  as  a  lawyer,  highly  accomplished  as  a 
scholar,  and  his  kindly  gentle  nature  endeared  him 
to  all.  By  his  early  death  the  bar  of  Cook  coun- 
ty lost  one  of  its  prominent  members,  the  School 
Board  one  of  its  most  progressive  and  active 
members. 

After  a  pure,  honorable  and  useful  life,  actuated 
by  unselfish  motives,  prompted  by  patriotism  and 
guided  by  truth  and  justice.  Judge  Doolittle  may 
in  old  age  rest  in  the  assurance  that  the  people  of 
this  country  are  not  unmindful  of  those  who  have 
devoted  themselves  to  their  interests.  "  Palmam 
qui  meruit  fcrat." 


DANIEL   HUDSON   BURNHAM, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


D.WIEL  H.  BURNHAM,  Chief  of  Construc- 
tion of  the  World's  Columbian  Exposition, 
1893,  is  a  native  of  Henderson,  JefTerson  county, 
New  York.  He  was  born  September  4,  1846, 
the  son  of  Edwin  and  Elizabeth  Burnham,  who 
were  natives  of  Vermont.  They  were  married 
in  New  York  about  1841.  The  great-grand- 
father of  our  subject  was  an  officer  in  the 
Revolutionary  army.  His  mother's  paternal,  on 
both  sides,  were,  for  many  generations,  clergy- 
men. She  was  a  grand-daughter  of  the  cele- 
brated Samuel  Hopkins  of  revolutionary  times, 
and    a    cousin    of    the    late    Mark    Hopkins    of 


California.  Edwin  Burnham  removed  to  Chicago 
with  his  family  in  1855,  and  was  a  wholesale 
merchant  until  his  decease  in  1874.  He  was 
president  of  the  old  Merchants'  Exchange. 
Young  Burnham  was  a  pupil  in  Professor  Snow's 
private  school,  located  on  the  present  site  of  the 
Fair,  on  Adams  street,  and  afterwards  attended 
the  old  Jones  school  and  the  Chicago  High 
School.  Later  he  spent  two  years  under  private 
instruction  at  Waltham,  Mass.,  and  one  year  with 
Professor  T.  B.  Hayward  (previously  of  Harvard 
University),  at  Bridgewater,  ]\Iass.,  as  his  sole 
pupil.     Returning  to  Chicago  in  the  fall  of   1867, 


BlOGIiAPIIICAL  niCTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  OALLKRY. 


87 


he  spent  the  following  year  and  a  half  in  the 
ofifice  of  Messrs.  Loring  and  Jinney,  architects. 
He  then  went  to  Nevada  and  for  one  year  was 
engaged  in  mining,  after  which  he  returned  to 
Cliicago  and  entered  the  office  of  Mr.  L.  fi. 
Laurean.  architect,  where  he  remained  one  and 
one-half  years. 

Immediately  after  the  great  fire  of  October  8th 
and  9th,  1 87 1,  he  entered  the  office  of  Messrs. 
Carter,  Drake  and  White,  where  he  made  the 
acquaintance  of  Mr.  John  W.  Root,  with  whom, 
in  the  spring  of  1873,  he  formed  a  co-partnership 
which  lasted  until  Mr.  Root's  demise  in  January, 
i8gi. 

Among  the  buildings  planned  and  constructed 
by  Mr.  Burnham  may  be  mentioned  the  National 
Bank  of  Illinois -building,  the  Chemical  Bank 
building,  Montauk  block — ten  stories  high,  the 
Rialto,  the  Rookery,  the  Insurance  Exchange. 
Phcenix,  the  Counselman  building.  C.  B.  and  O. 
general  offices.  Rand  and  McNally  building, 
Calumet  and  Calumet  Club  buildings.  He  is 
now  constructing  the  Woman's  Temple,  sixteen 
stories  high  ;  the  Masonic  Temple,  twenty  stories  ; 
the  Northern  Hotel  and  Monadnock,  sixteen 
stories;  the  Herald  building  on  Washington 
street;  St.  Gabriel's  Catholic  Church;  Church  of 
the  Covenant  (Presbyterian):  the  new  Methodist 
and  Presbyterian  Churches  at  Evanston.  Ho 
has   also   just  finished    in   Cleveland,    Ohio,   the 


Society  for  Savings  building.  At  Kansas  City  he 
has  built  the  Midland  Hotel,  Board  of  Trade  and 
American  Bank  buildings.  At  Topeka,  Kansas, 
the  A.,  T.  and  Santa  Fe  General  Ofifice  building; 
also  the  Phcenix  Hotel  at  Las  Vegas,  Hot  Springs, 
N.  M.  The  Chronicle  building  and  Mills  build- 
ing in  San  P""rancisco,  the  latter  being  the  finest 
office  building  in  America,  now  constructing;  also 
a  large  office  building  at  Atlanta,  Ga.  (ten 
stories).  Mr.  Burnham  originated  the  Western 
Association  of  Architects  and  was  its  first  presi- 
dent. He  is  also  a  member  of  mo.st  of  the  city 
clubs.  In  October  of  1890,  Mr.  Burnham  was 
appointed  by  the  Directory  of  the  World's 
Columbian  Exposition  Chief  of  Construction 
and  Supervising  Architect.  He  makes  all  draw- 
ings and  contracts,  supervises  the  artistic  and 
working  construction  and  disbursements  for  the 
buildings. 

The  buildings  of  this  exposition  will  cover  fifty 
per  cent,  more  ground  than  those  at  Paris,  and 
the  enclosed  grounds  will  be  three  times  greater 
then  ever  before  occupied  for  a  like  purpose. 
The  exposition  will  surpass  anything  of  the  kind 
heretofore  attempted  in  the  magnificence  of  its 
buildings  and  equipments  and  the  marvels  of  the 
exhibits;  the  planning  of  the  whole  of  it  was  due 
to  Messrs.  Olmsted  and  Company  and  Burnham 
and  Root,  and  the  management  of  its  execution 
is  in  the  hands  of  Mr.  Burnham. 


CHARLES  S.  FROST, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


TO  attain  to  success  and  prominence  in  one's 
calling  before  reaching  mid-life  falls  to  the 
lot  of  comparatively  few  men.  Many  things  con- 
spire to  these  much-desired  ends,  but,  in  the  main, 
they  lie  along  the  line  of  patient,  persevering  and 
faithful  work.  To  say  that  Mr.  Frost  may  be  num- 
bered among  this  favored  few  is  fully  warranted, 
in  view  of  the  position  to  which  he  has  attained 
while  yet  a  young  man.  He  is  a  native  of  the 
State  of  Maine,  and  was  born  at  Lewiston  on  May 
31,  1856,  the  son  of  Albert  and  Eunice  (Jones) 
PVost,  and  traces  his  ancestry  back  through  some 
of  New  England's  most  noted  families. 

As  a  boy,   he  was  thoughtful,  studious,  an  apt 


scholar  and  fond  of  books.  He  received  a  thor- 
ough common-school  education,  and,  after  finish- 
ing iiis  studies  there,  spent  three  years  in  an  arch- 
itect's office  in  his  native  place,  and  there  laid  the 
foundation  of  his  subsequent  succe.ss.  The  call- 
ing is  one  to  which  his  natural  bent  inclined  him, 
and  the  experiences  of  those  first  years  of  close 
application  are  recalled  with  pleasure  by  him, 
for  they  were  the  stepping-stones  on  which  he 
mounted  to  his  present  position.  In  order  to 
more  thoroughly  fit  himself  for  his  life-work,  he 
next  pursued  a  special  course  of  study  at  the  In- 
stitute of  Technology  in  Boston,  and  during  the 
three  years  following  his  course  of  study,  put   his 


88 


BlOGRAFttlCAL  DlCTlOyARY  A.\D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


knowledge  into  practical  operation  in  different 
offices  of  that  city  before  opening  an  office  on  his 
own  account.  Being  thus  thoroughly  prepared 
for  his  work,  his  success  was  marked  from  the 
first.  In  1882  Mr.  Frost  removed  to  Chicago  and 
associated  himself  in  business  with  Mr.  Henry  I. 
Cobb,  under  the  firm  name  of  Cobb  &  Frost.  This 
partnership  continued  until  1889,  since  which  time 
Mr.  Frost  has  carried  on  his  business  in  his  own 
name,  his  office  at  this  time  (1892)  being  in  the 
Pullman  building.  While  associated  with  Mr. 
Cobb,  the  firm  planned,  among  other  buildings, 
the  Chicago  Opera  House,  the  Owings  Building, 
and  many  private  residences.  Among  the  promi- 
nent structures  designed  by  Mr.  Frost  since  he  has 
been  in  business  by  himself,  may  be  mentioned 
the  Passenger  Station  of  the  Chicago  and  North- 
\\'estern  Railroad  Company  at  Milwaukee,  which 
is  regarded  as  a  model  of  its  kind,  and  one  of  the 


finest  station  buildings  belonging  to  that  company: 
also  the  Western  Bank  Note  Company's  building 
at  the  southwest  corner  of  Madison  street  and 
Michigan  avenue,  Chicago  ;  the  private  residences 
of  Mr.  R.  T.  Crane  and  Mr.  G.  B.  Shaw,  on  Mich- 
igan avenue  ;  of  Mr.  N.  W.  Harris,  on  Drexel  boule- 
vard, and  the  University  School  building  on  Dear- 
born avenue. 

Personal!}-.  Mr.  Frost  possesses  qualities  of  a 
high  order.  Prompt  in  business,  firm  in  his 
friendships,  generous,  hospitable  and  charitable, 
he  has  attracted  to  himself  a  wide  circle  of 
friends  and  acquaintances,  who  esteem  him  for 
his  manly  character  and  noble  qualities  of  head 
and  heart. 

Mr.  Frost  was  married  Januar\-  7,  1885,  to  Miss 
Mary  Hughitt,  a  daughter  of  Mr.  Marvin  Hughitt, 
general  manager  of  the  Chicago  and  North-West- 
ern  Railway. 


GEN.  WILLIAM   E.  STRONG, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


WILLIAM  EMERSON  STRONG  is  a  na- 
tive of  Granville,  Washington  county, 
New  York,  and  was  born  August  10,  1840.  When 
he  was  nine  years  old  his  parents  removed  to  New 
Fane,  in  Western  New  York,  and  four  years  later 
settled  on  a  farm  near  Clinton,  in  Rock  county, 
Wisconsin.  Until  his  seventeenth  year  young 
Strong  worked  on  the  farm,  spending  a  few  months 
in  the  meantime  in  study  at  Beloit  College.  In 
November,  1857,  he  began  the  study  of  law  in 
the  ofificc  of  Messrs.  Strong  &  Fuller,  at  Racine, 
Wisconsin,  and  in  April,  1861,  passed  a  creditable 
examination  and  was  admitted  to  the  bar. 

On  the  day  of  President  Lincoln's  proclama- 
tion calling  for  75,000  men,  April  15,  1861,  young 
Strong  raised  a  company  of  volunteers  at  Racine, 
then  called  "The  Belle  City  Rifles,"  but  subse- 
quently known  as  Company  P",  Second  Regiment 
Wisconsin  Volunteer  Infantry.  This  was  the  first 
Wisconsin  regiment  mustered  into  the  United 
States  service  for  three  years,  or  during  the  war. 
In  May,  '61,  the  command  was  ordered  to  Wash- 
ington and  assigned  to  Col.  William  T.  Sherman's 
Brigade,  Gen.  Tyler's  Division,  Army  of  the 
Potomac,    commanded   by  Gen.    McDowell,  and 


was  engaged  in  both  the  battle  of  Blackburn's 
Ford,  July  18,  1861.  and  the  battle  of  Bull  Run 
three  days  later. 

September  12,  1861,  Capt.  Strong  was  promoted 
to  the  rank  of  Major,  and  assigned  to  the  Twelfth 
Regiment,  Wisconsin  Infantry,  then  forming  in 
Wisconsin,  and  at  once  reported  to  it  for  duty, 
and  aided  in  organizing  and  equipping  it,  and  in 
December  following  was  sent  with  his  regiment 
to  the  command  of  Gen.  David  Hunter  at  Fort 
Leavenworth,  Kansas.  Major  Strong  was  after- 
ward promoted  to  the  rank  of  Lieutenant-Colonel 
of  this  regiment,  which  during  January,  Febru- 
ary, March,  April  and  May  served  under  Gen. 
Robert  B.  Mitchell  in  the  State  of  Kansas, 
marching  during  those  months  over  800  miles. 
In  the  latter  part  of  May,  the  regiment  was 
ordered  down  the  Mississippi  river,  and  reached 
Columbus,  Kentucky,  just  after  the  evacuation  of 
Corinth  by  the  Confederates.  During  the  remain- 
der of  the  war  our  subject  was  with  the  Army  of 
the  Tennessee  in  all  its  battles,  marches  and  cam- 
paigns, serving  at  different  times  on  the  staffs  of 
Generals  McKean,  James  B.  McPherson,  John  A. 
Logan    and  O.  O.  Howard,  as    In.spector-General 


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BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  A.\D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


91 


of  the  Sixth  Division  ( McKean's);  of  the  Riglit 
Wing,  Army  of  the  Tennessee;  of  the  Seven- 
teenth Army  Corps,  and  of  the  Department  and 
Army  of  the  Tennessee.  During  the  campaign 
from  Atlanta  to  the  sea,  through  the  Carolinas, 
from  Beaufort  to  Goldsboro,  Raleigh,  and  on  to 
Washington,  he  was  chief-of-staff  to  Maj.-Gen. 
Howard. 

September  12,  1864,  he  was  brevetted  Colonel, 
for  distinguished  services  in  the  Atlanta  cam- 
paign, and  on  March  21,  1865,  for  gallant  services 
in  the  Carolina  campaigns,  was  brevetted  Briga- 
dier-General. On  September  i,  1866,  after  five 
years  and  four  months  of  continual  service.  Gen. 
Strong  retired  from  the  army  with  a  brilliant 
record  and  honors  well  deserved  and  meritoriously 
won. 

Soon  after  leaving  the  army,  he  formed  a  busi- 
ness connection  with  the  Peshtigo  Lumber  Com- 
pany, and  on  January  i,  1867,  settled  in  Chicago. 
On  the  following  July  12.  he  was  made  secretary 
and  treasurer  of  that  company,  offices  which  he 
filled  until  October  25,  1873,  when  he  was  elected 
president  of  that  organization,  an  office  which  he 
held  till  his  death  in  1891.  Upon  the  formation 
of  the  Sturgeon  Bay  and  Lake  Michigan  Ship 
Canal  and  Harbor  Company.  Maj-  7,  1872,  he  was 
elected  treasurer  and  assistant  secretarj-,  and 
two  years  later  (Nov.  18.  1874*  became  one  of  its 
directors,  and  took  an  active  part  in  the  construc- 
tion of  the  Sturgeon  Bay  Canal,  which  was  com- 
pleted and  accepted  by  the  State  of  Wisconsin  in 
December,  1881.  In  the  will  of  the  late  Hon. 
William  B.  Ogden,  who  died  August  2,  1877, 
Gen.  Strong  was  named  as  one  of  the  executors 
and  trustees  of  that  estate,  and  from  September 
'3.  1877,  when,  with  others,  he  qualified  as  such, 
in  New  York  City,  he  continued  to  discharge  the 
duties  of  this  responsible  trust  till  his  demise. 

Owing  to  his  long  and  honorable  militarj'  record. 
Gen.  Strong  always  held  a  high  place  in  military 
circles,  and  was  honored  by  his  comrades  with 
many  positions  of  trust,  having  been  for  several 
years  Junior  and  Senior  Vice-Commander  of  the 
Illinois  Commandery  of  the  Loyal  Legion,  and 
also  Commander  of  that  body.  The  following  trib- 
utes from  his  comrades  will  be  read  with  interest: 
Capt.  E.  A.  Blodgett  says:  "Gen.  Strong  is  an 
excellent  speaker,  a  fine  singer,  and  a  royal  gen- 
tleman.    A  past  commander  of  the  Illinois  Com- 


mandery, he  is  a  general  favorite ;  a  man  widely 
and  greatly  appreciated  for  his  many  talents  and 
rare  qualities  of  heart  and  mind."  Judge  Walter 
Q.  Gresham  thus  speaks  of  Gen.  Strong:  "He 
was  on  Gen.  McPherson's  staff  when  the  latter 
was  killed  in  front  of  Atlanta,  and  for  several 
years  previous  thereto.  There  was  a  strong  bond 
of  friendship  between  them,  which  was  no  more 
than  natural,  as  their  temperaments  were  very 
much  alike.  Both  were  warm-hearted,  generous, 
confiding  and  brave.  Few  men  were  as  popular 
as  Gen.  Strong  in  the  Army  of  the  Tennessee : 
his  patience,  tact  and  rare  good  judgment  enabled 
him  to  avoid  antagonisms  and  made  him  especially 
valuable  to  his  chief.  The  traits  of  character 
which  enabled  Gen.  Strong  to  achieve  success  and 
reputation  in  the  army  have  been  of  great  service 
to  him  as  a  business  man.  While  not  lacking  in 
firmness  and  sense  of  duty,  he  is  ever  ready  to 
yield  technicalities  and  non-essentials,  and  no 
man  is  more  widely  known  or  more  highly 
esteemed  in  Chicago  than  he." 

Lender  the  administrations  of  both  Gov.  Bev- 
eridge  and  Gov.  Cullom,  Gen.  Strong  was  In- 
spector-General of  the  Illinois  National  Guard, 
and  also  of  rifle  practice ;  and  was  acting  chair- 
man of  the  local  committee  of  the  Society  of 
the  Army  of  the  Tennessee  at  the  grand  reunion 
and  reception  of  October,  1879,  in  honor  of  Gen. 
Grant  upon  his  return  from  his  famous  trip  around 
the  world.  Although  Gen.  Logan  was  nominally 
chairman  of  that  committee,  the  duties  of  direct- 
ing that  celebrated  ovation  devoK'ed  upon  Gen. 
Strong,  and  the  masterly  manner  in  which  he  per- 
formed those  duties  reflected  high  honor  upon  the 
organization  he  represented,  and  displayed  in  "him 
unusual  e.xecutive  ability  and  generalship. 

Upon  his  resignation  as  Inspector-General  of 
the  Illinois  National  Guard,  near  the  close  of  the 
year  1879,  t'^^  following  was  written  as  expressing 
the  high  esteem  in  which  he  was  held: 

Gener.'VL  Headquarters. 

Adjuta.nt  General's  Office, 

Springfield,  III.,  Dec.  13,  1879 
Col.  William  K.  Strong.  Inspector-General  of  the  Illinois 
.N.-itional  Guard,  tenders  his  resignation,  to  take  effect  Janu- 
ary I,  1S80.  The  Commander-in-Chief,  in  view  of  the  urgent 
reasons  given  by  Col.  Strong  for  this  step,  accepts  the  same 
with  great  regret. 

Col.  Strong  was  commissioned   Inspector-General  on  the 
2ist  day  of  December,  1875,  and  he  has  worthily  filled  the 


92 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


trust  reposed  in  him  to  the  present  date.  Under  the  code  of 
1877  he  ranked  as  a  Brigadier-General.  Subsequent  legisla- 
tion, however,  reduced  the  grade  of  all  officers  in  the  State 
service. 

In  this  resignation  the  State  of  Illinois  loses  the  service  of 
a  true  and  tried  soldier,  and  the  National  Guard  one  of  its 
ablest  officers.  To  Col.  Strong  is  due  the  credit  of  the  sys- 
tem of  inspection  and  rifle  practice  now  in  use  in  this  State, 
and  the  Commander-in-Chief  in  general  orders  takes  this 
occasion  to  publicly  thank  him  for  his  distinguished  services 
voluntarily  rendered  to  the  State  and  its  troops  covering  a 
period  of  over  four  years. 

By  order  of  the  Commander-in-Chief. 

(Signed)        H.  Hilli.-\rd, 

Adjutant-  General. 

Gen.  Strong  was  a  close  friend  of  Gen.  Sheridan, 
upon  whose  invitation  and  in  whose  company  he 
made  six  trips  across  the  Western  States  and 
Territories,  traveling  for  the  most  part  on  pack 
mules  through  a  wild  and  unexplored  country. 
These  hazardous  journeys,  with  all  their  hardships 
and  fatigues,  as  well  as  the  opportunities  they 
afforded  for  indulging  his  sportsmanship  in  hunt- 
ing big  game  and  fishing  for  trout,  were  remem- 
bered by  him  as  among  the  happiest  incidents  of 
his  life. 

He  was  an  ardent  friend  and  admirer  of  Gen. 
Grant,  and  at  the  national  convention  held  at 
Chicago  in  1880,  when  Gen.  Grant  was  a  promi- 
nent candidate  for  the  presidency,  he  served  as 
Sergeant-at-Arms,  and  at  the  time  of  his  death 
was  President  of  the  Board  of  Trustees,  com- 
posed of,  beside  himself,  Mr.  Potter  Palmer,  Mr. 
S.  M.  Nickerson,  Mr.  Norman  Williams  and  Mr. 
E.  S.  Dryer,  having  in  charge  the  erection  in 
Lincoln  Park  of  the  Grant  equestrian  statue. 

Gen.  Strong  was  a  member  of  the  George  H. 
Thomas  Post,  G.  A.  R.,  a  member  of  the  Chicago 


Commercial  and  Literary  Clubs,  and  also  belonged 
to  the  Tolleston  Shooting  Club,  in  the  latter  of 
which,  being  a  "  crack  shot,"  he  took  special 
delight. 

Upon  the  decision  of  Congress  to  hold  a 
World's  Columbian  Exposition  at  Chicago  in 
1893,  Gen.  Strong  was  elected  by  the  stockholders 
of  that  organization  one  of  its  Board  of  Directors, 
an  office  for  which  his  wide  and  varied  experience, 
his  accurate  knowledge  of  men  and  affairs,  and 
his  diversified  talents  most  admirably  fitted  him. 

He  was  a  man  of  marked  traits,  combining 
energy,  perseverance,  will  power,  and  loyalty  to 
principle  with  a  high  sense  of  honor,  fairness  and 
justice  that  never  failed  to  command  from  all  who 
knew  him  confidence  and  respect.  As  a  public 
speaker  Gen.  Strong  was  an  orator  of  note, 
possessing  a  style  at  once  clear,  simple,  logical 
and  convincing,  and  never  failed  to  hold  the  close 
attention  of  his  auditors.  He  was  passionately 
fond  of  music,  being  a  fine  vocalist,  and  enjoyed 
more  than  local  reputation  as  a  singer  of  army 
songs.  In  politics  he  was  always  identified  with 
the  Republican  party.  In  his  religious  affiliations 
and  sentiments  he  was  an  Episcopalian.  He  was 
married  April  25,  1867,  to  Miss  Mary  Bostwick 
Ogden,  daughter  of  Mahlon  D.  Ogden,  Esq.,  and 
a  niece  of  Hon.  William  B.  Ogden,  Chicago's  first 
Mayor,  a  lady  of  most  estimable  qualities  and 
fine  womanly  instincts.  They  had  one  son  and 
two  daughters,  viz.,  Ogden,  Henrietta  Ogden  and 
Mary  Ogden.  Gen.  Strong  died  in  Florence, 
Italy,  on  April  10,  1891,  aged  fifty  years  and 
eight  months.  His  remains  were  brought  home, 
and  rest,  peacefully  enshrouded  in  the  national 
colors,  in  his  native  soil. 


WILLIAM    LE    BARON   JENNEY, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


Al/^ll.LIAM  LE  BARON  JENNEY  was 
V  »  l)orn  in  l'"airhaven,  Mass.,  September  25, 
1832.  His  father,  William  P.  Jenney,  was  a 
direct  descendant,  on  the  maternal  side,  of  John 
Alden  of  the  "  Mayflower,"  and  his  mother,  Eliza 
Le  Baron  Gibbs,  was  also  of  Plymouth  stock. 
He  has  three  brothers:  Ansel  G.,  Herbert  and 
Walter  P.,  and  one  sister. 


After  completing  his  .studies  at  Cambridge, 
iMass.,  he  went  to  France  and  graduated  in  1856 
from  the  Ecole  Central  des  Arts  et  Manufactures 
of  Paris,  as  an  engineer  of  construction.  Imme- 
diately after  his  graduation,  he  was  called  to  the 
Isthmus  of  Tehuantcpcc,  where  he  had  charge  of 
the  wiirks  for  the  Tehuantepec  Railroad  Company. 
Owing  to  the   financial   crisis   of    1857,   the  work 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


93 


was  stopped,  and  he  returned  to  Paris,  where  he 
was  appointed  engineer  of  an  American  company. 
During  an  interval  which  followed,  while  the 
company  was  arranging  to  commence  operations, 
he  studied  architecture  in  various  offices  and  in 
galleries  of  sculpture  and  painting.  In  1859,  he 
was  sent  to  the  United  States  by  the  European 
bondholders  of  the  Marietta  and  Cincinnati  Rail- 
way Company  to  make  a  report  of  that  road. 
Soon  afterward  he  was  appointed  one  of  three 
engineers  of  the  Bureau  of  American  Securities  in 
Europe,  then  forming,  of  which  William  T.  Sher- 
man (^afterward  general  in  the  U.  S.  Army)  be- 
came president,  and  William  F.  Roelofson  vice- 
president.  About  the  time  that  the  affairs  of  the 
concern  were  nearly  consummated,  operations 
were  suspended  b\-  the  opening  of  the  civil  war 
in  the  United  States. 

Mr.  Jenney  had  opened  an  ofifice  as  an  architect 
and  engineer  at  Cincinnati,  Ohio,  at  that  time. 
But  shortly  after  the  occupation  of  Cairo  he  was 
appointed  by  General  George  B.  McClellan  as 
assistant  in  the  civil  engineers'  department  of  the 
army,  and  accompanied  Capt.  Henrj'  Benham  to 
Cairo,  Illinois,  where  he  was  left  to  complete  the 
fortifications  under  Chief  Engineer  J.  D.  Webster. 
Receiving  from  Gen.  Fremont  an  appointment  as 
1st  Lieutenant  Vol.  Engineers,  he  was  ordered 
by  General  Halleck  to  assist  Lieut.-Col.  Mac- 
Pherson  (who  was  afterwards  major-general  com- 
manding the  Army  of  the  Tennessee,  and  killed 
at  Atlanta),  and  was  present  at  the  taking  of 
Forts  Henry  and  Donelson,  the  battles  of  Shi- 
loh  and  Pittsburg  Landing,  and  the  siege  of 
Corinth,  where  he  was  chief  engineer  on  Gen. 
Grant's  staff.  President  Lincoln  appointed  him 
additional  aide-de-camp  in  the  regular  army, 
to  date  from  August  19,  1861,  with  the  rank  of 
captain,  and  later  he  built  the  fortifications  at 
Memphis.  He  accompanied  Gen.  Sherman  as 
chief  engineer  in  his  expedition  against  Vicks- 
burg,  and  took  charge  of  the  work  on  the  "cut-off" 
canal.  He  remained  on  Gen.  Sherman's  staff 
during  the  remainder  of  the  war,  and  was  engi- 
neer of  the  rsth  army  corps  at  Vicksburg,  and 
later  engineer  of  the  Army  of  the  Tennessee. 
When  Gen.  Sherman  took  command  in  the  West, 
Capt.  Jenney  was  placed  in  charge  at  engineer 
headquarters.  N'ashville,  Tcnn. 

After  the  war,  having  been  breveted  major,  he 


was  ordered  to  accompany  Gen.  Sherman  to  St. 
Louis  and  to  prepare  a  map  of  his  campaign.s. 
This  map  was  afterwards  loaned  by  the  war  de- 
partment and  published  with  Gen.  Sherman's 
memoirs.  He  resigned  his  commission  May  19, 
1866,  and  entered  the  office  of  Olmsted,  Vaux 
and  Withers,  of  New  York  city,  architects  and 
landscape  artists,  and  was  shortly  made  vice- 
president  of  the  McKcan  Coal  Company,  and  of 
the  Humboldt  Oil  Refining  Company. 

Mr.  Jenney  was  married  to  Miss  Lizzie  H. 
Cobb,  of  Cleveland,  May  8,  1867,  and  has  two 
sons:  Max,  born  May  2,  1868,  and  Frank  Lc 
Baron,  born  December  6,  1869., 

He  came  to  Chicago  in  the  fall  of  1867,  and 
formed  a  partnership  with  Sanford  E.  Loring, 
Esq.,  with  whom  he  published  the  Practice  and 
Principles  of  Architecture.  The  partnership 
was  dissolved  in  1869,  and  Mr.  Jenney  was  ap- 
pointed architect  and  engineer  of  the  West 
Chicago  Park  Commissioners,  and  the  .same  year, 
superintendent  of  architectural  construction  at 
Riverside,  for  Olmsted,  Vaux  and  Company.  The 
character  of  the  work  required  careful  and  skill- 
ful associates.  Mr.  Jenney  formed  with  L.  Y. 
Schermerhorn,  John  Bogart  and  L.  Y.  Colyer,  of 
New  York,  a  partnership  which  continued  one 
year  by  agreement.  During  that  time  designs 
were  furnished  for  the  West  Chicago  parks,  a  part 
of  Washington  Park  at  Albany,  N.  Y.,  and  for  the 
improvement  of  the  capitol  grounds  at  Nashville, 
Tenn.,  aside  from  the  work  at  Riverside.  Mr. 
Jenney  was  .still  actively  engaged  in  architectural 
work.  He  has  designed  the  following  important 
structures:  Grace  Episcopal  Church,  Portland 
block.  Mason's  building,  St.  Caroline's  court  at 
Chicago ;  the  Sharp  and  Fletcher  Bank  building, 
and  the  residence  of  H.  Bates,  Jr.,  at  Indianapolis, 
Ind.,  besides  many  dwellings  in  Chicago  and 
Riverside.  In  1874  he  was  appointed  a  member 
of  the  committee  of  the  Chicago  Academy  of 
Design,  and  in  May,  1876,  Professor  of  Archi- 
tecture at  the  University  of  Michigan,  Ann  Arbor. 
In  1876,  he  was  sent  by  the  Secretary  of  the 
Interior  to  report  on  the  construction  of  the 
Texas  and  Pacific  Railway,  then  completed  west 
to  Fort  Worth. 

The  Home  Insurance  building,  northeast 
corner  of  Adams  and  La  Salle  streets,  was  de- 
signed   by    Mr.    Jenney,   it    being    the    first    tall, 


94 


BIOGRAl'IllCAL  DICTIONARY  A.\D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


highly  finished,  fireproof  building  in  Chicago,  and 
in  which  was  first  introduced  the  iron  skeleton 
construction,  fireproofed  only  by  masonry,  the 
weight  all  carried  by  vertical  columns,  and  which 
has  since  become  known  as  the  Chicago  construc- 
tion. In  this  building  were  used  the  first  steel 
beams  manufactured  in  this  countrj-.  Among 
other  important  buildings  designed  by  him  are 
the  Union  League  Club  House,  the  L.  Z.  Leiter 
building,  State,  Van  Buren  and  Congress  streets, 
the  Manhattan  building  on  Dearborn  street — the 
first  sixteen  story  building  started  in  Chicago — 
the  Fair  building.  State,  Dearborn  and  Adams 
streets.     He   was    appointed    one   of    ten   archi- 


tects, five  of  whom  were  selected  from  Chicago 
and  five  from  other  sections  of  the  countrj-,  to 
form  an  Architectural  Commission  Advisatory, 
and  also  to  take  special  charge  of  the  main 
group  of  buildings  at  Jackson  Park  for  the 
World's  Columbian  Exposition  in  1893.  To 
Mr.  Jenney  was  specially  assigned  the  horticul- 
tural building. 

Mr.  Jenney  is  a  member  of  the  Union  League 
Club  and  the  University  Club  of  Chicago,  and  of 
the  Loyal  Legion  ;  the  Society  of  the  Army  of 
the  Tennessee,  and  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic. 
He  is  also  a  member  of  the  American  Institute 
of  Architects. 


GEORGE  T.   WILLIAMS, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


GEORGE  THOMAS  WILLIAMS  was  born 
on  October  31,  1831,  in  the  town  of  Ame- 
nia,  Dutchess  county.  New  York,  and  is  a  son  of 
Richard  and  Lucinda  Williams.  His  father,  a 
native  of  Connecticut,  was  of  English  descent, 
and  traced  his  genealogy  through  a  branch  of  the 
Roger  Williams  family  of  Rhode  Island.  In 
early  life  he  moved  into  the  State  of  New  York; 
was  married  to  Lucinda  Davis,  of  Quaker  Hill, 
New  York,  and  there  engaged  in  the  boot  and 
shoe  business.  Miss  Davis  was  of  Holland  Dutch 
descent.  Richard  Williams  died  at  the  age  of 
seventy-three  years;  his  widow  now  (1892)  resides 
in  Chicago,  and  is  eighty-two  years  old. 

Our  subject  attended  the  common  schools  of 
his  native  place,  and  the  old  "  Quaker  School " 
located  in  the  town  of  Washington,  Dutchess 
county.  New  York,  and  also  attended  an  agricul- 
tural school,  and  received  a  thorough  farm  train- 
ing. From  his  ninth  to  his  fifteenth  year  he  lived 
with  the  family  of  one  Stephen  Haight,  a  Quaker — 
who  became  strongly  attached  to  him — and  worked 
during  the  summer  and  attended  school  during 
the  winter  months.  Young  Williams  was  indus- 
trious and  faithful,  rising  early  and  working  from 
twelve  to  fifteen  hours  per  day  during  the  sum- 
mer months,  and  was  entrusted  with  important 
matters  by  his  employer.  At  the  age  of  seven- 
teen he  abandoned  farm  life  to  engage  in  mercan- 
tile pursuits,  beginning  at  Dover  Plains,  on  a  sala- 


ry of  five  dollars  per  month  and  his  board.  He 
was  afterwards  employed  in  a  store  at  Amenia, 
New  York,  and,  later,  secured  a  position  in  a  gen- 
eral store,  in  connection  with  a  pig-iron  furnace 
manufactory,  and  on  several  occasions  he  was 
sent  to  New  York  City  to  purchase  goods  for  the 
firm.  After  this  he  spent  a  few  months  inspect- 
ing railroad  supplies,  during  the  construction  of 
the  Harlan  railroad  from  Dover  Plains  to  Amenia, 
also  acting  as  station  agent.  In  1852  he  got  the 
"  gold  fever,"  and  made  several  unsuccessful  at- 
tempts to  secure  passage  to  California,  via  the 
Isthmus  route.  On  one  occasion  he  stood  in  line 
all  night  before  the  ticket  office  in  New  York 
City,  only  to  find  before  reaching  the  window 
that  all  the  tickets  for  passage  were  sold.  In 
November,  of  the  following  year,  he  again  vis- 
ited New  York,  and  after  registering  at  the  old 
Astor  House,  made  another  trial,  and  finally 
secured  passage  to  San  Francisco,  77'rt  Cape  Horn, 
on  Adam  Smith's  line  of  sailing  clippers,  by  pur- 
chasing a  whole  state-room,  and  re-selling  parts  of 
it  to  four  of  his  friends.  The  vessel,  which  was 
named  the  Grecian,  was  fitted  up  in  first-class 
style  for  passenger  service ;  she  sailed  from  New 
York  on  February  2,  1852,  with  five  hundred  pas- 
sengers on  board.  The  passage  was  a  stormy 
one,  and  the  trip  was  attended  with  several  inter- 
esting incidents.  Stopping  in  Rio,  Brazil,  and 
also  in  Chili,  gave  him  an  opportunity  to  make  a 


BIOGRAP-HICAL  DICTIOXARV  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


97 


tour  of  observation  in  and  about  the  surrounding 
country.     He   also   had  the  pleasure  of  meeting, 
with  a  small  party  of  his  countrj'men,  Dom  Pedro, 
the  then   Emperor  of    Brazil,  and   also   tlie  family 
of  the  President  of  Chili,  at  Concepcione.     There 
he   visited  the  ruins  caused   by  the  great   earth- 
quake many  years  before,  and   reached  San  Fran- 
cisco, by  way  of  the  Sandwich  Islands,  in  August, 
making  the    trip  in   little   less  than   si.x   months. 
He    went    direct    to    the    mining    district    lying 
north   of   Sacramento   and   Marysville,   but    soon 
after  he  returned  to   Marysville  and   engaged   in 
the  retail   grocery  and    steamboat    supply  trade  : 
and  afterward   was  engaged  in  the  wholesale  gro- 
cery- trade  and  in  the  hotel  business.     Commenc- 
ing with  a  cash  capital  of  only  two  hundred  dol- 
lars, he  soon  obtained  a  good  credit  in  San  Fran- 
cisco, and  was  doing  a  thriving  business  when  his 
store  was  destroyed   by  fire,  resulting  in  the  loss 
of  nearly   all    he    had    gained.     However,   he    at 
once  rebuilt  his  store  and  put  in  a  new  stock  of 
goods.     Mr.  John  C.  Fall,  a  merchant,  at  that  time 
doing  an  extensive  business  in  San  Francisco  and 
Mar\'sville,  having  great  confidence  in  young  Wil- 
liams, gave   him    a   large   line   of  credit   at    San 
Francisco,  by  which  he  was  enabled  to  continue 
business.     About  the  same  time  the  Steamboat 
Combination  Company,  operating  in  San  Francis- 
co and  Sacramento,  was  so  managed  as  to  divert 
trade  for  the  upper  mining  country  from  the  Ma- 
rysville merchants  to  those  of  Sacramento,  which 
caused  great  excitement  and  dissatisfaction  among 
Marysville  merchants.     Calling    a    meeting,  they 
organized  themselves  into  "  The  Enterprise  Steam- 
boat Company,"  of  which  Mr.  Williams  was  made 
the  first  secretary,  and   rendered  valuable  service 
in  procuring  subscriptions  to  the  stock.     After  a 
few  months  this  company's  success  was  such  as  to 
entirely   break    up    the  Combination    Company's 
traffic  to  Marysville,  and  so  affected  rates  at  Sac- 
ramento that  their  monopoly  was  destroyed.     Mr. 
Williams  was  present  when  Sacramento  was  ru- 
ined by  the  great    flood  in    1853,  and  afterward 
saw  the  city  destroyed  by  fire. 

In  the  latter  part  of  the  year  1854,  he  closed 
out  his  business  preparatory  to  returning  home. 
He  at  first  secured  a  passage  on  the  steamer 
Yankee  Blade,  but  on  the  day  that  steamer  sailed 
sold  his  ticket  and  procured  another  entitling 
him    to   passage   on    the   steamer   Golden    Gate. 


The  exchange  proved     most    fortunate  for  him. 
for  the  Yankee   Blade  had   been  at  sea  but  three 
days  when  she  was  driven   upon  the    rocks  and 
nearly  all  on  board  were  lost.     Before  sailing,  Mr. 
Williams  was  promised  the  position  of  special  ex- 
press messenger  to  have   in   charge  the  shipment 
of  gold   coin  from   New  York  to  San   Francisco, 
and  to  begin  in  the  following  March.     The  home- 
ward trip  was  made   via  the   Isthmus  route  and 
was  attended  with  some  unpleasant  experiences, 
the  chief  of  which  was  an  attempt  on  the  part  of 
one  William  Walker  and   his  army  to  capture  the 
government  of   Nicaraugua,  by  reason  of  whicii 
the  trip  across  the  isthmus  was  somewhat  delayed. 
Notwithstanding  the  delay,  the  trip  to  New  York 
was  made  in  twenty  days,  being  the  quickest  pas- 
sage from   San   Francisco  to   New  York   then  on 
record.     Mr.  Williams'  arrival  at  home  was  a  great 
surprise  to  his  friends  who  supposed  he  was  lost, 
having  seen  his  name  among  the  list  of  pas.sen- 
gers  who  perished   in  the  wreck  of  the  ill-fated 
steamer    Yankee    Blade.     After    recuperating   a 
short  time,  he  abandoned  his  purpose  of  returning 
to   California,  and,  instead,  made  a  trip  through 
Illinois  and  Iowa,  and  on   May  i,  1855,  landed  in 
Chicago,  where  he  has  since  made  his  home.     He 
first  secured  a  position  as  cashier  and  assistant 
with    Messrs.  E.  Stevens  &  Co.,  at    "  Old    Bull's 
Head,"  on  West  Madison   street,    in  the   stock- 
yards  business.     This    business    was    afterwards 
purchased    by  Messrs.  John   B.  Sherman  &  Co., 
with  whom  Mr.   Williams  continued  for  several 
months.     After  that  he  was  engaged  in  the  lum- 
ber, grain  and  mercantile  trade  at  Decatur  and 
Monequa,  Illinois,  some  three  years.     Returning 
to  Chicago,  he  became  connected  with  the  Lake 
Shore    Stock    Yards,  located    on    Cottage  Grove 
avenue    and    Twenty-ninth  street,  and   acted  as 
cashier  and  chief  clerk.     For  a  .short  time  he  was 
stock  agent  for  the  Chicago  &  Great  Eastern  and 
Baltimore  &  Ohio  (now  the  Pittsburgh,  Chicago. 
Cincinnati  &  St.  Louis)  railroads,  and  also  super- 
intended the  construction    of  the  stock  yards  at 
Richmond,    Indiana.     In    June,    1867,   upon    the 
organization  of  the  Union  Stock  Yards  Company 
at  Chicago,    Mr  Williams  was  made  its  ca.shier 
and  assistant  .secretary,  and  afterwards  was  elec- 
ted  its  secretary  and  treasurer  offices  which  he 
has  filled  with  marked  ability  for  the  past  twenty- 
five  years,  during  which  time  he  has  had  the  en- 


98 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  u ALTER Y. 


tire  management  of  the  company's  financial  mat- 
ters. He  is  also  at  the  present  time  (1892)  presi- 
dent and  treasurer  of  the  Union  Rendering  Com- 
pany ;  secretary,  treasurer  and  a  director  of  the 
Chicago  &  Indiana  State  Line  railway;  vice-presi- 
dent and  a  director  of  the  National  Live  Stock 
bank,  and  a  director  in  other  corporations.  In 
all  these  offices  Mr.  Williams  has  shown  unusual 
financial  and  executive  ability,  and  won  the  con- 
fidence and  respect  of  his  associate  officers  and 
stockholders. 

Mr.  Williams  is  not  a  politician  but  has  always 
been  interested  in  political  affairs.  He  cast  his 
first  presidential  vote  for  General  Winfield  Scott, 
and  upon  the  organization  of  the  Republican 
party,  in  1856,  he  identified  himself  with  it  and 
has  adhered  to  its  principles  and  teachings  ever 
since.  At  the  opening  of  the  war  of  the  rebellion, 
while  living  in  Central  Illinois,  he  enlisted  a  com- 
pany of  eighty-five  men  for  the  United  States 
service.     This  company  afterwards  formed  a  part 


of  John  M.  Palmer's  regiment.  Mr.  William>. 
although  elected  captain  of  this  company,  was 
prevented  from  entering  by  a  severe  attack  of 
typhoid  fever,  contracted  from  exposure  while  re- 
cruiting and  drilling  the  company  in  the  night  air. 

He  has  never  sought  political  preferment,  al- 
though important  offices  have  been  tendered  him. 
He  served  twelve  years  on  the  Republican  State 
Central  Committee,  being  four  years  member  at 
large  for  the  northern  district  of  Illinois. 

Mr.  Williams  was  married  in  October,  1856,  to 
Miss  Maria  A.  Eggleston,  a  daughter  of  Mr.  N. 
S.  Eggleston,  who  was  a  thrifty  farmer  at  Miller- 
ton,  in  Dutchess  county,  New  York. 

Mr.  Williams'  career  has  been  along  the  line  of 
patient,  persistent  effort,  and  it  is  but  due  to 
name  him  among  Chicago's  successful  men.  He 
has  amassed  a  small  fortune  which  he  has  secure- 
ly and  profitably  invested,  and,  with  his  family, 
enjoys  his  luxurious  home  recently  built  at  No. 
4724  Dre.xel  Boulevard,  Chicago. 


ELBERT   EUGENE  JAYCOX, 


CHICAGO,  ILL. 


ONE  of  the  most  imjiortant  positions  in 
connection  with  the  World's  Columbian 
Exposition  is  that  of  traffic  manager.  The  official 
who  wears  this  title,  which  carries  with  it  influ- 
ence, dignity  arid  honor,  should  be  a  practical, 
active  railroad  man,  fully  up  with  the  require- 
ments of  the  position  of  general  traffic  manager 
of  a  great  railway.  He  must  be  familiar  with  the 
railroad  world  and  its  methods  of  doing  business, 
how  to  get  passengers  and  how  to  handle  freight. 
While  the  traffic  manager  of  the  ordinary  Ameri- 
can road  is  amply  equipped  for  his  position  if  he 
understands  the  transportation  situation  in  his 
own  country,  the  World's  Fair  traffic  manager 
must  organize  a  bureau  to  cover  the  earth.  The 
transportation  committee  of  the  Directory,  com- 
posed of  the  leading  railroad  officials  of  Chicago, 
were  entrusted  with  the  selection  of  a  traffic 
manager.  They  wcr6  overwhelmed  with  ap{)lica- 
tions  for  the  position,  but  after  due  consideration 
they  selected  Elbert  E.  Jaycox,  and,  very  much 
to  that  gentleman's  surprise,  tendered  him  the 
office.     He  had  never  solicited  the  consideration 


of  the  committee,  nor  did  he  desire  the  appoint- 
ment. His  selection  was  the  choice  of  the  com- 
mittee and  the  unanimous  vote  of  the  Directory. 
His  appointment  was  the  first  of  the  executive 
staff  of  the  E.xposition,  and  was  approved  b}-  the 
Director-General  October  12th,  1890. 

Elbert  Eugene  Jaycox  was  born  on  October 
24th,  1856,  in  New  York  City.  His  parents,  Wil- 
liam B.  Jayco.x  and  Louisa  M.  (Bailey)  Jayco.x, 
were  both  descendants  of  old  New  York  families. 
His  mother's  grandfather  was  one  of  the  signers 
of  the  Declaration  of  Independence  and  a  mem- 
ber of  the  first  Congress  of  the  United  States. 
The  Bailey  family  is  an  old  one  in  this  country's 
history,  and  one  of  the  members  of  the  family, 
which  now  contains  many  prominent  financiers  of 
New  York  State,  has  in  his  possession  a  deed, 
executed  on  parchment,  in  favor  of  one  of  the 
family,  dated  in  1580.  William  B.  Jaycox,  our 
subject's  father,  was  a  descendant  of  an  old 
Knickerbocker  family,  tracing  his  ancestr}-  to 
Holland. 

When  our  subject  was  a  lad  of  nine  years,  the 


BJOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


99 


family  removed  West  and  located  in  Evanston, 
one  of  Chicago's  most  charming  suburbs.  Here 
he  received  his  education  and  graduated  from  the 
Evanston  High  School  in  1871.  His  inclinations 
and  desires  were  strongly  in  favor  of  the  career  of 
a  railroad  man,  consequently  he  obtained  a  posi- 
tion in  the  general  passenger  and  ticket  ofifice  of 
the  Chicago  and  North-Western  Railroad,  in  a 
minor  capacity — that  of  "  foreign  check  clerk." 
For  twenty  years  he  remained  in  the  service  of 
this  gigantic  corporation,  and  by  the  faithful  and 
honorable  discharge  of  his  duties  he  rapidly  ad- 
vanced, and  when  he  resigned  his  position  to 
accept  the  office  he  now  holds,  he  was  occupying 
a  high  position  of  trust.  His  record  while  in  the 
employ  of  the  Chicago  and  North-Western  was 
clean,  and  his  appointment  to  the  high  position 
on  the  executive  stafT  of  the  World's  Fair  was 
not  only  unanimously  approved  by  the  officials  of 
the  Exposition,  but  the  officials  of  the  different 
railroad  lines  centering  here  deemed  the  appoint- 
ment extremely  good.  He  is  thoroughly  familiar 
with  the  vast  railroad  system  centering  in  Chicago, 
as  well  as  with  their  connections  stretching  over 
the  entire  continent.  He  knows  how  to  create  a 
passenger  traffic,  and  how  to  draw  it  here,  besides 
possessing  that  in\'aluable  accessory  of  a  success- 
ful railroad  official — a  wide  and  popular  acquaint- 
ance among  railroad  men.  His  connection  with 
the  North-Western  Railroad  has  caused  him  to 
visit  all  sections  of  our  country  and  Canada,  and, 
it  is  needless  to  state,  he  has  formed  the  acquaint- 
ance of  men  of  prominence  throughout  the  conti- 
nent that  will  be  of  great  advantage  to  him  in  the 
position  he  now  holds. 

Mr.  Jaycox  is  one  of  the  few  men  who  have 
had  Masonic  interests  at  heart,  and  as  such  he 
was  crowned  with  the  highest  honors  at  an  early 
age.  During  the  last  triennial  conclave  he  was  on 
the  staff  of  the  Grand  Commander  of  the  State 
of  Illinois,  and  he  was  the  youngest  Knight  Tem- 
plar in  attendance  that  had  passed  through  all  of 
the- chairs,  and  it  is  certainly  true  that  he  is  the 
most  prominent  Mason  of  his  age  in  the  country. 
His  Masonic  record  is  one  of  which  he  should  feel 
proud.  He  was  raised  to  the  sublime  degree  of 
Master  Mason  in  Evans  Lodge,  524,  F.  and  A.  M., 
September  12th.  1882;  January  26th,  1S83,  he 
was  made  a  Royal  Arch  Mason  in  Evanston 
Chapter.  144:    he  was  created  a  Knight  Templar 


in  Chicago  Commander)-,  19,  K.  T.,  on  September 
i6th,  1883.  Having  been  a  member  of  that  com- 
mandery  for  one  year,  he  was  elected  by  unani- 
mous vote  Captain-General,  for  the  purpose  of 
taking  the  commandery  to  St.  Louis  to  participate 
in  the  triennial  conclave.  Afterward  demitting 
from  the  Chicago  Commandery,  he  became  a 
charter  member  of  Evanston  Commandery,  58, 
K.  T.  An  incident  that  shows  far  better  than 
words  the  esteem  in  which  Mr.  Jaycox  is  held  by 
his  fellow  Knights,  is  the  fact  that  shortly  after 
the  commandery  was  constituted  he  was  elected 
its  Eminent  Commander.  He  was  chosen  for  the 
position,  not  only  because  he  was  universally  es- 
teemed by  all  its  members,  but  also  because  he 
was  the  Sir  Knight  deemed  most  eminently  fitted 
to  impregnate  the  proper  spirit  into  the  command- 
ery. At  the  time  of  his  election  as  Eminent 
Commander,  the  membership  of  the  commandery 
was  the  smallest  of  any  in  the  State,  and  after  his 
year  of  service  the  membership  of  the  command- 
ery was  doubled,  and  its  standing  was  raised  until 
it  was  second  to  none  in  that  commonwealth. 

A  prominent  member  of  the  Evanston  Com- 
mandery, in  speaking  of  the  reason  why  Mr. 
Jayco.x,  although  comparatively  speaking  a  very 
young  man  for  the  high  office,  was  chosen  Emi- 
nent Commander,  expresses  himself  in  the  follow- 
ing terms:  "Mr.  Jaycox  was  chosen  because  of 
his  personal  popularity  and  fitness ;  his  service 
lifted  the  commandery  out  of  the  slough  of  de- 
spond." At  the  next  annual  conclave,  he  was 
again  chosen  for  the  position  he  had  filled  so  sat- 
isfactorily, but  he  declined  to  serve. 

The  following  extracts  from  the  Chicago  Times 
explain  his  Masonic  record  in  brief,  the  first  from 
the  issue  of  November  2d,  1890,  as  follows: 

"  Sir  Knight  Jaycox  is  one  of  the  most  enthusiastic  workers 
in  the  conimanciery,  and  a  leader  in  all  that  pertains  10  the 
welfare  of  all  the  Masonic  bodies  with  which  he  is  identified. 
He  was  made  a  Mason  in  Evans  Lodge  only  about  seven 
yeais  .ago,  and  within  this  comparatively  short  period  he  has 
earned  and  received  honors  in  the  craft  of  which  many  vet- 
erans might  feel  proud.  Passing  through  the  veils  of  Evans- 
ton Chapter,  he  entered  the  ranks  of  Knighthood  in  Chicago 
Commandery,  No.  19,  where  he  was  soon  elevated  to  the 
office  of  Captain-General.  He  retired  from  that  body  to 
become  a  charter  member  and  take  part  in  the  organization 
of  Evanston  Commandery,  of  which  he  has  always  been  a 
most  active  member  and  faithful,  efficient  and  successful 
commander." 

The  otiier  extract,  from   the  Sunday  Times,  of 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


March    29th,    1S91,    gives   a   brief  historj'  of    his 
record  with  Evanston  Commandery,  No.  58: 

"At  the  annual  conclave  of  that  year  (1888)  Eminent  Sir 
Knight  Elbert  E.  Jaycox  was  elected  Eminent  Commander, 
and  by  his  energy,  ability,  push  and  zeal  he  brought  the 
commandery-  to  the  position  it  now  occupies  in  the  Templar 
world.  I'nder  his  vigorous  management  a  Masonic  hall  was 
erected  in  Evanston ;  he  planned,  fitted  and  furnished  it  on 
a  scale  of  splendor  that  has  been  the  admiration  of  all  who 
have  seen  it.  He  provided  for  the  commandery  the  finest 
costumes  and  paraphernalia  to  be  found  in  this  country.  At 
the  time  Eminent  Sir  Knight  Jaycox's  work  commenced,  the 
commandery  had  fifty-four  members,  and  during  his  term  of 
office  fifty  petitions  were  received  for  the  Order  of  Knight- 
hood, and  the  membership  had  increased  to  one  hundred 
and  four,  and  the  treasury  contained  nearly  twelve  hundred 
dollars." 

On  March  6th,  1877,  he  was  married  to  Harriet 
A.  Walker,  of  Galena,  Illinois.  Mrs.  Jaycox  is  a 
grand-niece  of  General  Isaac  Putnam,  of  Revolu- 
tionary fame.  Her  father  was  for  many  years  a 
prominent  merchant  in  Corfu,  New  York.  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Jaycox  are  blessed  with  three  sons  living, 
Charles  Elbert,  aged  thirteen,  Ralph  Eugene,  aged 
five,  and  Clarence  Walker,  aged  one.  In  1882, 
they  met  with  a  severe  affliction  in  the  loss  of 
their  second  son,  Herbert  W.,  aged  two  years. 

In  social  circles,  Mr.  Jaycox  is  much  esteemed; 
he  was  one  of  the  organizers  and  a  director  of  the 
Ivanhoe  Club,  of  Evanston,  and  he  has  ever  taken 
an  active  part  in  all  affairs  of  this  organization. 
He  is  also  a  member  of  manv  secret  societies  out- 


side of  his  Masonic  connections.  He  delights  in 
a  hunt,  and  is  a  member  of  the  Minnesota  Rod 
and  Gun  Club.  Politically,  he  has  ever  been  affil- 
iated with  the  Democratic  party,  and,  although  he 
has  never  sought  an  office,  he  was  elected  col- 
lector of  South  Evanston,  in  which  capacity  he 
served  satisfactorily  for  one  year.  He  is  a  mem- 
ber of  St.  Luke's  Episcopal  Church. 

Such  is  a  brief  sketch  of  his  life.  In  it  we  find 
much  to  emulate.  He  has  reached  a  position  of 
prominence  in  the  community  that  very  few  men 
of  his  age  ever  attain.  In  the  transaction  of  the 
affairs  of  the  traffic  department  of  the  E.xposition 
he  merits  the  hearty  approval  of  all  the  officials. 
He  is  a  young  man  of  thirty-five,  who  undoubtedly 
has  a  bright  and  prosperous  future  before  him, 
and  he  is  certain  to  become,  ere  long,  one  of  the 
most  prominent  railway  officials  of  the  United 
States.  He  has  always  filled  every  position  of 
trust  allotted  to  him  to  the  entire  satisfaction 
of  all,  his  twenty  years'  service  in  positions  of 
trust  with  one  of  our  great  corporations  pro\ing 
this  fact.  With  the  esteem  of  all  with  whom  he 
has  become  associated,  together  w-ith  an  honora- 
able  business  record  for  the  past  twenty  years, 
and  with  honors  and  achievements  in  the  Masonic 
fraternity  of  the  very  highest  degrees,  there  is  no 
subject  more  worthy  of  a  position  of  prominence 
in  this  biographical  work  than  is  Elbert  Eugene 
Jaycox. 


MARSHALL    FIELD, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


TO  say  of  him  whose  name  heads  this  sketch, 
that  he  has,  by  his  own  efforts,  risen  from 
comparative  obscurity  to  rank  among  the  million- 
aire merchant  princes  of  the  world  is  but  stating 
a  fact  that  seems  trite  to  those  familiar  with  his 
history.  The  volume  that  might  be  written  con- 
cerning his  remarkable  career  would  prove  highly 
interesting  to  those  curious  to  know  the  history 
of  successful  men.  But  Mr.  Field,  though  one  of 
Chicago's  most  generous  public-spirited  men  and 
broad-minded  philanthropists,  is  a  man  of  quiet 
demeanor,  modest  and  reticent,  who  recoils  from 
any  attempt  at  ostentation  or  notoriety.  Any 
adequate    historj-    of    his   life  would   involve  the 


history  of  the  various  business  interests  with 
which  he  has  been  connected  since  he  began  his 
active  career. 

He  is  a  native  of  Massachusetts,  and  was  born 
in  1835.  At  the  age  of  twenty-one  years,  he 
began  his  business  career  in  Chicago  as  a  clerk  in 
the  dry  goods  house  of  Cooley,  Wadsworth  &  Co., 
then  located  on  South  Water  street,  and  engaged 
in  both  the  wholesale  and  retail  trade.  This  was 
in  1856.  In  the  following  year  the  house  removed 
to  Wabash  avenue,  the  firm  name  changed  to 
Cooley,  Farwell  &  Co.,  and  the  business  was  con- 
fined to  the  wholesale  trade.  In  i860  Mr.  Field 
became  a  partner  in  the  business,  and  four  years 


(Tl-  ly 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


103 


later  the  firm  name  was  changed  to  Farwell,  Field 
&  Co.,  Mr.  L.  Z.  Leiter  becoming  a  partner  at 
that  time.  In  1865  Messrs.  Field  and  Leiter 
withdrew  from  the  business  and  associated  them- 
selves with  Mr.  Potter  Palmer,  who  was  then  con- 
ducting on  Lake  street  a  prosperous  dry  goods 
business  which  he  had  established  in  1852,  the 
firm  name  becoming  Field,  Palmer  and  Leiter. 
This  firm  continued  till  January,  1867,  when  Mr. 
Palmer  retired  from  the  business  and  the  firm 
name  changed  to  Field,  Leiter  &  Co.  In  the  fall 
of  1868  the  business  was  removed  to  the  north- 
east corner  of  State  and  Washington  streets, 
where  it  continued  to  prosper  until  swept  away  in 
the  general  conflagration  of  October  8th  and  9th, 
1871.  At  the  time  of  this  disaster,  the  business 
of  the  firm,  amounting  to  $8,000,000  a  year,  was 
carried  on  in  a  single  building.  The  value  of  the 
firm's  property  destroyed  was  estimated  to  be 
$3,500,000,  on  which  $2,500,000  of  insurance  was 
collected.  The  firm  at  once  resumed  business  in 
the  old  street  railway  barn  at  the  southwest  cor- 
ner of  State  and  Eighteenth  streets,  and  without 
delay  replaced  the  destroyed  edifice  at  the  corner 
of  State  and  Washington  streets  by  an  elegantly 
planned  structure,  to  be  thereafter  devoted  exclu- 
si\eh-  to  the  retail  trade,  while  a  commodious 
building  was  erected  at  the  corner  of  Madison 
and  Market  streets  for  the  accommodation  of 
the  wholesale  department.  This  department  was 
afterwards,  in  1887,  removed  to  its  present  loca- 
tion on  Adams  street,  into  the  massive  stone 
structure  covering  an  entire  block,  and  built 
expressly  for  it,  and  which  is  regarded  as  among 
the  finest  models  of  commercial  architecture 
extant.  Upon  the  completion  of  the  new  struc- 
ture the  retail  department  was  removed  to  the 
old  site,  and  thenceforward  the  business  has 
shown  a  marvelous  growth,  the  sales  having  in- 
creased from  $8,000,000  a  year,  before  the  great 
fire,  to  the  enormous  sum  of  $35,000,000  in  1891. 
Since  1881,  when  Mr.  Leiter  retired  from  the  bus- 
iness, it  has  been  conducted  under  the  firm  name 
of  Marshall  Field  &  Co. 

It  certainly  is  not  asserting  too  much  to  say  of 
one  who  can  direct  and  control  a  business  of  such 
magnitude,  extending,  as  it  does,  from  the  Alps 
to  the  Rocky  Mountains — for  it  involves  branch 
houses  in  England,  France  and  Germany — that 
he  must  possess,  aside  from  mercantile  foresight 


and  sagacity,  the  happy  faculty  of  reading  and 
judging  men,  unusual  powers  of  organization,  and 
executive  ability  of  a  high  order ;  in  a  word,  that 
his  must  be  a  master  mind.  And  yet,  if  one  shall 
seek  in  Mr.  F'ield's  career  the  rules  that  have 
led  to  his  success,  they  will  be  found  along  the 
lines  of  well-tried  and  old-time  ma.xims.  Honesty 
and  fair  dealing;  cash  purchases;  short  credits; 
promptne.ss,  truthfulness,  fidelity — all  these  are 
strictly  enforced  and  adhered  to.  Faithfulness 
on  the  part  of  employes  is  promoted  by  the 
knowledge  that  good  service  means  advancement 
as  opportunity  opens  and  that  neglect  of  duty 
will  not  be  tolerated,  and  is  further  enhanced  by 
the  interest  taken  by  the  employer  in  the  personal 
welfare  of  the  deserving. 

While  estimates  of  the  size  of  great  fortunes 
are  oftentimes  matters  of  guess  work,  it  is  grati- 
fying to  know  that  his  strict  adherence  to  correct 
business  principles  has  brought  to  Mr.  Field  a 
fortune  that  is  placed  by  his  close  friends  at  about 
$35,000,000. 

A  particularly  noticeable  trait  of  Mr.  Field's 
character  is  modesty.  He  is  of  a  retiring  dispo- 
sition, and  shrinks  from  newspaper  notoriety. 
Anything  like  ostentation  in  charity  he  studiously 
a\oids.  Though  he  contributes  freely  to  worthy 
objects,  he  has  pronounced  views  in  the  matter  of 
giving,  and  is  careful  not  to  add  to  the  indis- 
criminate benevolence  that  often  does  more  harm 
than  good.  His  desire  is  to  avoid  any  responsi- 
bility for  blunting  endeavor  or  for  encouraging 
idleness.  He  assists  in  practically  all  the  com- 
mendable movements  of  a  public  character  in  his 
city  requiring  funds.  As  instances,  he  recently 
gave  a  plot  of  ground  worth  $100,000  for  the 
building  of  the  Baptist  University  about  to  be 
instituted  in  Chicago  with  the  important  aid 
of  Mr.  Rockefeller.  To  the  Manual  Training 
School  of  the  same  city  he  gave  $20,000.  His 
list  of  personal  beneficiaries  is  very  large,  and  no 
one  who  has  any  kind  of  real  claim  upon  him  is 
disregarded.  The  extent  of  what  he  does  in  this 
respect  the  world,  doubtless,  will  never  know.  It 
is  not  his  practice  to  figure  conspicuously  at  the 
head  of  sub.scription  papers,  or  to  be  personally 
conspicuous  anywhere,  but  his  gifts  of  all  kinds 
in  the  course  of  a  year  amount  to  a  large  aggre- 
gate. He  is  a  member  of  most  of  the  principal 
clubs,  but  cannot  be  called  a  club  man.  Thought- 


I04 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


fill  and  perhaps  somewhat  reserved  in  manner,  he 
is  kindly,  genial,  and  entirely  approachable,  and 
there  is  nothing  about  him  to  indicate  that  his 
personality  is  at  all  affected  by  his  extraordinary 
wealth — a  wealth  albeit  coming  mainly  from 
systematic,  long-continued,  legitimate  business 
methods,  and  not  through  the  exercise  of  the  art 
of  making  something  out  of  nothing  by  the  wat- 
ering of  stocks  and  the  juggling  with  securities. 


Mr.  Field  is  a  man  of  prepossessing  appearance. 
His  hair  and  moustache  are  white,  his  counten- 
ance refined,  thoughtful  and  intelligent,  and  his 
figure  somewhat  spare  and  slightly  above  the 
medium  height.  He  was  married  in  1863  to  Miss 
Nannie  Scott,  daughter  of  Mr.  Robert  Scott,  a 
prominent  iron-master  of  Ironton,  Ohio.  They 
have  one  son  and  one  daughter,  both  of  whom 
are  married. 


HENRY  W.   KING. 


CHICAGO.    ILL. 


THE  subject  of  this  sketch  ranks  among  the 
foremost  business  men  of  Chicago.  A  na- 
tive of  Martinsburg,  Lewis  county,  New  York,  he 
was  born  December  18,  1828.  He  received  his 
early  education  in  the  public  schools,  and,  later, 
graduated  from  the  State  Academy  at  Lowville, 
New  York,  preparatory  to  entering  Hamilton 
College.  After  leaving  the  Academy,  however, 
he  changed  his  purpose,  and  instead  of  entering 
college,  accepted  a  position  in  his  father's  store  at 
Martinsburg,  where  he  remained  until  1854.  Dur- 
ing that  year,  being  then  twenty-six  years  of  age, 
he  removed  to  Chicago  and  began  that  business 
career  in  which  he  has  achieved  a  most  enviable 
success  and  made  for  himself  a  reputation  of 
which  any  man  might  justly  be  proud.  Mr.  King 
was  first  associated  with  Mr.  S.  L.  Barrett  and  P. 
V.  Kellogg,  under  the  firm  name  of  Barrett,  King 
&  Co.,  and  opened  a  wholesale  clothing  house  at 
No.  189  South  Water  street,  Chicago.  In  1857 
the  business  was  removed  to  Nos.  205,  207  South 
Water  street,  and  three  years  later  to  Nos.  25,  27 
Lake  street.  In  1863  the  firm  name  changed  to 
King,  Kellogg  and  Co.,  by  the  withdrawal  of  Mr. 
Barrett.  This  firm  continued  till  in  1868,  when 
it  was  dissolved  by  mutual  consent,  and  Mr. 
King  associated  himself  with  Messrs.  W.  C. 
Browning  and  Edward  W.  Dewey,  of  New  York, 
under  the  style  of  Henry  W.  King  and  Co., 
and  opening  a  store  at  the  corner  of  Lake  street 
and  Michigan  avenue.  From  1868  to  the  pres- 
ent time  (1892),  the  name  and  personnel  of 
the  firm  have  remained  unchanged.  During  the 
great  fire  of  October  9,  1871,  the  house  sustained 
a  loss  of    8550,000;    but,   through    the    courtesy 


of  the  late  Vlx.  Wirt  Dexter,  then  solicitor  for 
the  Michigan  Central  Railroad  Company,  who 
placed  at  their  disposal  a  train  of  freight  cars, 
they  were  enabled  to  save  one  hundred  thou- 
sand dollars'  worth  of  stock,  which  they 
shipped  to  Michigan  City  and  stored.  With 
characteristic  enterprise,  while  the  ruins  of  the 
burned  city  were  still  smoking;  the  firm  secured 
temporary  quarters  at  the  corner  of  Canal  and 
Washington  streets,  and,  reshipping  the  goods 
from  Michigan  City  and  bringing  others  from 
their  large  manufacturing  establishment  in  New 
York  City,  they  were  enabled  at  the  end  of  two 
weeks  after  the  fire  to  reopen  their  business. 
The  business  was  removed  in  the  following  year, 
1872,  to  the  Farwell  block  on  Market  street,  and 
was  continued  there  until  1875,  when  it  was 
changed  to  the  southeast  corner  of  Madison  and 
Franklin  streets.  They  are  now  (1892)  at  the  cor- 
ner of  Adams  and  Market.  From  the  beginning, 
the  volume  of  the  business  has  steadily  grown, 
and  during  the  ten  years  last  past,  the  firm  have 
established  flourishing  retail  houses  in  New  York 
City,  Philadelphia,  Cincinnati,  Milwaukee,  Minne- 
apolis, St.  Paul,  Omaha,  Kansas  City,  St.  Louis 
and  Chicago.  These  branch  houses  are  conduct- 
ed under  the  firm  name  of  Browning,  King  &  Co., 
and  their  annual  business,  with  that  of  the  whole- 
sale house,  aggregates  about  $5. 000,000.  Mr. 
King's  original  firm  in  1854  did  an  annual  busi- 
ness not  to  exceed  $150,000.  Mr.  King  has  been 
called  to  many  positions  of  trust.  For  twenty- 
five  years  he  has  been  one  of  the  directors  of  the 
Commercial  National  Bank,  of  Chicago,  and  has 
been    called    to   act  as   executor    in    many  large 


i 


BIOGRAl'lllCAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


105 


estates.  Aside  from  his  business,  Mr.  King  has 
taken  an  active  interest  in  all  public  matters  re- 
lating to  the  welfare  of  his  city,  and  been  closely 
identified  with  many  public  enterprises.  From 
1 87 1  to  1873  he  was  president  of  the  Chicago  Re- 
lief and  Aid  Society,  which  disbursed  during  that 
time  the  enormous  sum  of  $5,000,000,  mostly  con- 
tributed for  the  relief  of  those  who  suffered  in 
the  great  fire.  The  ability  and  fidelity  displayed 
in  the  distribution  of  this  magnificent  and  timely 
bounty  attracted  attention  far  and  wide,  and  the 
Chicago  society  became  the  model  for  societies  of 
a  similar  character  in  many  parts  of  the  world. 
Since  1873,  Mr.  King  has  served  as  treasurer  of 
this  society.  He  is  also  vice-president  of  the 
Chicago  Nursery  and  Half-Orphan  Asylum,  and 
one  of  the  directors  of  the  Old  People's  Home. 

In  his  religious  faith,  Mr.  King  is  a  Presbyter- 
ian, and  is  a  leading  member  of  the  Fourth  Pres- 
byterian church,  of  Chicago,  and  chairman  of  the 
Board  of  Trustees  of  the  McCormick  Theological 
Seminary.  He  takes  an  active  part  in  all  the 
affairs  of  his  church,  and  in  charitable,  benevo- 
lent and  philanthropic  enterprises  generally, 
stands  ever  ready  to  contribute  generously  of 
his  time,  energy-  and  money. 

In  political  sentiment  he  is  a  Republican. 
Though  in  no  sense  a  politician,  and  invariably 
declining  the  honors  of  official  positions,  he  takes 
an  earnest  and  active  part  in   the  proper  conduct 


of  public  affairs,  and  in  casting  his  ballot  often 
votes  for  a  candidate  who  differs  from  himself  in 
political  faith,  if  he  believes  him  better  qualified 
for  the  office  sought  than  the  candidate  of  his 
own  party,  his  belief  being  that  men  and  principle 
are  higher  and  should  carry  more  weight  in  de- 
ciding one's  course  in  such  matters  than  loyalty 
to  party. 

Mr.  King  was  married,  in  1858,  to  Miss  Aurelia 
Case,  a  daughter  of  Mr.  jolm  R.  Case,  one  of 
Chicago's  early  citizens,  now  deceased.  They 
have  one  son  and  two  daughters,  viz.:  Francis, 
now  associated  with  his  father  in  business:  Eliza- 
beth, the  wife  of  Mr.  Cyrus  Bentley,  an  attorney- 
atlaw,  of  Chicago,  and  Christine,  the  wife  of  Mr. 
S.  H.  Pomeroy,  of  Pittsfield,  Mass. 

In  closing  this  sketch  it  is  but  just  and  fitting 
to  say  that  Mr.  King  has  achieved  his  remarkable 
success  by  patiently  and  persistently  following  a 
fi.xed  purpose  in  the  line  of  his  business,  never 
entering  on  the  alluring  field  of  speculation. 
Conservative  in  his  ideas,  he  has  j-et  kept  pace 
with  the  progress  of  events,  and,  wherever  known, 
has  been  recognized  as  a  man  of  unusual  energ}', 
clear  foresight  and  unwavering  business  fidelity. 
He  is  a  man  of  fine  personal  qualities,  kind- 
hearted,  genial  and  companionable,  and  enjoys 
the  high  regard  and  esteem  of  many  warm 
personal  friends,  and  the  confidence  of  all  who 
know  him. 


WASHINGTON    HESING. 


CHICACO,  ILL. 


WASHINGTON  HESING.  managing  edi- 
tor of  the  Illinois  Staats  Zcitnng,  may 
be  ranked  among  the  younger  class  of  Chicago's 
successful  business  men.  He  is  a  son  of  Anthony 
C.  and  Louisa  (Lamping)  Hesing,  and  was  born 
at  Cincinnati,  Ohio,  on  May  14,  1849.  louring 
his  youth  he  was  constantly'  at  school  until  1861, 
when  he  visited  Europe.  Upon  his  return  in  the 
following  winter,  he  entered  University  St.  Mary's 
of  the  Lake,  where  he  continued  until  July,  1863. 
He  then  studied  at  the  University  of  Chicago  one 
year,  after  which  he  was  prepared  by  Dr. 
Ouackenboss  for  admission  to  Yale  College,  which 
institution  he  entered  in  1866,  and  from  which  he 


was  graduated  with  the  degree  of  Bachelor  of 
Arts  in  1870.  Immediately  upon  leaving  college 
he  went  to  Europe  and  attended  lectures  in 
Berlin  and  Heidelberg  universities,  devoting  him- 
self to  the  study  of  political  economy,  inter- 
national law,  the  science  of  government,  history 
and  German  literature. 

Summoned  by  the  great  fire  of  October  8  and 
9,  1871,  he  returned  home,  and  on  November  21 
following  entered  upon  his  active  journalistic 
career  in  connection  with  the  Illinois  Staats 
Zcituii!;.  In  April,  1880,  his  father  and  himself 
securing  a  controlling  interest  in  that  journal,  he 
at    that    time  became    manatrincf   editor.      From 


io6 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


his  adv^ent  into  journalism,  Mr.  Hesing  lias  taken 
an  active  interest  in  political  matters,  and,  when 
but  twenty-three  years  old,  distinguished  himself 
by  a  series  of  eloquent  speeches,  in  both  the 
English  and  German  languages,  in  which  he 
strongly  advocated  the  election  of  General 
Ulysses  S.  Grant  to  the  presidency. 

Mr.  Hesing's  unusual  ability  was  early  recog- 
nized, and  at  the  age  of  twenty-two  he  was 
appointed  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Education. 
At  the  expiration  of  his  term  of  office,  Mayor 
Joseph  Medill  tendered  him  a  re -appointment, 
but  he  declined  the  honor. 

While  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Education, 
Mr.  Hesing,  as  a  member  of  the  Committee  on 


German,  made  a  report  in  which  he  advocated  the 
system  of  grading  the  German  studies  as  the 
English  were  graded.  This  report  was  adopted  by 
the  Board,  and  the  proposed  system  has  since 
that  time  been  in  practice. 

In  August,  1880,  Mr.  Hesing  was  elected  a 
member  of  the  County  Board  of  Education.  He 
is  a  member  of  the  Roman  Catholic  Church,  and 
in  1873  was  elected  president  of  the  Union 
Catholic  Library  Association  of  Chicago,  an 
organization  whose  membership  comprises  all  the 
leading  Catholics  of  the  city. 

Mr.  Hesing  is  a  married  man,  his  wife  being 
formerly  Miss  Henrietta  C.  Weir,  of  Boston, 
Massachusetts. 


FERDINAND  W.  PFXK, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


THE  life  and  work  of  him  whose  name  heads 
this  biography  is  inseparably  associated 
with  many  of  the  public  enterprises  that  have 
made  his  native  city  a  metropolis,  known  alike  for 
her  unparalleled  business  activity  and  as  the  home 
of  higher  education  and  art.  He  was  born  in 
Chicago  in  1848,  the  son  of  Philip  F.  W.  Peck  and 
IVIary  Kent  (\\'ythe)  Peck,  and  is  the  youngest  of 
a  family  of  seven  sons,  three  of  whom  are  living 
and  rank  among  Chicago's  enterprising  and  public- 
spirited  citizens.  The  father  died  in  1871.  The 
mother  is  still  living  and  resides  in  Chicago.  Av 
the  time  of  our  subject's  birth,  his  father's  resi- 
dence and  garden  covered  the  present  site  of  the 
Grand  Pacific  Hotel.  Growing  up  with  the  growth 
of  the  city,  his  life  reaching  back  nearly  to  her 
beginning,  he  early  imbibed  her  spirit,  and,  loyal 
to  her  welfare  and  interests,  has  devoted  himself 
with  commendable  zeal  to  the  development  of  her 
highest  and  best  resources.  He  was  educated  in 
Chicago,  graduating  first  from  the  High  School. 
He  afterwards  graduated  from  the  literary  depart- 
ment of  the  Old  University  of  Chicago,  and  later 
pursued  a  course  of  study  in  the  Union  College  of 
Law,  being  then  still  in  his  minority,  when  he  re- 
ceived his  diploma  and  was  admitted  to  the  bar 
W'hen  just  twenty-one  years  of  age.  Athough  he 
has  never  entered  actively  into  the  practice  of 
law  as  a  profession,  Mr.  Peck  has  found  in  the  con- 


trol of  vast  business  interests  practical  applica- 
tion for  his  legal  learning  that  has  been  in\-al- 
uable  to  him. 

Besides  his  private  affairs,  he  with  his  brothers 
has  managed  the  Peck  estate,  one  of  the  largest 
and  best  controlled  estates  in  Chicago.  Mr.  Peck 
has  always  been  a  man  of  intense  activity,  known 
for  his  unusual  executive  ability,  and  has  taken  a 
just  pride  in  using  his  talents  and  influence  to 
further  public  and  private  enterprises  which  would 
reflect  honor  upon  his  native  citj-.  At  the  present 
time  (1891),  he  is  president  of  the  Chicago  Athen- 
Eeum,  president  of  the  Chicago  Auditorium  Asso- 
ciation, president  of  the  Chicago  Opera  Festival 
Association,  president  of  the  Chicago  High 
School  Alumni  Association.  He  served  four  years 
as  a  member  and  was  vice-president  of  the  Board 
of  Education,  having  been  twice  appointed  b\-  the 
mayor  of  Chicago.  He  is  also  chairman  of  the 
Finance  Committee  of  the  World's  Columbian 
Exposition  ;  vice-president  of  the  Union  League 
Club;  fir.st  vice-president  of  the  Illinois  Humane 
Society,  and  one  of  the  trustees  of  the  new 
Chicago  University. 

While  taking  a  just  pride  in  all  of  these  and 
other  organizations,  the  Auditorium  may  rightly 
be  called  his  crowning  work.  This  vast  enterprise 
had  its  inception  at  the  time  of  the  celebrated 
Opera  Festival  in  April,  1885,  in  which   Mr.  Peck 


i 


£e/K 


t: 


BIOuRAPWCAL  DICTIOXARY  A.\D  PORTRAIT  uALLERV. 


109 


was  a  prime  mover,  and  the  success  of  which  not 
only  strengthened  pubhc  sentiment  and  developed 
public  taste  for  popular  entertainments  of  that 
character,  but  also  revealed  the  necessity  of  a 
great  music  hall,  where  great  musical  productions 
could  be  properly  presented.  The  idea  originating 
in  the  fertile  brain  of  Mr.  Peck  gave  him  no  rest 
until  the  grandly  magnificent  structure  known  as 
the  Auditorium  was  wrought  to  completion  and 
dedicated  to  its  noble  purpose,  the  building 
alone  costing  $3,500,000.  While  it  is  true  that 
in  the  carrying  out  of  his  purpose  he  had  the 
financial  and  moral  co-operation  of  many  other  of 
Chicago's  public-spirited  men.  yet  to  him  must  be 
attributed  the  chief  honor.  The  idea  of  the  pro- 
moter of  this  great  undertaking  was  to  popularize 
music,  of  which  he  is  an  ardent  lover,  and  give  to 
the  people  the  benefit  of  its  elevating  and  refining 
influence.     He  thoroughly  belie\es   in  music  as  a 


refiner  of  the  masses  and  an  educator  of  public 
taste.  He  finds  his  highest  enjoyment  in  devot- 
ing his  abilities,  money  and  influence  to  those 
objects  and  causes  intended  to  better  his  fellows. 
His  taste  is  simple  and  unpretentious,  and  he  has 
done  much  to  encourage  a  severe  and  stable  type 
of  architecture. 

In  personal  appearance,  Mr.  I'eck  is  tall,  with 
clean,  clear-cut  features,  a  dark  complexion,  black- 
hair  and  a  black  moustache,  and  ordinarily  bears 
himself  with  an  air  of  studious  thoughtfulness. 
He  is  a  man  of  pleasing  address,  courteous  and 
kind,  and  withal  has  an  abundance  of  genial  good 
nature. 

He  was  married  in  1870  to  Miss  Tilla  Spalding, 
a  daughter  of  W.  A.  Spalding,  of  Chicago,  and  a 
woman  esteemed  and  loved  for  her  many  womanly 
virtues.  They  have  an  interesting  family  of  four 
sons  and  two  dauijhters. 


FERXAXD    HENROTIN,  M.D. 


CHICAGO.   ILL. 


THE  subject  of  this  biography,  a  native  of 
Rrussells,  Belgium,  was  born  in  1848,  and  is 
one  of  a  family  of  nine  children.  He  is  the  son 
of  Joseph  F".  and  Adele  Henrotin,  ne'e  Kinson, 
both  of  whom  were  Belgians.  The  father  was  a 
prominent  and  successful  physician.  He  immi- 
grated to  the  United  States  with  his  family  in 
1848,  and  settled  in  Chicago,  where  he  was  known 
as  a  "  French  doctor."  He  was  a  familiar  figure 
and  rendered  most  valuable  service  during  the 
cholera  epidemic,  and  continued  in  practice  until 
his  death  in  1875. 

The  paternal  grandfather  of  our  subject  lived 
to  the  advanced  age  of  ninety-si.x  years,  and  for 
seventy-five  years  was  a  practicing  physician. 
Henry  Henrotin,  the  eldest  brother  of  our  sub- 
ject, belonged  to  Taylor's  Batterj-,  and  was  killed 
at  the  siege  of  V'icksburg  during  the  War  of  the 
Rebellion.  Charles  Henrotin,  another  brother,  is 
one  of  the  leading  and  successful  men  of  Chicago. 
He  is  Belgian  consul,  also  Turkish  consul,  and  is 
one  of  three  men  in  Chicago  who  have  been  hon- 
ored with  decorations  from  foreign  sovereigns  in 
recognition  of  valuable  reports.  He  was  the 
founder  and   first   president  of  the  Chicago  Stock 


E.xchange,  and  is  its  president  at  the  present  time 
(1890).  A  third  brother,  Victor  Henrotin,  is  a 
coffee  merchant  at  Havre,  France.  Adolph  Hen- 
rotin, the  fourth  brother,  resides  in  Chicago,  as  do 
also  the  four  sisters,  three  of  whom  are  married. 
His  father  having  settled  in  Chicago  the  same 
year  our  subject  was  born,  Fernand  has  grown  up 
with  the  city  and  is,  in  every  sense,  a  Chicago 
man.  He  was  educated  in  the  common  and  high 
schools  of  Chicago,  and  having  decided  to  enter 
the  medical  profession,  pursued  a  thorough  course 
of  study  in  Rush  Medical  College,  graduating  in 
February,  1869,  being  then  twentj--one  years  of 
age.  He  at  once  established  himself  in  his  pro- 
fession, and  for  twenty-one  years  has  been  con- 
tinuously in  practice,  without  a  vacation.  From 
the  commencement  of  his  practice,  Dr.  Henrotin 
has  been  known  as  a  man  of  clear-cut  ideas  touch- 
ing all  matters  pertaining  to  his  profession,  skill- 
ful, energetic  and  conscientious.  He  soon  came 
into  prominence,  and  in  1872  and  '"/I  held  the 
ofTice  of  County  Physician,  which  was  but  the  be- 
ginning of  a  series  of  public  professional  positions 
he  has  held  and  filled  with  eminent  success  in  con- 
nection with  his  constantly  growing  practice.     He 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


was  for  some  eight  years  on  the  staff  of  attending 
physicians  at  the  Cook  County  Hospital,  for  five 
years  surgeon  of  the  Alexian  Brothers'  Hospital, 
surgeon  of  the  Chicago  Police  Department  for 
fourteen  years,  and  at  the  present  time  is  surgeon 
of  the  Chicago  Fire  Department.  Dr.  Henrotin  is 
professor  of  diseases  of  women  in  the  Chicago 
Polyclinic,  and  has  been  for  three  or  four  years, 
and  is  a  member  of  the  Chicago  Medical  Society. 
He  is  a  member  of  the  Union  Club,  but  owing  to 
the  urgent  demands  of  his  extensive  practice, 
which  ranks  among  the  largest  as  well  as  the  most 
lucrative  of  any  physician  in  Chicago,  he  finds 
little  time  for  club  life  or  social  enjoyment  outside 
of  his  own  familj-. 

In  political  sentiment,  Dr.  Henrotin,  though 
Democratic,  is  non-partisan  and,  in  casting  his 
ballot,  votes  in  favor  of  what  he  believes  to  be 
right  principles,  and  the  men  whom  he  believes 
will  support  them,  regardless  of  party  affiliations. 


Dr.  Henrotin  was  married  in  the  spring  of  1873 
to  Miss  Emily  B.  Prussing,  a  daughter  of  Mr. 
Charles  G.  Prussing,  one  of  the  early  settlers  of 
Chicago.  Mrs.  Henrotin  is  a  woman  of  artistic 
tastes,  and  is  known  among  her  acquaintances  as 
an  amateur  painter  of  extraordinarj'  ability.  She 
is  a  woman  of  many  personal  charms,  hospi- 
table to  her  friends,  and  devoted  to  her  hus- 
band and  home,  and  in  nothing  takes  greater 
delight  than  in  making  it  beautiful  and  full  of 
good  cheer. 

Personally,  Dr.  Henrotin  is  a  man  of  most 
estimable  qualities.  Added  to  his  fine  physical 
proportions  and  rugged  constitution,  are  quali- 
ties of  heart  and  mintl  of  a  high  order.  Warm- 
hearted, generous  to  a  fault,  high-minded,  con- 
scientious and  genial,  he  is  the  center  of  a  large 
circle  of  close  friends  and  acquaintances  who 
honor  and  esteem  him  for  his  man>-  manly  virtues 
and  genuine  worth. 


JOHN    B.   SHERMAN, 


CHIC.-^GO,    ILL. 


JOHN  B.  SHERMAN  was  born  in  January, 
1825,  in  the  town  of  Beekman,  Dutchess 
county,  New  York ;  was  brought  up  on  a  farm, 
and  received  a  common-school  education.  He 
left  the  farm  and  commenced  clerking  in  a  coun- 
try store  at  the  age  of  nineteen,  for  fifty  dollars 
per  year,  and  continued  clerking  some  two  or 
three  years.  He  was  married  at  the  age  of  twen- 
ty-three. In  1849,  he  started  for  California,  pas- 
sing through  Old  Mexico,  and  at  Vera  Cruz 
boarded  a  sailing  vessel  and  arrived  at  San  Fran- 
cisco in  May  of  that  year.  He  engaged  in  min- 
ing near  Georgetown,  not  far  from  what  was 
called  Sutter's  Mills.  He  succeeded  in  saving  a 
few  thousand  dollars  from  mining  operations 
and  returned  to  Dutchess  county,  New  York,  in 
1850.  In  the  fall  of  1850,  he  removed  to  Illinois, 
locating  on  Fox  river,  Kendall  county,  where 
he  purchased  a  farm.  Later  he  removed  to 
Chicago,  and  with  a  Mr.  Black,  under  the  firm 
name  of  Black  &  Sherman,  engaged  in  the  com- 
mission business  and  was  located  on  Kinzie 
street.  In  December,  of  1855,  he  succeeded  in 
renting  the   old    Bull's  Head  Stock  Yards,   then 


located  on  West  Madison  street,  where  the  Wash- 
ingtonian  Home  now  stands.  In  the  spring  of 
1856,  in  company  with  Mr.  D.  K.  Belding,  he 
leased  the  Myrick  Yards,  located  at  Thirty-ninth 
street  on  Cottage  Grove  avenue,  and  after  his 
lease  expired  at  the  Bull's  Head  Yards  he  re- 
moved thither,  and  soon  after  bought  the  interest 
of  his  partner  and  admitted  his  brother,  I.  N. 
W.  Sherman,  to  the  business,  and  so  continued 
until  the  expiration  of  the  lease  in  the  fall 
of  1865.  At  that  time  there  were  four  different 
stock  yard  markets  in  Chicago :  The  Lake  Shore 
&  Michigan  Southern,  located  at  Twenty-second 
street ;  the  Chicago,  Burlington  &  Quincy  yards, 
located  on  the  west  side  of  the  city ;  the  Loomis 
Yards  at  Thirty-first  street  and  Cottage  Grove 
avenue,  and  the  Myric  Yards  at  Thirty-ninth 
street  and  Cottage  Grove  avenue.  In  the  early 
part  of  1865,  Mr.  Sherman,  with  others,  with  a 
view  of  improving  the  .stock  market  of  Chicago, 
conceived  the  plan  of  concentrating  all  the  live 
stock  markets  at  one  point,  a  movement  which 
soon  afterwards  resulted  in  the  organization  of 
the  sjreat  Union  Stock  Yard  and  Transit  Company, 


l^ 


.  ^^  I 


li^'JKaTL 


no 

was  fo 
physic 
years  ;■ 
surgco 
fourtce 
of  the  ( 
profess^ 
Polyclii 
and  is  , 
He  is  a 
the  iirg 
which  r< 
lucrative 
little  tini 
of  his  o\ 
In   pol 
Dcmocra 
ballot,  vc 

right  prii..ii)ics,  aiiJ 
will  support  them,  r- 


>  .  .1  the  spring  of  1873 

-MHg,  a  daughter  of   Mr. 

of  the  early  settlers  of 

II n   is  a  woman  of  artistic 

nn'j  h<  ••    'cquaintances  as 

•    ti,.   r         ,v  ability.     She 

charms,   hospi- 

I 1  (    to   her   h. 

'    s    great  ci 

1   full  of 


,^    lu'-  scieiUious  .inil  genial,  ii 

,  to  be  circle   of    close    friends 

;:e  believes  honor  and  esteem  him  I 

.iffili.itions.  and  genuine  worth. 


JOHN    B.  SHERMAN, 


JOHN  1 
1825, 
county,  Nt 
and    receiv 
left  the  fan 
try  store  at 
per  year,  a 
three  years, 
ty-three.     Ii 
sing   throug 
boarded  a  sa 
cisco  in  Ma) 
ing   near   Gt 
called  Suttei 
few   thousan. 
and  returned 
1850.     In  tht 
locating  on   1 
he    purchaset 
Chicago,  and 
name  of  Blaci 
mission    busin 
street.      In   Di 
renting  the   ol 


he 


to  lilinoiri 

,unt\'.    when 

removed    t< 


11.1     .->1<K"K 


.   ,tnd  so  continued 

.'.c    lease    in    the   fall 

there  were  four  different 

1  Lhicago:    The  Lake  Shore 

-«>uthern,  located  at  Twenty -second 

..._  Chicago,  Burlington  &  Quincy  yards, 

on  the  west  side  of  the  city;   the.Loomis 

, .it  Thirty-first  street  and   Cottage  Grove 

avenue,   and    the    Myric   Yards  at   Thirty-ninth 

street  and  Cottage  Grove  avenue.     In  tl  c  early 

part  of  1865,  Mr.   Sherman,  with  others,  with  a 

!  vv  nf  improving  the  stock  market  of  Chicago. 

lu-eived  the  plan  of  concentrating  all  the  live 

!:   markets  at  one  point,  a  movement  which 

tterwards  resulted  in  the  organization  of 

,  ii.at  Union  Stock  Yard  ;ir' ■'" ■'        ■ '^ 


^cffuA    ^-  fc^>t<^-^^H^ 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTION AKV  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


113 


of  Chicago.  Such  was  the  origin  of  the  great 
Chicago  hve  stock  market  of  to-day.  Such  men 
as  J.  F.  Joy,  T.  B.  Blackstone,  John  L.  Hancock, 
R.  M.  Hough.  Sidney  A.  Kent,  C.  M.  Culbertson, 
Lyman  Blair.  D.  Kreigh,  M.  L.  Sykes,  G.  W.  Cass, 
J.  F.  Tracy,  H.  E.  Sargent,  John  B.  Drake,  etc.. 
etc.,  were  associated  with  Mr.  Sherman  in  the 
enterprise,  and  took  the  stock  of  the  new  organi- 
zation. Before  the  completion  of  the  yards,  Mr. 
Sherman,  intending  to  retire  from  business,  had 
changed  his  place  of  residence,  building  a  fine 
home  at  Poughkeepsie,  New  York.  But  one 
year  later  he  changed  his  plans  and  returned  to 
Chicago,  and  upon  the  death  of  Mr.  F.  E.  Bry- 
ant, who  was  the  first  superintendent  of  the  Union 
Stock  Yards,  Mr.  Sherman  was  chosen  general 
superintendent  by  the  Stock  Yards  Company, 
and  entered  upon  his  duties  June  1,  1867.  For 
several  years  Mr.  Sherman  could  be  seen  daily  in 
the  saddle,  on  his  favorite  black  horse,  riding 
through  the  different  portions  of  the  yards,  in- 
specting the  workings  of  the  organization  and 
giving  particular  attention  to  all  such  details  as 
would  insure  the  best  accommodations  to  the  pat- 
rons of  the  yards,  and  to  the  railroad  companies, 
his  aim  being  to  make  the  Union  Stock  Yards  the 
greatest  live  stock  market  in  the  world,  an  object 
and  ambition  which  have  been  fully  realized  ;  and 
it  may  in  truth,  be  said  that  no  man  could  have 
been  selected  who  could  have  better  met  the 
requirements  of  the  responsible  position.  Mr. 
Sherman  was  afterwards  elected  vice-president 
and  general  manager  and  a  director  of  the  com- 
pany, offices  which  he  still  holds  (1892).  His 
management,  from  the  first,  has  been  character- 
ized  by  a   liberal   spirit  toward  all   parties  con- 


cerned among  the  railroads  and  packers  without 
any  discrimination. 

Mr.  Sherman  has  alwiiys  been  a  public-spirited 
man,  so  far  as  concerned  the  public  improvements 
of  Chicago,  and  has  taken  a  great  interest  in  the 
improvement  of  the  suburbs  of  the  city,  and 
especially  the  public  parks  and  boulevards;  and 
as  a  member  of  the  Board  of  South  Park  Com- 
missioners has  rendered  valuable  service  in  bring- 
ing Chicago's  park  system  to  its  present  state  of 
perfection  where  it  is  an  honor  to  the  city  and 
State.  And  in  the  accomplishment  of  this,  Mr. 
Sherman  has  supreme  delight,  and  with  his  asso- 
ciates on  the  board  deserves  all  the  commenda- 
tion that  has  been  bestowed. 

Mr.  Sherman's  political  views  have,  in  the  main, 
been  with  the  Republican  party,  but  he  would 
never  accept  a  political  office.  In  local  elections 
he  always  supports  the  man  whom  he  considers 
best  qualified  for  office,  regardless  of  party.  To 
the  public  charities  of  Chicago  Mr.  Sherman  has 
been  a  liberal  giver. 

Financially,  Mr.  Sherman  may  be  counted  a 
millionaire.  He  has  a  beautiful  and  luxurious 
home  in  the  South  division  of  Chicago,  and  a  val- 
uable farm  and  other  property  at  Washington 
Heights,  and  is  largely  interested  in  banking  and 
various  other  monied  enterprises.  His  success 
is  well  deserved,  and  is  the  result  of  patient,  per- 
sistent effort.  His  habits  of  life  are  simple  and 
to  them  he  owes  his  good  health.  He  has  always 
been  an  early  riser  and  retires  for  the  night  early 
in  the  evening.  Mr.  Sherman's  family  consists  of 
his  wife,  one  son  and  one  daughter,  the  wife  of 
Mr.  D.  H.  Burnham,  chief  architect  of  the\Vorld's 
Columbian  Exposition. 


JOHN    V.    FARWELL, 


CHICAGO.    ILL. 


THE  name  Farwell  has  been  identified  with 
the  material  advancement  of  Chicago  for 
the  pa.st  forty  years,  and  during  the  last  thirty 
years  the  influence  of  members  of  the  family  has 
been  extended  to  more  than  local  fame,  and  has 
become  identified  with  affairs  of  the  utmost  im- 
portance toward  the  best  interests  of  our  coun- 
try and  toward  the  advancement  of  Christianity. 


John  Villars  Farwell  is  a  descendant,  in  the 
eighth  generation,  of  Henry  Farwell,  one  of  the 
incorporators  of  the  town  of  Concord,  Massachu- 
setts. Henry  Farwell  traced  his  ancestr>'  to  the 
early  English  people  ;  old  documents  state  that  in 
the  reign  of  Edward  I  (about  1280)  Richard  Far- 
well  married  the  heiress  of  Elias  de  Rillestone 
an<l   brought   Rillestone  ;ukI  several  other  estates 


114 


BlOGRAl'IllCAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


into  the  family.  These  continued  in  the  male 
line  until  the  reign  of  Homy  VII  (1500),  when 
they  passed  through  an  heiress  to  the  family  of 
Radciiffe,  although  some  portion  remains  to  this 
day  in  a  family  who  call  themselves  Farvell,  and 
bear  the  same  coat  of  arms  and  claim  direct  de- 
scent from  Richard  Farwell.  The  name  is  and 
has  been  spelt  Faiivcll,  Favcll.  Varivell,  FarivclJ 
and  Farcvcll. 

John  V.  Farwell  was  born  in  Campbelltown, 
Steuben  county,  New  York,  July  29,  1825.  Until 
the  age  of  sixteen  he  lived  upon  his  father's  farm, 
attending  school  during  the  winter  months  and 
assisting  in  farm  duties  during  the  summer.  At 
this  time,  although  he  possessed  but  limited 
means,  he  determined  to  have  a  more  complete 
education,  and  accordingly  entered  Mount  Morris 
Seminary,  devoting  himself  earnestly  to  those 
branches  essential  to  success  in  business.  He 
gave  special  attention  to  mathematics,  book-keep- 
ing and  composition,  and,  for  the  sake  of  econ- 
omy boarded  himself,  continuing  his  studies  until 
he  had  acquired  a  good  business  education. 

In  1845,  with  three  dollars  and  twenty-five 
cents  in  his  jjocket,  he  arrived  in  Chicago,  little 
dreaming  of  the  magnificent  future  in  store  for 
him.  He  found  employment  in  the  city  clerk"s 
office  at  a  salary  of  twelve  dollars  per  month, 
with  the  privilege  of  reporting  the  proceedings  of 
the  Council  at  the  rate  of  two  dollars  per  report. 
His  accuracy  and  strict  adherence  to  the  truth 
gave  offense  to  certain  members  of  the  Council, 
and  led  to  his  withdrawal.  He  next  entered  the 
dry  goods  house  ot  Hamilton  and  White,  at  a 
salary  of  eight  dollars  per  month,  and  at  the 
expiration  of  one  year  passed  to  the  house  of 
Hamlin  and  Day,  at  an  advanced  salary  of  two 
hundred  and  fifty  dollars  per  annum. 

Later,  he  became  a  book-keeper  in  the  house  of 
Wadsworth  and  Phel])s,  at  a  .salary  of  fifty  dollars 
per  month,  and  in  1S51  was  associated  in  the  firm, 
which  then  conducted  a  business  of  $100,000  per 
annum.  Forecasting  the  future  destiny  of  Chi- 
cago as  the  metropolis  of  the  Northwest,  he  early 
advocated  the  erection  of  a  large  building  especi- 
ally adapted  for  wholesale  business,  and  not  with- 
standing the  decided  disapproval  of  the  senior 
members  of  the  firm,  his  efforts  resulted  in  the 
erection  of  a  large  wholesale  house  in  1856. 
Nine  years  later,  he  became  the  liead'of  the  firm. 


and.  by  his  marked  executive  and  financial  ability, 
contributed  no  small  amount  to  the  success  of 
that  business  which,  nearly  a  quarter  of  a  century 
ago.  had  already  reached  the  enormous  amount  of 
§10,000,000  trade  per  annum.  The  fire  of  1871 
kept  the  firm  out  of  business  for  about  two  weeks, 
after  which  they  occupied  a  temporary  building, 
and  commenced  a  permanent  structure  of  five 
stories,  ninety  by  one  hundred  and  ninet\-  feet, 
on  the  fifth  of  December,  and  occupied  it  in  the 
following  February. 

The  following  extract  from  the  Chicago  Tri- 
bune of  (October  9th,  1875,  four  years  after  the  fire, 
shows  not  only  the  financial  success  of  the  firm, 
but  its  character  and  the  estimation  in  which  it  is 
held  by  the  community : 

"  An  important  incident  of  the  eaily  steps  toward  recon- 
struction evinced  the  confidence  reposed  in  the  business 
judgment  of  the  firm  of  J.  V.  Farwell  &  Co.  The  advice 
and  counsel  of  the  members  of  this  house  were  then  publicly 
sought  and  as  publicly  given.  While  the  ruins  of  Chicago 
were  still  smoking,  a  meeting  of  merchants  was  called  for 
mutual  counsel.  Mr.  C.  B.  Farwell,  then  member  of  Con- 
gress (now  senator),  was  called  to  the  chair,  and  John  \'. 
Farwell,  senior  member  of  the  firm,  was  the  first  gentleman 
requested  to  express  his  views  of  the  situation  and  prospects. 
His  firm  had  lost  very  heavily,  and  his  opinions  were  held 
to  have  a  most  practical  weight. 

"  He  responded  at  once,  declaring  the  situation  to  be  crit- 
ical, but  not  hopeless,  and  expressing  it  as  his  fer\-ent  opinion 
that  everything  depended  upon  the  actions  of  the  assembled 
representative  merchants.  Chicago,  he  tersely  said,  was  a 
living,  business  fact.  It  had  faced  all  varieties  of  opposition 
in  the  past  from  competitors,  and  had  thrived  under  the  treat- 
ment. He,  for  one,  did  not  believe  that  the  city  could  be 
materially  hindered  in  its  destined  greatness  by  the  fire.  He 
considered  that  all  that  was  wanted  was  a  firm  integrity  of 
purpose  to  meet  all  obligations  as  far  as  their  means  would 
possibly  permit.  These  obligations  must  be  met  without 
flinching.  They  must  only  ask  such  time  as  they  needed  to 
gather  up  the  ashes  of  their  business,  and  must  begin  anew. 
not  discouraged  by  what  had  happened,  but  more  determined 
than  ever  to  make  Chicago  the  center  ot  the  whole  Noiih- 
western  tr.ide.  They  could  do  so  if  they  would,  and  could  do 
it  soon.  These  earnest  sentiments  were  met  with  hearty 
applause.  There  was  but  one  dissenter  to  the  honorable, 
manly  views,  and  he  was  a  liquor  dealer,  who  procccdtd  10 
advocate  a  universal  and  shameful  repudiation,  but  was 
promptly  hissed  out  of  the  meeting.'" 

During  the  War  of  the  Rebellion,  Mr.  Farwell 
was  marked  for  his  philanthropy  and  devotion  to 
the  Union  cause.  He  was  active  in  raising  the 
Board  of  Trade  regiment,  which  was  equipped  b\- 
private  contributions  at  an  expense  of  §40.000. 
He  was  a  constant  friend  of  soldiers'  families,  and 
contributed   liherallv  to  the   fimds  of  liie  Sanitary 


BIOuRAI'lIICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


"5 


and  Christian  Commissions.  His  special  interest, 
however,  centered  in  the  Christian  Commission,  of 
which  he  was  one  of  the  executive  committee, 
and  to  which  he  gave  his  time  and  m.oney  witliout 
stint. 

The  following  clippings  from  papers  published 
during  the  war  e.vhibit  his  sentiments  and  spirit 
during  the  great  struggle  for  the  integrity  of  the 
Union.  The  first  is  a  copy  of  a  speech  made 
when  presenting  colors  to  Capt.  Charles  \V.  Bar- 
ker, of  the  Chicago  Dragoons,  in  behalf  of  the 
Young  Men's  Christian  Association,  of  which  he 
was  president : 

"  Ciptain  Barker  :  I  need  not  tell  you  that  history  informs 
us  that  in  all  ages  of  the  world  emblems  of  nationality  have 
commanded  the  homage,  the  purse  and  heart's  blood,  if  need 
be,  of  every  true  patriot,  and  in  America,  sir,  every  insult 
to  the  magna  charta  of  our  blood-bought  rights  brings  to 
its  rescue  men  who  will  peril  their  all  to  defend  its  honor.  In 
every  controversy,  individual  or  national,  there  is  a  right 
and  a  wrong  side,  and  '  thrice  is  he  armed  who  hath  his 
quarrel  just." 

"A  heathen  general  once  ordered  his  subordinates  to  num- 
ber his  army  before  engaging  a  very  much  larger  force  in 
battle.  The  work  being  done,  they  reported  a  force  of  ten 
thousand  men  to  go  out  against  a  force  of  forty  thousand, 
and  counseled  a  surrender.  The  general  said  they  had  made 
an  egregious  blunder  in  the  numbering  of  his  men.  After 
asserting  that  they  had  numbered  them  correctly,  said  he, 
'How  many  did  you  put  me  down  for?'    'Only  one,  sir.' 

■'  'Bad  mistake,  gentlemen ;  you  will  let  me  number  them 
over  again.  Our  cause  is  just.  You  may  therefore  put  me 
down  for  2o,0OD  men,  and  for  each  one  of  my  soldiers  vou 
may  count  four,  making  in  all  sixty  thousand  against  forty 
thousand  of  the  enemy,  every  man  of  whom  is  not  over  half  a 
man,  when  fighting  against  the  right.  Now,  will  you  fight 
them? ' 

'  ■  "Aye,  sir,  and  whip  them  too,'  and  they  were  as  good  as 
their  word. 

"  On  behalf  of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Association, 
many  of  whose  members  arc  under  your  command,  I  pre- 
sent you  this  flag,  the  emblem  of  our  dearly-bought  liberties, 
expecting  that  you  will  trust  in  God  while  under  its  folds, 
and  bj  counted  twenty  thousand  against  its  enemies,  and 
every  man  of  your  command  a  host  to  follow  your  lead  in 
placing  it  in  the  record  of  national  glory,  second  to  none  that 
waves  in  the  free  air  of  heaven. 

•'  Your  commander-in-chief,  the  President  of  these  United 
States,  on  taking  leave  of  his  honjc  in  Springfield  to  assume 
the  guardianship  ol  our  national  flag,  said  :  '  I  have  a  greater 
task  before  me  than  that  which  engaged  the  soul  of  a  Wash- 
ington, and  without  the  .assistance  of  a  God  of  Nations,  I  can- 
not succeed  ;  with  it  I  cannot  fail." 

'•  I  believe,  sir.  that  he  will  not  fail,  for  I  believe  that  the 
God  of  Washington  is  Lincoln's  God,  not  for  personal  aggran- 
disement, but  for  our  national  weal  and  the  world's  redemp- 
tion from  tyranny.  And  now,  sir,  while  I  hand  you  this 
stand  of  colors,  permit  me  to  propose  this  sentiment : 


■'  '  Down  with  the  traitor's  serpent  flag! 

Death  to  the  wretch  o'er  whom  it  waves! 
And  let  our  heaven-born  banner  float 
t)'er  freemen's  homes  and  traitors'  graves.' " 

Mr.  Farwell  despised  that  class  who,  while  liv- 
ing amongst  the  Northern  people,  were  in  sympa- 
thy with  those  who  were  trying  to  disintegrate 
the  Union.  The  second  extract  which  follows 
was  from  the  editorial  of  the  Chicago  Tribune: 

DISCOUNTENAN'CING  TREASON. 
"  The  immense  wholesale  dry  goods  house  of  Cooley,  Far- 
well  &  Co.  has  kicked  the  Chicago  Times  into  the  street  on 
account  of  its  treason.     The  following  note,  addressed  to  the 
proprietors  of  the  Times,  explains  the  matter  : 

'  CooLEv,  Farwell  &  Co.,  Wholesale  Dry  Goods, 
42,  44,  46  Wabash  Ave.,  Chicago,  III., 
January  i,  1863. 
^  .^Tessrs.  S/ory  Hr'  Warden: 

'Gentlemen. — We  wish  to  begin  the  new  ytzx  pairiot- 
icallv,  and  know  of  no  better  way  than  to  commence  by  ex- 
cluding your  paper  from  our  counting-room.  Your  vile 
sympathies  with  treason  arc  too  apparent,  and  now  that  a 
public  example  has  been  made  of  the  manner  in  which 
such  papers  should  be  treated  among  honest  men,  we  wish 
to  be  .nmong  the  endorsers  of  the  movement.  You  will, 
therefore,  send  your  bill  and  keep  your  paper,  and  oblige 
'  Yours  respectfully, 

'  Cooley,  Farwell  &  Co.' 

"  On  the  receipt  of  this  note,  instead  of  quietly  discontinu- 
ing the  paper  as  directed  to  do.  the  Tory  organ  prints  the 
note  and  flies  into  a  huge  p.nssion,  foams  at  the  mouth,  and 
commands  every  Democrat  to  avoid  their  doors  as  he  would 
the  gates  of  hell. 

"  Democratic  merchants,  we  presume,  suit  themselves,  and 
purchase  their  goods  where  they  can  buy  to  the  best  advan- 
tage. There  are  few  Democratic  merchants  that  endorse  the 
treasonable  course  of  the  Times,  or  sympathize  with  its  pur- 
ix)se  to  produce  civil  war  in  Illinois,  by  arraying  the  Demo- 
cratic party  in  armed  hostility  to  the  Federal  Government. 
If  there  be  any  sucli  merchants  in  tlie  West,  Coolev,  Farwell 
&  Co.  can  well  afford  to  do  without  their  custom.  There  are 
several  hundred  Republicans— ardent  Union  men— whom,  we 
are  sorry  to  say.  still  continue  to  take  the  infamous  sheet,  and 
contribute  their  $10  apiece  for  its  support.  Many  of  these  per- 
sons complain  of  the  weight  of  their  taxes,  but  have  nothing  to 
s;iy  against  paying  a  poll  tax  of  i\o  for  the  support  of  Jeff 
Davis'  organ  in  their  midst.  If  they  want  to  take  a  Demo- 
cratic paper,  there  is  the  Post,  which  is  bitterly  partisan, 
which  is  as  bitterly  partisan  as  can  be  desired,  but  is  yet 
loyal  to  the  Federal  flag." 

After  the  close  of  the  war,  Mr.  Farwell  was  ap- 
pointed a  member  of  the  Board  of  Indian  Com- 
missioners by  President  Grant,  and  the  discharge 
of  his  duties  in  this  office  was  characterized  by 
the  .same  devotion,  zeal  and  benevolence  that  have 
marked  his  entire  career. 

Mr.  Farwell  has  never  taken  any  active  part  in 
politics,  except  in  1864,  when  he  allowed  his  name 
to  be  used  as  a  presidential  elector  for  Mr.  Lincoln. 


ii6 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  dXD  PORTRAIT  uALLERY. 


At  the  age  of  fourteen  years,  Mr.  Farwell 
united  with  the  M.  E.  Church,  but  is  now  a  ruling 
elder  in  the  Presbyterian  Church.  Since  first 
uniting  with  the  church,  he  has  been  proverbial 
for  his  liberality,  and  has  since  been  known,  when 
on  a  salar\-,  to  devote  half  of  his  income  to  chari- 
table objects.  He  took  a  deep  interest  in  the 
evangelical  work  of  Mr.  Dwight  L.  Moody,  and 
ever  assisted  him  in  the  worthy  cause,  both  in 
Chicago  and  in  England. 

In  the  establishment  of  the  Young  Men's 
Christian  Association  in  1857,  Mr.  Farwell  was  a 
prime  nio\er,  and  to  his  constant  zeal  and  earnest 
effort  the  prosperity  of  that  institution  is  largely 
due.  He  has  been  connected  with  the  Association 
as  trustee,  vice.-president,  and.  president  for  sev- 
eral years,  participating  actively  in  its  labors,  and 
contributing  largely  for  current  expenses. 

Mr.  Farwell's  acquaintance  and  co-operation 
with  Mr.  Moody  in  his  work  led  to  a  firm  friend- 
ship. When  a  large  hall  was  erected  for  the 
Young    .Aien's  Christian  Association,  it  was,  upon 


its  dedication,  named  "  Farwell  Hall,"  at  the  sug- 
gestion of  Mr.  Moody. 

Mr.  Farwell's  career  has  been  remarkable;  he 
has  through  his  own  exertions,  business  ability 
and  integrity,  advanced  from  the  obscurity  of 
poverty  to  the  position  of  prominence  which  he 
now  occupies  amongst  the  leading  merchants  of 
the  world. 

The  building  of  the  State  House  at  Austin, 
Texas — for  a  consideration  of  3,000,000  acres  of 
land  in  the  famous  Pan  Handle  of  Texas — two 
years  in  advance  of  contract  time  may  be  cited  as 
one  of  the  most  remarkable  building  accomplish- 
ments of  this  century,  when  its  size  and  character 
are  considered,  and  it  shows  the  spirit  of  enter- 
prise which  has  characterized  the  Farwells  from 
their  earliest  connection  with  the  business  inter- 
ests of  the  West.  This  building  is  constructed  of 
granite  and  iron  :  is  about  600  feet  by  288,  ex- 
treme front ;  is  in  the  form  of  a  Greek  cross, 
and  has  been  pronounced  by  competent  judges 
the  finest  of  its  kind  on  this  continent. 


HON.   GEO.    M.    BOGUE, 


CHICAGO,    ILL, 


FEW  real  estate  firms  of  Chicago  are  better 
known  than  that  of  Bogue  and  Company, 
of  which  the  subject  of  this  sketch  is  the  senior 
partner. 

The  Bogue  family  are  of  Scotch  descent,  and 
the  first  of  this  family  to  arrive  in  America  was 
John  Bogue,  who  came  from  Gla.sgow,  Scotland, 
and  settled  in  the  neighborhood  now  known  as 
Hadlyme  (better  known  in  the  old  colonial  days 
as  East  Haddom),  Connecticut,  in  1680.  Our 
subject's  father  was  born  in  Georgia,  Vermont,  in 
1800,  and  when  comparatively  young  removed 
from  Vermont  to  St.  Lawrence  county,  New 
York.  Our  subject  was  born  at  Norfolk,  St. 
Lawrence  county,  New  York,  on  January  21st, 
1842,  the  son  of  Warren  Steuben  and  .Sally  (Un- 
derwood) Bogue. 

In  1856,  our  subject  determined  to  join  his 
brothers,  Hamilton  B.  and  S.  Curtis.s.  who  had 
settled  in  Chicago  several  years  prior  to  that 
time,  and  putting  his  ])ur])osc  into  action,  he 
arrived  there  on  August   28th  of  that  year.     The 


following  year  he  was  employed  in  the  freight 
office  of  the  Merchants'  Despatch,  and  continued 
there  about  two  years,  when,  for  the  purpose  of 
completing  his  education,  he  pursued  a  course  of 
study  at  Cayuga  Lake  Academy,  at  Aurora,  New 
^'ork.  In  July,  1862,  he  returned  to  Chicago  and 
resumed  his  former  occupation,  and  two  years 
later  accepted  a  position  in  the  land  department 
of  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad  Company,  and 
held  it  until  1867.  Since  that  time  he  has  devoted 
his  time  and  attention  more  particularly  to  real 
estate  matters,  and  in  1882  established  the  firm 
of  Bogue  and  Hoyt,  which  was  succeeded  b\- 
Bogue  and  Co.,  in  -February,  1891,  Capt.  Ho\t 
having  died  February  12  of  that  year. 

Mr.  Bogue  became  a  resident  of  Hyde  Park  in 
1858,  then  one  of  Chicago's  most  thriving  sub- 
urbs, and  in  1864  was  elected  its  town  clerk.  He 
held  that  position  three  years,  and  resigned  it  in 
1867,  and  two  years  later  was  elected  town  treas- 
urer, and  held  that  office  until  1872.  In  Novem- 
ber of    that   year.    lion.  Chas.    Hitchcock   having 


lilUGKAFHlCAL  DICT/OXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


119 


resigned  his  office  as  a  member  of  the  Board  of 
County  Commissioners  of  Cook  county,  Mr. 
Bogue  was  elected  to  fill  the  vacancy,  and  during 
his  term  of  office  (which  expired  in  December, 
1874)  served  as  chairman  of  the  finance  commit- 
tee and  as  a  member  of  the  building  committee, 
the  importance  of  which  latter  office,  especially, 
may  be  estimated  when  it  is  stated  that  it  was 
during  this  period  that  the  criminal  court  and 
county  jail  building  and  county  hospital  were 
being  erected,  and  large  additions  were  being 
made  to  the  insane  asylum. 

In  1874,  he  was  elected  a  member  of  the  Gen- 
eral .Assembly  of  Illinois  from  the  second  senato- 


1887,  his  real  estate  demanding  his  personal  at- 
tention, and  in  1889  was  elected  president  of  the 
Chicago  Real  Estate  Board,  and  later,  was  chair- 
man of  the  committee  on  valuations,  and  i.s  at 
present  chairman  of  the  committee  on  public 
service. 

Although  Mr.  Bogue  is  a  busy  man,  he  is 
public  spirited  and  benevolent,  and  a  practical 
sympathizer  with  much  of  the  benevolent  and 
charitable  work  of  Chicago.  He  has  been  a 
member  of  the  board  of  managers  of  the  Pres- 
byterian Hospital,  of  Chicago,  since  its  establish- 
ment, in  1883,  and  for  four  years  has  been 
president  of  that  board.     The  Home  for  Incura- 


rial  district,  and  filled  the  honorable  position  in  a  bles,  also,  has  benefited  by  his  sympathy  and 
manner  creditable  alike  to  himself  and  his  constit-  counsel ;  for  many  years  he  was  a  member  of 
uents.  He  was  one  of  the  Chicago  delegates  to  its  board  of  managers  and  served  on  its  execu- 
the  Republican  National  Convention,  held  at  tive  committee.  He  is  now,  1892,  one  of  the 
Cincinnati,  in  June,  1876.  In  February  of  the  directors  of  the  Lake  Forest  University,  a  mem- 
following  year,  he  was  appointed  by  Governor  ber  of  the  executive  committee  of  the  Presbyter- 
Cullom  a  member  of  the  Railroad  and  Warehouse  ian    League,    of   Chicago,    and    president    of    the 


Commission  of  Illinois,  and  filled  that  position 
until  March,  1883,  when  he  resigned,  having,  in 
the  previous  January,  been  unanimously  elected 
Arbitrator  of  the  Western    Railway  pools,  corn- 


board  of  trustees  of  the  Hyde  Park  Presbyterian 
Church,  of  which  board  he  has  been  a  member 
since  its  organization  in  1864. 

Mr.  Bogue  was  married,  January  26th,  1871,  at 


prising  _  the  Colorado  Traffic  Association,  the  Hyde  Park,  to  Miss  Catharine  M.  Van  Doren, 
Northwestern  Traffic  Association,  the  Central  daughter  of  .A.  B.  Van  Doren,  Esq.  This  union 
Iowa  Traffic  Association,  and  the  Southwestern  has  been  blessed  with  six  children,  of  whom 
Traffic  Association,  embracing,  in  all,  some  eleven  Franklin  Ackerman,  Ruth  Van  Doren  and  Georo^e 
railroad.s.  He  held  this  difficult  position  four  Marquis  are  living.  Mr.  Bogue  is  a  man  of  strict- 
years,  displaying  in  his  awards,  which  frequently  est  integrity,  energetic  and  enterprising,  and 
involved  large  sums  of  money,  conspicuous  ability  occupies  an  honorable  place  among  Chicago's 
and    rare    judgment.     He   resigned   this  office  in  leading  business  men. 


HUXTIXGTON    WOLCOTT    JACKSON, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


HUNTINGTON  WOLCCJTT  JACKSON  was 
born  January  28,  1841,  at  Newark,  New 
Jersey,  and  is  the  son  of  John  P.  and  Elizabeth 
(Wolcott)  Jackson.  His  father  was  a  prominent 
lawyer  of  New  Jersey,  and  died  December  10, 
1 861.  The  Jackson  family  are  of  Scotch-Irish 
descent,  the  first  of  the  family  to  arrive  in  America 
being  James  Jackson,  who  .settled  on  the  banks  of 
the  Hudson;  while  by  marriage  the  family  be- 
came connected  with  the  Brinckerhoffs,  Schuylers 
and  Van  Der  Lindes.     The  mother  of  Mrs.  Jack- 


son, our  subject's  mother,  was  a  Huntington,  a 
member  of  the  Connecticut  family  of  that  name, 
distinguished  in  the  Revolution.  I  ler  great-grand- 
father, grand-father  and  four  uncles  on  the  mater- 
nal side  were  officers  of  high  rank  in  the  army. 
The  great-grandfather  of  Mrs.  Jackson 'on  the 
paternal  side  was  the  first  governor  of  Connecticut. 
Her  grandfather  was  Oliver  Wolcott,  Sr..  one  of 
the  signers  of  the  Declaration  of  Independence  ; 
her  uncle,  Oliver  Wolcott.  Jr.,  was  Secretan,-  of 
the  Treasury  under  General  Washington,  and  her 


I20 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


father,  Frederick  H.  W'olcott,  occupied  juilicial 
positions  in  Connecticut  for  many  years. 

Receiving  his  early  education  at  Phillip's 
Academy,  Andover,  Mass.,  in  1859  ^''''-  Jackson 
entered  Princeton  College,  and  at  the  close  of  his 
junior  year  entered  the  army  and  served  through 
various  grades.  He  was  appointed  aide-de-camp 
upon  the  staff  of  Maj.-Genl.  John  Newton,  com- 
manding the  First  Army  Corps  and  other  com- 
mands, and  was  engaged  in  the  battles  of  Fred- 
ericksburg, Chancellorsville,  Gettysburg,  and  other 
engagements  of  the  Army  of  the  Potomac.  He 
was  also  with  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland  in 
Gen.  Sherman's  campaign  from  Chattanooga  to 
Atlanta,  and,  though  wounded  in  the  arm  at 
Kenesaw  Mountain,  was  present  at  the  fall  of 
Atlanta.  Upon  leaving  the  army,  he  was,  in  1865, 
brevetted  lieutenant-colonel  for  gallant  and  meri- 
torious conduct  in  the  field.  In  "  Foster's  New 
Jersey  and  the  Rebellion,"  issued  in  1868,  the 
author  says,  page  761  :  "  In  the  Chancellorsville 
campaign  he  was  commended  by  General  Sedg- 
wick for  special  gallantry  in  volunteering  to  rally 
an  assaulting  column  at  Mary's  Heights,  Fred- 
ericksburg (May  3,  1 863).  The  column  had  broken 
and  the  men  were  falling  back,  but  Lieutenant 
Jackson,  having  obtained  permission  and  exposing 
himself  to  a  fire  that  killed  and  wounded  one 
hundred  and  sixty  men  out  of  four  hundred  in  the 
leading  regiment,  rallied  the  column  and  passed 
with  it  into  the  enemy's  works  !" 

Returning  to  civil  life,  he  entered  the  Harvard 
Law  School,  Cambridge,  Mass.,  and  spent  the  fol- 
lowing year  at  that  institution,  when  he  went 
abroad,  remaining  a  year  in  Europe.     Upon  his 


return  home,  he  resumed  his  legal  studies  in  the 
office  of  his  brother,  the  late  John  P.  Jackson,  Jr., 
of  Newark,  N.  J.  In  the  fall  of  1867,  Mr.  Jackson 
came  to  Chicago  and  entered  the  office  of  Messrs. 
Waite  and  Clarke,  where  he  completed  his  studies, 
being  admitted  to  the  bar  in  the  spring  of  1868, 
and  on  July  ist  of  that  year  formed  a  partnership 
with  Mr.  David  B.  Lyman,  which  still  continues. 

A  Republican  in  politics,  he  was  elected  super- 
visor of  South  Chicago  in  1878,  and  continued  the 
reforms  instituted  by  his  predecessors,  Robert  T. 
Lincoln  and  Edward  G.  Mason. 

Appointed  by  the  Hon.  John  J.  Knox,  Comp- 
troller of  the  Currency,  as  receiver  and  attorney 
of  the  Third  National  Bank  of  Chicago,  his 
management  of  the  affairs  of  that  institution 
has  received  high  commendation. 

Mr.  Jackson  has  been  offered  several  political 
positions,  but  has  declined  them,  preferring  to 
continue  in  the  practice  of  his  profession.  He 
was  at  one  time  a  director  of  the  Chicago  Aid 
and  Relief  Society,  but  was  obliged  to  resign  on 
account  of  other  duties.  He  has  been  president 
of  the  Chicago  Bar  Association.  The  late  John 
Crerar  appointed  him  one  of  the  executors  and 
trustees  of  his  estate,  as  well  as  a  director  of  the 
Free  Public  Library  founded  by  him.  He  is  a 
trustee  of  the  Second  Presbyterian  Church,  and 
is  a  member  of  the  Chicago,  Calumet  and  Literary 
Clubs ;  also  of  the  Military  Order  of  the  Loyal 
Legion  and  of  the  George  H.  Thomas  Post  of  the 
Grand  Arm)-. 

As  an  attorney,  he  is  discriminating  and  earnest, 
and  his  professional  career  has  been  successful  and 
honorable. 


SOLVA    BRINTNALL, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


TO  a  Student  of  human  nature  there  is  noth- 
ing more  interesting  than  to  examine  into 
the  life-history  of  a  self-made  man,  and  analyze 
those  principles  that  have  made  him  pass  many  on 
the  highway  of  life,  and  reach  a  position  of  promi- 
nence in  the  community. 

Among  the  prominent  citizens  of  Chicago  who 
owe  their  eminent  position  to  their  own  e.xertions, 
Solva   Brintnall   is  an    example   whom   the  rising 


generation  would  do  well  to  emulate.  He  was 
born  during  the  early  days  of  the  nineteenth  cen- 
tury (on  October  24,  181 7),  in  Schoharie  county. 
New  York,  where  his  parents,  Solva  Brintnall,  a 
soldier  in  the  war  of  1812,  and  Betsy  (Stannard) 
Brintnall,  had  established  their  residence. 

Our  subject  can  trace  his  paternal  ancestrj'  back 
to  the  seventeenth  century,  when  his  great-grand- 
father left    England  and   came  to  America.     His 


BIOGRAPHICAL  D/CTIO.XARV  A.\D  PORTIA  AIT  GALLERY. 


grandfather,  Isaac  Brintnall,  was  born  on  August 
31,  1752,  and  died  Januarys  27,  1822,  in  Water- 
town,  New  York.  His  maternal  grandfather, 
Abiah  Stannard,  was  born  March  15,  1758,  and 
died  in  Green  county.  New  York.  July  13,  1836. 
His  father  was  born  December  i,  1773,  and  his 
mother  December  5.  1774.  They  passed  sixty- 
two  years  in  happy  wedlock,  and  they  died 
within  three  months  of  each  other,  on  March  8. 
1867.  and  June  1,  1867.  The  family  on  both 
sides  is  remarkable  for  its  longevity.  Both  fami- 
lies were  prominently  connected  with  the  Revolu- 
tionary War. 

Solva  Brintnall  received  his  education,  with  the 
exception  of  one  winter's  schooling,  in  Water- 
town,  New  York,  from  that  great  and  practical 
tutor,  "  Experience."  He  has  always  been  a 
great  observer,  and  although  having  received  but 
a  meagre  amount  of  education  at  school,  he  is 
to-day  a  practical  and  well-educated  man.  His 
youth  and  earlier  manhood  days,  up  to  his  nine- 
teenth year,  were  spent  in  assisting  his  father  on 
his  farm  in  Lewis  county.  New  York,  where  the 
Brintnall  family  had  located  when  our  subject  was 
a  lad  of  five.  They  were  among  the  pioneers  in 
that  section  of  the  then  West,  and  the  body  of 
land  on  which  they  settled  was  entirely  covered 
by  forest.  They  cleared  the  land  and  in  the  sec- 
ond year  raised  a  good  crop  of  wheat.  The  fam- 
ily for  the  first  ten  or  fifteen  years  of  their  resi- 
dence in  that  locality  were  deprived  of  churches 
and  schools. 

His  first  business  venture  was  in  1836.  when  he 
began  his  career  as  railroad  builder  on  the  New 
York  Central  Railroad.  Two  years  later  found 
him  at  the  same  kind  of  work  on  the  New  York 
and  Erie  Railroad.  He  also  assisted  in  building 
the  great  canal  system  of  New  York  State,  and 
besides  doing  work  on  the  Black  River  Canal,  as- 
sisted in  improving  the  Erie  Canal,  and  in  1839 
and  1840  accomplished  some  heavy  work  on  that 
canal  at  Jordan.  New  York.  In  1841  he  returned 
to  railroad  construction,  and  assisted  in  the  build- 
ing of  a  road  from  Auburn  to  Canandaigua.  His 
business  then  called  him  to  the  West,  and  the  ex- 
tension of  the  Miami  Canal,  and  operations  in 
canal  construction  from  Cincinnati  to  Ft.  Wayne, 
occupied  the  time  from  1843  to  1846.  In  the  lat- 
ter year  he  began  his  career  as  a  merchant,  and 
entered    into   the  hardware   business  at    Batavia, 


New  York,  ;tfterwards  remo\  ing  to  Attica ;  in 
1854  he  removed  to  Suspension  Bridge,  continu- 
ing in  the  same  business.  His  residence  in  these 
places  covered  a  period  of  eighteen  years.  While 
a  resident  of  Suspension  Bridge,  the  great  bridge 
from  which  this  city  takes  its  name  was  being 
constructed.  He  was  acquainted  with  Mr.  Roeb- 
ling,  who  had  charge  of  the  work,  and  he  took  a 
deep  interest  in  its  completion,  which  at  that  time 
was  the  greatest  feat  in  bridge  building  ever  at- 
tempted. 

Perceiving  a  great  future  for  the  City  of  Chi- 
cago, and  deeming  it  a  place  that  offered  excep- 
tional opportunities  for  business,  as  well  as  educa- 
tional advantages,  he  removed  here  in  1863,  and 
continued  in  the  general  hardware  and  stove  busi- 
ness. After  three  years  he  entered  into  partner- 
ship with  Messrs.  Terry  and  Belden,  and  began  a 
wholesale  hardware  business,  under  the  style  of 
Brintnall.  Terry  &  Belden.  In  1876  Mr.  Lamb 
purchased  Mr.  Terry's  interest,  and  the  firm  be- 
came known  as  Brintnall,  Lamb  &  Co.,  under 
which  style  it  continued  until  1883,  when  the  en- 
tire business  was  dispo.sed  of  to  Messrs.  Keith, 
Benham  and  Desendorf.  For  thirty-seven  years 
Mr.  Brintnall  was  connected  with  the  hardware 
trade,  and  he  always  conducted  his  affairs  in  a 
manner  to  leave  an  unblemished  record  as  an 
honorable  business  man.  In  1883  he  organized 
the  Urovers'  National  Bank,  located  at  the  Stock 
Yards,  the  heart  of  Chicago's  greatest  business 
enterprise.  He  became  president  of  that  institu- 
tion upon  its  organization,  and  he  has  continued 
in  this  responsible  position  ever  since. 

In  1846  he  was  married  to  Miss  Hurd,  a  daugh- 
ter of  Thomas  Hurd.  of  Alexander,  New  York. 
They  had  a  family  of  three  children:  W.  H. 
Brintnall,  now  connected  with  the  financial  insti- 
tution of  which  his  father  is  president ;  Mrs.  M. 
F.  Perry,  of  this  city,  and  George  S.  Brintnall,  of 
McPherson,  Kansas,  who  died  in  1886.  Mrs. 
Brintnall  died  October,  1875.  'i"<-l  '»  '878  he  mar- 
ried Leonice,  daughter  of  the  late  O.  F.  Wood- 
ford, who  was  for  many  years  prominently  con- 
nected with  the  water-works  system  of  this  city. 

Mr.  Brintnall  is  a  devout  Christian,  and  is  an 
active  worker  in  the  cause  of  religion.  He  joined 
the  Presbyterian  Church  in  iS52,and  is  at  present 
an  active  and  lionored  member  of  the  First  Pres- 
byterian  Church   of  this   city.      He  takes  a  great 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AND  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


interest  in  assisting  all  religious  efforts,  and  has 
been  for  some  time  a  great  friend  of  the  Presby- 
terian Hospital  and  the  Railroad  Chapel. 

Since  the  birth  of  the  Republican  party,  he  has 
been  an  ardent  supporter  of  its  principles.  He 
has  ever  believed  that  the  Republican  principles 
were  those  that  had  the  best  interests  of  the  peo- 
ple at  heart.  He  is  a  strong  admirer  of  President 
Harrison,  and  a  firm  believer  in  those  principles 
of  Republicanism  that  were  advocated  by  Lin- 
coln, Grant,  Garfield,  Harrison  and  Blaine. 

Such  is  the  biography  of  a  man  whose  life  has 
been  both  active  and  honorable.  He  has  achieved 
the  high  position  he  now  occupies  entirely  through 
his  own  exertions.  What  he  has  achieved  he 
owes  to  his  ambitious  nature,  his  high  sense  of 


honor  and  to  his  sobriety  and  industry ;  he  has 
never  been  addicted  to  the  use  of  liquors  or  to- 
bacco. 

In  personal  appearance,  he  impresses  one  as  be- 
ing both  benignant  and  kindly.  Although  having 
passed  more  than  three  score  and  ten  years  on 
this  earth.  Father  Time  has  dealt  lightly  with 
him,  and  he  looks  like  a  hale  and  hearty  gentle- 
man of  less  than  three  score. 

In  conclusion  it  may  be  truly  said,  that  with  a 
character  above  reproach  and  an  honorable  record 
at  the  head  of  a  large  financial  institution,  and 
with  an  ample  fortune,  there  is  no  one  more 
worthy  of  a  prominent  place  among  the  body  of 
men  who  appear  in  this  work  than  is  Solva  Brint- 
nall. 


THOMAS    DENT, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


THOMAS     DENT    was     born    in     Putnam 
county,  Illinois,  November    14,  183 1,   and 
is  a  son  of  George  and  Comfort  (Ijams)  Dent. 

His  father,  a  native  of  Monongalia  county, 
Virginia  (now  West  Virginia),  was  from  an  early 
age  reared  on  a  farm  in  Ohio. 

The  parents  removed  from  Muskingum  county, 
Ohio,  ai«l  settled  in  Putnam  county,  Illinois,  at 
an  early  day.  The  father  was  for  many  years 
in  official  position,  holding  various  public  ofifices, 
such  as  Clerk  of  the  County  Commissioners, 
Circuit  and  County  Courts,  Master  in  Chan- 
cery, County  Judge,  and  member  of  the  State 
Legislature. 

Thomas  acquired  the  basis  of  his  education  in 
the  common  schools  near  his  home,  and  while 
living  for  a  time  in  Ohio.  But  following  the 
natural  disposition  of  his  mind,  he  has,  by  virtue 
of  continued  and  careful  reading  and  study, 
acquired  a  degree  of  literary  culture  and  disci- 
pline which  would  only  have  been  more  surely 
the  outcome  of  a  liberal  education. 

From  the  age  of  twelve  years,  he  was  an 
occasional  assistant  in  the  public  offices  of  the 
county  in  which  the  family  resided,  and  during 
the  following  three  years  was  in  employments 
requiring  aptitude  in  penman.ship  and  accounts. 
He  thus  early  acquired  a  taste  for  legal  business. 


which  led  to  legal  study  at  various  leisure  inter- 
vals. At  fifteen  years  of  age,  he  became  a  regular 
assistant  of  his  father  in  the  public  business  of 
the  county,  and  during  the  ensuing  eight  years 
was  much  occupied  in  making  up  court  and  other 
records  in  Putnam  and  adjoining  counties,  and 
also  pursued  a  course  of  legal  study.  On  his 
admission  to  the  bar  in  1854,  he  began  the 
practice  of  law  at  Hennepin,  Illinois.  Under 
appointment  of  the  County  Court,  he  made  up 
tract  and  sectional  indices  for  the  land  records  of 
Putnam  county. 

In  1856,  Mr.  Dent  removed  to  Chicago,  where 
his  first  association  in  practice  was  with  Mr.  M. 
R.  M.  Wallace,  prominently  identified  with 
military  service  in  the  late  civil  war,  and  also  with 
service  in  civil  affairs,  as  County  Judge  of  Cook 
county,  and  in  other  stations. 

In  1857,  Mr.  Dent  removed  his  office  for  a 
time  to  Peoria,  Illinois,  but  continuing  to  have 
professional  engagements  in  Chicago,  he  re- 
sumed his  residence  there  in  1858.  In  i860,  he 
became  associated  with  the  late  Judge  A.  W. 
Arrington.  This  association  continued  until  the 
death  of  the  senior  partner,  December  31,  1867. 
Soon  after  this,  the  firm  of  Dent  and  Black  was 
formed,  and  continued  for  eighteen  years. 

The  practice  of  Mr.  Dent  has  been  of  a  general 


Jft^-h^UiLi     /J-e^t4~ 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


125 


and  diversified  character,  but  chiefly  in  common 
law  and  chancery  causes,  a  number  of  which  are 
to  be  found  in  the  reports  in  Illinois  and  other 
States,  as  also  in  the  reports  of  the  Supreme 
Court  of  the  United  States.  In  various  instances 
he  has  met  in  argument  lawyers  of  great  emi- 
nence and  distinction  in  different  States  of  the 
Union.  On  dififerent  occasions  he  has  represented 
a  number  of  corporations,  among  which  are 
included  banks,  insurance  companies,  railroad 
companies  and  the  Chicago  Board  of  Trade  ;  but 
especially  in  real  estate  and  commercial  causes 
his  services  have  been  given  to  the  general 
public,  in  whose  interests  he  has  on  some  notable 
occasions  been  selected  for  the  giving  of  import- 
ant opinions. 

In  personal  appearance,  Mr.  Dent  is  of  me- 
dium height  and  slender,  without  robustness 
of  figure.  His  manner  is  quiet  and  gentle,  yet, 
withal,    he  is  firm,  with  a  firmness   that    comes 


from  honesty  of  purpose  and  depth  of  con- 
viction. Possessing  these  characteristics,  with  a 
mind  of  marked  vigor,  self-poised  in  an  unusual 
degree,  because  highly  disciplined,  and  marked  in 
all  his  enterprises  by  unusual  steadfastness'  of 
purpose  and  wonderful  patience,  it  is  but  natural 
that  he  should  have  won  for  himself  a  most 
enviable  reputation  as  a  lawyer  at  once  strong, 
scrupulously  honest,  and  in  a  high  degree  suc- 
cessful. In  presenting  his  cases,  whether  to  jury 
or  court,  he  works  earnestly,  bringing  to  bear  all 
iiis  power  and  a  very  e.xtensive  legal  learning. 
His  memory,  naturally  tenacious,  has,  under 
careful  and  constant  discipline,  become  indeed 
"  wax  to  receive  and  marble  to  retain." 

He  has  collected  valuable  libraries  for  his  home 
and  office,  and  has  from  early  years  delivered 
occasional  addresses  on  political  and  social  sub- 
jects, and  possesses  great  aptitude  for  such 
efforts. 


CHARLES    HENRY    SCHWAB, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


WITH  much  pleasure  we  present  this  bio- 
graphical sketch  of  Charles  Henry  Schwab, 
who  for  thirty-five  years  has  been  actively  identi- 
fied with  the  remarkable  growth  and  upbuilding  of 
Chicago.  Coming  to  this  city  at  the  age  of  eigh- 
teen years,  without  friends  or  capital,  he  is  an 
illustrious  prototype  of  the  self-made  man,  whose 
indomitable  will  and  industry  have  rewarded  him 
with  an  honorable  position  among  the  foremost 
business  men  of  Chicago. 

One  by  one  he  has  forced  aside  the  barriers  that 
obstruct  the  way  to  success,  until  to-day  he  stands 
within  the  charmed  circle,  rich  in  honor  and 
wealth,  the  devoted  son  of  a  mighty  city. 

A  native  of  Mulhouse,  France,  he  was  born  in 
1835,  'o"g  before  Alsace-Lorraine  became  dis- 
puted territor)'.  His  father,  Moise  Schwab,  a 
prominent  manufacturer  of  Mulhouse,  died  in  1850, 
and  Charles,  then  a  lad  of  fifteen  years,  closed  his 
school  career  and  obtained  a  position  as  book- 
keeper in  a  wholesale  dry  goods  house  of  his  na- 
tive city. 

Remaining  three  )'ears  with  this  firm,  antl 
having  acquired    fluency  in  the  German,    I-'rench 


and  English  languages,  he  traveled  extensively 
throughout  France  for  three  months,  but  at- 
tracted by  the  wonderful  accounts  of  the  New 
World  across  the  water,  he  embarked  for  this 
country  in  1854,  landing  at  New  York.  He  spent 
a  short  time  there,  but,  with  that  sound  judgment 
and  apt  perception  for  which  he  has  since  become 
noted,  he  decided  to  build  the  foundation  of  his 
business  career  in  the  West,  where  the  works  of 
skillful  hands  and  intelligent  minds  have  amazed 
the  world. 

Taking  the  steamboat  at  New  York,  he  touched 
at  New  Orleans,  sailed  up  the  rivers  to  Cincinnati 
and  Cleveland,  Ohio,  finally  landing  in  the  spring 
of  1855  at  Chicago,  then  a  city  of  60,000  inhabi- 
tants. Discerning  that  Chicago,  at  no  very  dis- 
tant day,  must  become  a  great  commercial  center, 
and  the  natural  .store-house  for  the  North  and 
West,  he  began  business  with  J.  B.  Smith,  a  cousin, 
as  a  wholesale  liquor  merchant  on  South  Water 
street. 

In  1868,  on  the  retirement  of  Mr.  Smith,  the 
business  was  continued  under  the  name  of 
Schwab,   McOuaid  &  Co.  until    1876,   when   Mr. 


126 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXAKY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Schwab  disposed  of  his  entire  interests  in  the  busi- 
ness. In  January,  1878,  the  well-known  firm  of 
Selz,  Schwab  &  Co.,  wholesale  boots  and  shoes, 
was  established,  and  after  thirteen  years  of  unin- 
terrupted and  remarkable  success,  is  deservedly 
entitled  to  the  honorable  position  it  holds  among 
the  leading  business  institutions  of  Chicago. 

The  election  of  Mr.  Schwab  as  a  director  of  the 
World's  Columbian  Exposition  is  a  fitting  testi- 
monial to  the  enterprise,  intelligence  and  devotion 
which  this  gentleman  has  ever  displayed  in  ad- 
vancing the  material  interests  and  future  welfare 
of  Chicago. 

In  1863  he  rendered  valuable  assistance  in  or- 
ganizing a  regiment  of  Chicago  volunteers,  of 
which  General  Solomon  was  captain. 

As  a  citizen,  Mr.  Schwab  has  always  responded 
generously  with  financial  and  personal  aid  in 
ever>'  enterprise  tending  to  the  material  welfare  of 
his  adopted  city,  and  he  may  justly  feel  that  he 
has  been  no  small  factor  in  placing  Chicago  in  her 
present  proud  position.  As  a  factor  in  the  finan- 
cial world,  Mr.  Schwab  is  regarded  as  a  sound, 
able  and  conservative  financier,  whose  wide  expe- 
rience and  large  business  interests  eminently  befit 
him  as  a  director  of  the  Corn   Exchange  Bank. 

In  politics,  he  is  a  Democrat,  but  his  integrity 
of    principle    and    genial    social    qualities    have 


brought  him  the  respect  of  all  parties.  During  a 
portion  of  the  years  i886  and  1887,  he  discharged 
wi-th  general  satisfaction  the  duties  of  comptroller 
of  this  city,  and  was  nominated  on  the  Demo- 
cratic ticket  for  State  Elector  at  Large,  but  was 
denied  the  pleasure  of  casting  his  vote  for  Mr. 
Cleveland. 

Mr.  Schwab  is  characterized  by  that  same  gen- 
erous liberality  in  religious  opinions  that  has 
made  him  so  popular  in  other  walks  of  life.  A 
prominent  member  of  the  Jewish  Reformed 
Church,  and  president  of  the  Jewish  Training 
School,  his  benevolence  and  charity  are  not  con- 
fined to  nationality  or  sect. 

He  has  always  taken  a  great  interest  in  the 
public  schools  of  Chicago,  and  for  a  number  of 
years  past  has  given  three  medals  to  the  pupils  of 
the  Haven  School,  two  being  for  scholarship  and 
one  for  deportment. 

In  1862,  Mr.  Schwab  married  Rachel,  daughter 
of  Isaac  Monheimer,  a  prominent  merchant  of 
Cincinnati.  This  union  was  sanctified  by  five 
children,  three  sons  and  two  daughters.  The 
elder  daughter  is  the  wife  of  Henry  G.  Foreman, 
the  well-known  banker.  Mrs.  Schwab  is  an  ac- 
complished lady  of  fine  mental  attainments,  and 
with  her  husband  is  held  in  high  esteem  by  a  wide 
circle  of  congenial   friends. 


SIDNEY    ALBERT    KENT, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


SIDNEY  ALBERT  KENT  was  born  in  Suf- 
field,  Connecticut,  in  1834.  He  is  the  son  of 
Albert  and  Lucinda  Kent,  and  is  of  English  de- 
scent on  his  father's  side,  his  ancestors  having 
come  to  America  during  the  seventeenth  century. 
His  early  education  was  acquired  in  the  Suffield 
common  schools.  Coming  to  Chicago  in  1854,  he 
obtained  a  situation  as  clerk  in  a  dry  goods  store, 
where  he  remained  two  years.  When  twenty-two 
years  of  age,  he  entered  the  commission  business, 
but  in  1859  he  established  himself  in  a  modest 
way  in  the  packing  business,  in  which  he  has 
continued  to  the  present  time. 

Mr.  Kent  has  been  vice-president  and  president 
c?  the  Corn  Exchange  Bank.  He  was  also  a 
director  of  the  Board  of  Trade,  but  resigned  that 


position.  The  Chicago  Union  League,  Calumet 
and  Washington  Park  Clubs  claim  him  as  a 
member. 

Mr.  Kent's  travels  include  three  trips  to  Eu- 
rope, and  he  has  traversed  every  State  and  Terri- 
tory in  the  Union,  including  Alaska. 

In  1865  he  was  married  to  Miss  Stella  A.  Lin- 
coln, of  Newark  Valley,  New  York  State.  Two 
daughters  have  been  born  to  them. 

Real  estate  has  been  the  source  of  much  of  Mr. 
Kent's  wealth,  and  he  has  large  interests  in  the 
grain  and  packing  business,  in  the  Corn  Exchange 
Bank,  in  gas  and  lumber  companies,  etc. 

The  numerous  charitable  institutions  in  Chi- 
cago can  testify  to  his  generosity.  There  are  few 
men  in  the  West  who  have  been   more  successful 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  A.\D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


129 


than  Mr.  Kent.     Beneath  his  reticent,  quiet  de-  exception  to  the  rule.     It  would  indeed  be  diffi- 

meanor   lies   great    persistency  and    indomitable  cult   to    find    a   home   more  delightful  than  his, 

energy.    Slow  to  make  friends,  he  has  never  been  which  is  rendered  doubly  attractive  by  the  pres- 

heedless  of  the  demands  of  friendship.     The  love  ence  of  his  accomplished  daughters.    In  his  home 

of  home  is  one  of  the  distinguishing  characteris-  life  his  love  of  quiet,  retirement  and  domesticity 

tics  of  many  eminent   men,  and  Mr.  Kent  is  no  is  fully  gratified. 


RICHARD    STANLEY    TUTHILL, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


JUDGE  RICHARD  S.  TUTHILL,  youngest 
son  of  Daniel  B,  Tuthill,  a  native  of  Ben- 
nington county,  Vermont,  and  Sally  (Strong) 
Tuthill.  a  native  of  Vergennes,  Vermont,  was 
born  at  Vergennes,  in  "  Tuthill's  Prairie,"  Jackson 
county,  Illinois,  November  loth,  1841.  His  an- 
cestors, in  both  branches  of  his  family,  were 
among  the  earliest  settlers  in  New  England,  hav- 
ing emigrated  to  the  new  world  with  the  Puritans 
prior  to  the  year  1640.  Daniel  B.  Tuthill,  his 
father,  a  classical  scholar  of  high  attainments, 
entered  Middlebur>'  (Vt.)  College,  but  owing  to 
ill  health  he  reluctantly  left  college  before  gradu- 
ating. The  Strongs — his  mother's  family — were 
from  the  first,  and  have  ever  been,  warm  friends 
and  supporters  of  Middlebury  College,  an  uncle 
of  Mrs.  Tuthill,  Hon.  Seth  Storrs,  having  donated 
its  beautiful  site  and  spacious  grounds  nearly  one 
hundred  years  ago. 

Richard  S.  began  his  preparatory  collegiate 
studies  at  the  St.  Louis  High  School;  continued 
them  under  a  private  tutor,  and  completed  them 
at  the  Illinois  College,  at  Jacksonville.  He  en- 
tered the  freshman  class  of  Middlebury  College 
in  September,  1859,  and  graduated  with  high 
honors  in  the  class  of   1863. 

Immediately  after  graduation  he  joined  the 
army  in  the  field  at  Vicksburg,  and  served  for 
some  months  in  a  company  of  scouts  attached  to 
Gen.  John  A.  Logan's  command,  when  he  was 
commissioned  a  lieutenant  in  the  famous  six-gun 
batter}'  known  in  the  Army  of  the  West  as  "  De 
Golyer's  Black  Horse  Battery"  (H  of  the  First 
Michigan  Light  Artillery),  with  which  he  .served, 
being  twice  promoted,  until  the  close  of  the  war. 
He  was  with  Gen.  Sherman's  army  in  the  march 
to  Meridian,  through  the  entire  campaign  against 
Atlanta,  and  finally,  in  the  campaign  under  Gen. 


George  H.  Thomas,  back  into  Tennessee  in  pur- 
suit of  Hood,  taking  an  active  part  in  the  closing 
and  decisive  battle  of  Nashville.  Army  life,  even 
in  active  service  in  the  field,  has  many  unoccupied 
hours,  and  having  provided  himself  with  a  few 
books.  Lieutenant  Tuthill  improved  his  time  by 
reading  law,  and  as  soon  as  it  became  apparent 
that  the  war  was  over,  resigned  his  commission. 
May,  1865,  and  continued  his  legal  studies  there- 
after uninterruptedly  in  the  office  of  Hon.  H.  H. 
Harrison,  United  States  District  Attorney,  at 
Nashville,  Tennessee,  until  admitted  to  the  bar 
at  Nashville  in  the  spring  of  1866.  In  1867  he 
was  elected  Attorney-General  ( State's  Attorney) 
of  the  Nash\ille  circuit. 

In  1868,  at  Vergennes,  Vt.,  he  married  Jennie 
F.  Smith,  of  that  city,  who  died  at  Nashville, 
December  22,  1872,  leaving  a  daughter.  Soon 
after  this  sad  event  he  returned  to  his  native 
State  in  1873,  and  established  himself  at  Chicago, 
where  he  soon  became  known  as  an  able  lawyer 
and  a  forcible  and  effective  speaker. 

In  1875  he  was  elected  City  Attorney  of  Chi- 
cago, and  re-elected  in  1877.  Judge  Tuthill  has 
always  been  an  active  Republican,  and  in  every 
campaign  since  the  war  has  rendered  valuable 
services  both  as  a  speaker  and  in  the  councils  of 
the  party.  He  was  a  delegate  in  the  memorable 
Republican  National  Convention  held  at  Chicago 
in  1880,  being  one  of  the  one  hundred  and  ^i.K 
known  as  "The  Old  Guard,"  who  voted  continu- 
ously for  the  nomination  of  General  Ulysses  S. 
Grant,  "of  Appomattox."  In  recognition  of  his 
standing  and  success  at  the  bar.  President  Ar- 
thur, early  in  February,  1884,  appointed  him 
United  States  District  Attorney  at  Chicago,  which 
position  he  filled  with  distinction,  and  resigned 
after   the    inauguration    of    President    Cleveland, 


I30 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


though  permitted  to  remain  for  nearly  a  year 
and  a  half  in  ofifice  under  his  administration. 

In  April,  1887,  by  the  death  of  Hon.  John  G. 
Rogers,  an  eminent  judge  for  many  years  of  the 
Circuit  Court,  a  vacancy  occurred  on  the  bench 
of  this  court.  Judge  Tuthill  was  selected,  not 
only  by  his  own  party,  but  by  the  Democratic 
party  as  well,  to  succeed  Judge  Rogers,  and  was 
elected  by  nearly  fifty  thousand  majority  over 
his  opponent,  who  was  put  forward  by  what 
was  known  as  the  "Socialist  element."  In  June, 
1891,  he  was  re-elected  for  the  full  term  of  six 
years  to  succeed  himself. 

Judge  Tuthill  was  married  a  second  time,  Jan- 
uary 2,  1877,  to  Miss  Harriet  McKey,  daughter 
of  Edward  McKey,  a  leading  dry  goods  merchant 
of  Janesville,  Wis.  Six  children — five  girls  and  a 
son,  Richard  S.,  Jr. — now  comprise  the  family. 

Judge  Tuthill,  although  hardly  more  than  in 


the  prime  of  life,  is  one  of  the  most  active  citi- 
zens of  Chicago  in  every  movement  which  has  for 
its  object  the  promotion  of  the  general  welfare 
of  the  city  or  its  citizens.  He  is  actively  identi- 
fied with  several  charitable  organizations,  among 
which  are  those  seeking  to  assist  and  promote  the 
moral  and  mental  training  of  poor  and  destitute 
children. 

Judge  Tuthill  is  a  member  of  the  Grand  Army 
of  the  Republic,  the  Military  Order  of  the  Loyal 
Legion,  and  of  various  Masonic  bodies,  as  well  as 
of  the  Union  League,  Illinois  and  other  clubs. 
Amid  all  these  activities  Judge  Tuthill  has  never 
forgotten  the  habits  of  the  student  which  he 
acquired  in  his  early  life,  and  he  has  done  much 
in  public  addresses  and  speeches  to  delight,  enter- 
tain and  instruct  many  cultivated  audiences, 
which  have  made  demands  upon  his  time  and 
talent. 


AZEL   F.    HATCH, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


THERE  are  probably  comparatively  few 
people  in  the  City  of  Chicago  to-day,  who 
are  fully  aware  of  the  immense  amount  of  labor 
performed  by  Azel  F.  Hatch,  during  the  early 
stages  of  the  incorporation  of  the  World's 
Columbian  Exposition,  as  attorney  for  the 
Commissioners. 

He  was  born  September  6th,  1848,  in  Lisle, 
Du  Page  county,  Illinois,  the  son  of  James  C.  and 
Charlotte  D.  (Kidder)  Hatch.  He  received  his 
early  education  in  the  public  schools  of  Lisle,  and 
in  1867  entered  Obcrlin  College,  Ohio,  where  he 
remained  for  three  years.  In  1870,  he  entered 
the  senior  class  of  Yale  College,  and  was  grad- 
uated with  the  cla.ss  of  187 1.  His  first  position 
after  leaving  college  was  as  principal  of  the 
High  School  at  Sheboygan,  Wisconsin,  which 
he  occupied  for  twelve  months.  He  located  in 
Chicago  in  1872,  and  having  decided  to  fit  him- 
self for  the  legal  profession,  entered  the  law 
office  of  Messrs.  Shorey  and  Norton  as  a  law 
student. 

Two  years  later  (September,  i874\  he  passed  a 
highly  creditable  examination,  and  was  admitted 
to  the  bar,  and  two  months  later  commenced  the 


active  duties  of  his  profession.  During  the  first 
year  of  his  practice,  he  was  associated  with 
Messrs.  Norton  and  Hulburd,  under  the  firm 
name  of  Norton,  Hulburd  and  Hatch.  This 
connection  continued  until  1880,  when  he  formed 
a  partnership  with  Mr.  O.  F.  Aldis,  under  the 
firm  name  of  Hatch  and  Aldis,  which  continued 
some  three  years. 

In  November,  1883,  he  joined  a  co-partnership 
with  Thomas  B.  Bryan,  Esq.,  which  continued 
up  to  May  ist,  1890,  when  Mr.  Bryan  withdrew 
on  account  of  his  duties  in  connection  with  the 
World's  Columbian  Exposition,  and  his  accept- 
ance of  the  office  of  vice-president  of  same.  In 
mentioning  the  subject  of  the  Exposition,  it  will 
not  be  out  of  place  to  detail  more  particularly 
Mr.  Hatch's  personal  connection  with  it.  Ap- 
pointed attorney  for  the  Commissioners  before 
its  incorporation,  he  was  called  upon  to  decide 
all  legal  questions  arising  in  connection  there- 
with. He  arranged  its  statutory  declarations, 
and  managed  its  legal  organization,  and  arranged 
for  and  supervised  the  balloting  connected  with 
the  selection  of  directors  of  a  corporation  so  vast 
that  it   has  no  parallel — a  corporation  which  has 


4 


->^'^  g»-<s?-«r!;^r-« 


^tv^ 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


133 


over  twenty-eight  thousand  shareholders,  and 
necessitated  at  the  ballot  the  presence  of  one 
hundred  and  twenty-five  tellers.  But  so  thor- 
oughly organized  was  the  work,  so  well  arranged 
the  various  duties,  and  so  admirably  supervised 
by  Mr.  Hatch  in  person,  that  the  result  excited 
only  wonder  and  admiration.  To  quote  one  of 
the  leading  city  papers:  "So  expeditiously  was 
work  done,  that  within  less  than  two  hours  after 
the  commencement  of  work,  tickets  had  been 
issued  for  upwards  of  three  hundred  thousand 
shares."  .  .  .  "  Had  the  force  of  helpers  been 
in  training  for  twelve  months,  they  could  not 
have  better  discharged  their  respective  duties." 
The  remembrance  of  his  work  in  behalf  of  the 
Exposition  afterwards,  at  Springfield,  his  filing 
of  the  necessary  documents,  and  his  return  with 
the  certified  copy — the  whole  matter  being  com- 
pleted by  him  in  the  course  of  twelve  hours — are 
facts  that  will  not  soon  be  forgotten. 

In  political  sentiment,  Mr.  Hatch  is  a  Repub- 
lican, but  takes  no  active  part  in  political  affairs, 
more  than  to  perform  his  duties  as  a  citizen  ;  and, 
in  the  use  of  his  ballot,  he  is  not  bound  by  party 
lines,  but  considers  it  both  his  privilege  and  duty 
to  vote  for  men  and  principles,  rather  than  party. 


Mr.  Hatch  was  married  Februarj-  5th,  1880,  to 
Grace  H.  Greene,  of  Lisle,  111.  Mrs.  Hatch  died 
in  April,  1886. 

His  public  appointments:  Mr.  Hatch  has  often 
been  called  to  positions  of  trust.  In  June,  1890, 
he  was  appointed  one  of  the  directors  of  the 
Chicago  Public  Librar)\  He  is  also  one  of  the 
directors  of  the  Jenning's  Trust  Company,  a  part 
owner  and  director  of  the  Chicago  Evening  Post 
and  of  the  Chicago  Herald. 

Though  corporation  law  is  perhaps  his  spe- 
cialty, his  practice,  which  is  large,  is  general  in 
its  character,  and  his  knowledge  of  the  law  is 
confined  to  no  one  branch. 

Mr.  Hatch  is  a  man  of  pleasing  address  and 
personal  qualities  of  a  high  order;  and  by  his 
straight-forward,  manly  course,  his  strict  ad- 
herence to  the  right,  and  his  ability  not  only  as  a 
lawyer,  but  also  as  an  organizer  and  manager,  he 
has  won  the  esteem  and  confidence  of  the  com- 
munity in  which  he  lives,  and  attracted  to  himself 
many  firm  friends.  Though  comparatively  a 
young  man,  he  has  attained  more  than  ordinary 
success,  and  gives  promise  of  a  future  that  shall 
confirm  his  right  to  a  leading  place  among  Chi- 
cago's most  enterprising  and  successful  men. 


ANTHONY   F.   SEEBERGER, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


THE  SEEBERGERS  came  originally  from 
Wetzlar,  Prussia,  in  which  country  the 
subject  of  this  sketch  was  born,  on  August  24, 
1829.  He  is  the  son  of  John  David  and  Dorothea 
(Goethe)  Seeberger,  who  immigrated  to  this 
country  with  their  two  sons  in  1837.  Remain- 
ing for  a  year  in  New  York  City,  they  then 
removed  to  Newark,  New  Jersey,  and  afterward 
to  a  farm  near  Wooster,  Ohio.  In  that  town 
our  subject  commenced  his  active  business 
career  in  a  dry  goods  house,  and  gained  a  prac- 
tical knowledge  of  commercial  affairs.  After 
clerking  some  nine  years,  first  with  the  house  of 
Mr.  E.  S.  Johnson,  and  later  with  Messrs.  N. 
and  J.  B.  Power,  he,  in  1852,  became  a  partner  in 
the  business  of  the  last-named  firm. 

Two  years  later  (1854)  he  decided  to  go  West, 
and    accordingly    located    at    Oskaloosa,    Iowa, 


opening  there  the  first  exclusively  hardware  store 
in  that  State,  west  of  Davenport.  He  remained 
there  nine  years,  and  in  1S64,  settled  in  Chicago, 
and  shortly  afterward  organized  the  well-known 
firm  of  Seeberger  and  Breakey.  Since  the  retire- 
ment of  Mr.  Breakey  in  1885,  the  business  has 
been  conducted  under  the  style  of  A.  F.  Seeber- 
ger and  Co.  In  1885,  Mr.  Seeberger  was  appointed 
by  President  Cleveland  Collector  of  the  port  of 
Chicago,  which  office  he  filled  with  ability  and 
general  approval  for  four  years  and  five  months, 
until  his  successor  was  appointed.  He  is  a 
director,  and  for  a  time  was  president,  of  the  Chi- 
cago Edison  Company,  and  has  been  director  and 
president  of  the  Interstate  Exposition  Compan)-. 
He  has  also  been  president  of  the  Chicago 
Orphan  Asylum  for  a  number  of  years,  and  dur- 
ing the  existence  of  the  Charity  Organization  So- 


134 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AND  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


ciety,  now  consolidated  with  the  Chicago  Relief 
and  Aid  Society,  he  was  also  its  president.  He 
is  prominent  in  social  affairs,  and  a  well-known 
member  of  the  Commercial,  the  Chicago,  the  Iro- 
quois and  the  Calumet  clubs.  He  was  married 
August  26,  1856,  to  Miss  Jennie  L.  Cooper,  a 
daughter  of  Charles  Cooper,  a  prominent  manu- 
facturer of  machinery  at  Mount  Vernon,  Ohio. 
They  have  three  children,  viz.:  Charles  D.,  Louis 
A.  and  Dora  A.,  and  have  a  beautiful  home  at 
No.  2017  Michigan  avenue. 


Mr.  Seeberger  is  treasurer  of  the  World's 
Columbian  E.xposition,  and  a  member  who,  by 
reason  of  his  e.xtensive  business  knowledge,  his 
conspicuous  ability  and  broad,  cosmopolitan 
ideas,  is  invaluable  in  assisting  in  the  manage- 
ment of  the  affairs  of  that  stupendous  enter- 
prise. 

Mr.  Seeberger  is  a  member  of  Trinity  Episco- 
pal church,  and  for  many  years  a  member  of  its 
vestry.  He  is  a  generous  giver,  and  supports 
with  a  liberal  hand  all  charitable  enterprises. 


CHARLES   M.    HENDERSON, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


THE  subject  of  this  sketch  is  a  typical  Chi- 
cagoan.  He  was  born  March  21,  1834,  at 
New  Hartford,  Litchfield  county,  Connecticut, 
the  son  of  James  F.  and  Sabrina  (Marsh)  Hender- 
son. On  the  paternal  grandmother's  side,  he  is 
descended  from  a  branch  of  the  noted  Cotton 
Mather  family,  while  on  his  mother's  side  he  is 
descended  from  Roswell  Marsh,  a  soldier  of  revo- 
lutionary fame,  who  was  present  at  the  execution 
of  Major  Andre.  He  was  educated  in  the  public 
schools  of  Connecticut  and  at  the  age  of  si.xtcen 
became  a  school  teacher,  teaching  four  months. 
receiving  a  salar>'  of  sixteen  dollars  per  month. 

Having  heard  of  Chicago,  whither  his  uncle  had 
gone  some  years  before,  he,  in  1853,  being  then 
nearly  nineteen  years  old,  went  thither  and  ob- 
tained employment  in  the  then  well-known  boot 
and  shoe  house  of  C.  N.  Henderson  and  Co. 
Serving  through  all  departments — as  salesman, 
buyer,  clerk,  etc. — he  gained  a  thoroughly  practi- 
cal knowledge  of  the  business,  and  on  the  death 
of  his  uncle  six  years  later  (1859)  he  succeeded  to 
his  business,  and  organized  the  firm  of  C.  M. 
Henderson  and  Co.,  into  which  Mr.  Wilbur  S. 
Henderson  was  admitted  as  a  partner  in  1863, 
the  house  being  then  located  at  No.  32  Lake 
street,  Chicago.  Five  years  later  the  business 
was  interrupted  by  a  disastrous  fire,  but  the  firm 
at  once  sought  a  new  location  at  Nos.  58  and  60 
Wabash  avenue,  and  the  house  was  doing  a 
prosperous  business  when  overtaken  by  a  second 
calamity,  this  time  being  the  great  fire  of  October 
8th  and    9th,   1S71,   by    which    the    city  was  laid 


waste.  This  time  they  were  but  one  amongst 
the  many  who  were  not  only  entirely  burnt  out, 
but,  in  many  cases,  completely  ruined.  But  Chi- 
cago's business  men  and  citizens  of  those  days, 
like  those  of  to-day,  were  men  of  enterprise,  of 
sterling  worth,  and  true  grit.  They  did  not  sit 
repining,  they  had  strong  faith  in  Chicago's 
future,  and  they  went  to  work  clearing  away  the 
ruins,  and  replacing  their  ruined  structures  with 
handsome,  commodious  and,  in  some  cases,  fire- 
proof buildings. 

The  firm  of  C.  M.  Henderson  and  Co.  were 
among  the  first  to  re-establish  themselves  after 
the  fire,  and  since  that  time  their  business  has  in- 
creased and  their  reputation  extended  until  they 
are  by  far  the  best  known  house  in  the  trade 
throughout  the  West.  From  a  small  trade  the 
business  has  developed  under  the  skillful  and 
careful  guidance  of  its  head,  Charles  M.  Hender- 
son, until  it  has  become  the  largest  combined 
manufacturing  and  jobbing  boot  and  shoe  house 
in  the  United  States  of  America,  and  it  is  still 
growing.  This  house  of  C.  M.  Henderson  and 
Co.,  being  an  incorporated  body,  has  three  ex- 
tensive factories  in  active  operation  and  employs 
from  eight  to  nine  hundred  people.  Their  sales- 
rooms and  offices  are  in  the  handsome  six  story 
building  at  the  corner  of  Adams  and  Market 
streets,  Chicago.  The  adoption  of  the  trade- 
mark of  the  wonderful  "Red  School  House"  shoes 
was  based  on  the  old  New  England  "  Red  School 
House,"  in  one  of  which  Mr.  Henderson  received 
his  earlv  education. 


SiOORAPHICAL  DICTIOXARV  AXD  I'ORTRAIT  OALLERY. 


137 


In  1874,  Mr.  Henderson  was  one  of  the  found- 
ers and  organizers  of  the  Citizen's  Association, 
an  association  formed  by  several  of  our  most 
prominent  citizens  for  the  purpose  of  purifying 
municipal  government  and  lessening  jobbery  and 
crime.  To  this  cause  Mr.  Henderson  contributed 
large  sums  of  money,  as  he  was  then,  as  he  is  now, 
an  earnest  believer  in  a  firm,  well  directed  and 
judiciously  administered  city  government,  and  an 
avowed  enemy  of  corruption,  jobbery,  and  la.x 
discipline.  He  was  repeatedly  urged  to  become 
the  president  of  this  association,  but  declined, 
aiding,  however,  in  the  adoption  of  the  present 
city  charter.  He  was  also  instrumental  in  the  re- 
organization and  improvement  of  the  Chicago 
Fire  Department,  which  to-day  is  one  of  the 
most  thoroughly  practical,  best  disciplined  and 
best  equipped  fire  departments  in  the  world. 

The  cause  of  suffering  humanity  has  always 
found  in  Mr.  Henderson  a  practical  sympathizer 
and  one  who  is  ever  ready  to  aid.  He  was  mar- 
ried in  1838  to  Miss  Emily  Hollingsworth,  a 
daughter  of  James  Hollingsworth,  a  well-known 
and  successful  business  man  of  Chicago.  Of  this 
marriage  there  are  three  children. 

Mr.  Henderson  is  a  member  of  the  Union 
League,  the  Commercial,  the  Chicago  and  Calu- 
met Clubs,  and  has  a  wide  social  acquaintance. 
He  has  been   for  twenty  years  a  member  of  the 


Presbyterian  Church,  and  has  been  president  of 
the  Young  People's  Mission  Association  for  fif- 
teen years,  and  for  ten  years  was  superintendent 
of  the  Railroad  Chapel,  and  two  years  president 
of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Association. 
Numerous  other  positions  of  honor  and  trust  have 
from  time  to  time  been  tendered  him,  but  his 
business  and  other  engagements  have  been  such 
that  he  has  been  compelled  to  decline  them.  He 
is  one  of  the  trustees  of  Lake  Forest  University, 
and  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  the 
Chicago  Home  for  Incurables. 

In  politics  he  is  a  Republican,  though  ill-health 
has  prevented  his  taking  such  an  interest  in  his 
party  as  he  might  otherwise  have  done.  But  the 
local  party  has  always  found  in  him  a  true  friend, 
whose  practical  sympathy  and  help  have  been 
cheerfully  given  when  needed.  Mr.  Henderson 
is  a  thorough  business  man,  enterprising,  straight- 
forward, clear-headed  and  upright,  and  in  his  long 
career  in  Chicago  has  made  a  record  of  which  he 
may  justly  be  proud.  He  is  a  liberal  supporter 
of  worthy  charitable,  benevolent  and  educa- 
tional institutions,  generous  to  a  fault,  whole- 
souled  and  a  thorough  gentleman.  A  man  of 
great  detail,  accurate  and  prompt,  of  much  deter- 
ination  in  public  affairs,  Charles  Mather  Hender- 
son is  a  fair  representative  of  the  men  who  have 
made  Chicago  what  she  is  to-day. 


REV.  JOHN    HEXRY   BARROWS, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


REV.  JOHN  HENRY  BARROWS,  D.  D., 
pastor  of  the  First  Presbyterian  Church  of 
Chicago,  is  called  by  the  Golden  Rule,  of  Boston, 
•'  one  of  the  foremost  pulpit  orators  of  America." 
The  church,  of  which  he  has  been  the  pastor  since 
1 88 1,  is  the  historic  and  mother  church  of  the 
city.  It  was  organized  on  June  26,  1833,  by 
Rev.  Jeremiah  Porter.  Its  first  meetings  were 
held  in  the  carpenter's  shop,  in  F"ort  Dearborn. 
Its  pastors  have  been.  Rev.  Jeremiah  Porter, 
Rev.  John  Blatchford,  Rev.  Dr.  Flavel  Bascom, 
Rev.  Dr.  Harvey  Curtis.  Rev.  Dr.  Z.  M.  Hum- 
phrey, Rev.  Dr.  Arthur  Mitchell,  and  the  subject 
of  this  sketch. 

John    H.   Barrows  was  born  July   11,   1S47.   in 


Medina,  Michigan.  His  father,  the  late  Profes- 
sor John  M.  Barrows,  came  of  New  England  stock, 
a  race  of  teachers,  and  was  educated  in  the  Troy 
Polytechnic  Institute,  and  in  Oberlin  College. 
His  mother,  Catharine  Payndre  .Moore,  was  also 
an  early  graduate  of  Oberlin.  Both  his  parents 
were  persons  of  marked  and  noble  character.  In 
his  college  life  at  Olivet,  Michigan,  Dr.  Barrows 
was  noted  for  his  enthusiasm  in  the  study  of  lit- 
erature, history  and  the  classics,  and  for  his  eager 
interest  in  public  and  national  questions.  He 
was  graduated  from  Olivet  in  June,  1867.  in  the 
same  class  with  his  brother.  Rev.  Walter  M.  Bar- 
rows, D.  D.,  afterward  an  eminent  Secretary  of 
the  American    Home    Missionary    Society.       He 


^ 


138 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARV  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


studied  theology  at  Yale,  Union  and  Andover 
seminaries.  While  at  Union  he  became  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Plymouth  Church,  Brooklyn,  and  was 
a  rapt  student  of  the  marvellous  pulpit  oratory  of 
Henry  Ward  Beecher. 

After  two  years  and  a  half  of  home  missionary 
and  educational  work  in  Kansas,  he  preached  for 
a  year  in  the  First  Congregational  Church  in 
Springfield,  Illinois.  This  experience  was  fol- 
lowed by  twelve  months  of  travel  in  Great 
Britain,  Germany,  France,  Italy,  Greece,  Egypt, 
and  the  Holy  Land.  He  supplied  for  a  time  the 
American  Chapel  in  Paris,  where  he  made  hosts 
of  refined  and  serviceable  friends,  and  enriched 
his  intellectual  and  other  resources.  Returning 
to  America,  after  studies  at  Andover,  he  became 
the  pastor  of  the  Eliot  Congregational  Church  in 
Lawrence,  Massachusetts.  When  temporarily 
driven  out  of  the  church  edifice.  Dr.  Barrows  dis- 
closed ability  to  hold  and  sway  the  popular  mul- 
titude with  a  strictly  Gospel  theme,  while  preach- 
ing to  great  audiences  in  the  City  Hall  in  that 
large  manufacturing  city.  There  he  learned  the 
joy  of  utterance  in  an  eager,  expectant,  popular 
assembly.  As  if  to  be  tested  at  every  point 
before  entering  upon  his  Chicago  field,  his  tact 
in  church  administration  was  tried  in  the  Hercu- 
lean task  of  casting  off  what  seemed  an  over- 
whelming debt  from  the  Maverick  Church  in 
East  Boston,  of  which  he  was  the  pastor  before 
coming  to  his  great  work  in  the  West.  The 
First  Presbyterian  Church  of  Chicago  showed 
their  great  eagerness  to  secure  Dr.  Barrows  by 
contributing  $5,000  toward  the  liquidation  of  the 
debt  on  the  East  Boston  church. 

Since  his  coming  to  Chicago,  in  October,  1881, 
twelve  hundred  members  have  been  received  into 
the  church,  and  the  chapel  connected  with  it,  of 
which  Rev.  Charles  M.  Morton  is  the  faithful 
pastor.  In  1883  occurred  the  semi-centennial 
celebration  of  the  founding  of  the  First  Church, 
which  led  to  the  preparation  by  Dr.  Barrows  of 
an  elaborate  historical  volume,  giving  the  "  Ec- 
clesiastical Antiquities''  of  the  city,  a  book  highly 
praised  by  such  experts  as  Dr.  Shedd,  of  New 
York,  and  the  late  Dr.  Dexter,  of  Boston.  Dr. 
Barrows  has  taken  a  prominent  part  in  all  mis- 
sionary and  reformatory  enterprises  in  the  city ; 
he  has  become  a  favorite  speaker  at  college 
commencements,    on    the    lecture    platform,    at 


temperance,  missionary  and  Christian  Endeavor 
conventions  and  before  the  great  gatherings  at 
Chautauqua,  New  York.  He  has  also  become 
noted  as  a  speaker  at  soldiers'  meetings.  Of  the 
Grand  Army  Memorial  service  in  1883,  the 
Chicago  Daily  Nezvs  says  :  "  Thousands  of  peo- 
ple thrilled  to  the  very  heart  were  loath  to  leave 
the  precincts  wherein  dwelt  the  wondrous  ora- 
tory of  the  great  preacher." 

Among  Dr.  Barrows's  famous  lectures  are  those 
on  "Samuel  Adams,"  "James  Russell  Lowell," 
"Hugh  Miller,"  "Rembrandt,"  "Shakespeare," 
"  John  Stuart  Mill,"  "  Jerusalem  "  and  "  Wendell 
Phillips."  His  address  on  "America,"  given  at 
the  opening  of  the  Spring  Palace,  Fort  Worth. 
Texas,  before  the  Presbyterian  Social  Union  of 
St.  Louis,  and  before  the  Synod  of  Indiana,  is 
among  the  most  notable  home-missionary  and 
patriotic  discourses. 

Dr.  Barrows  has  published  many  sermons, 
which  have  had  a  wide  circulation.  Among  the 
more  noteworthy  of  these  have  been  discourses 
on  "  The  Perfection  of  the  Bible,"  "  The  Nation, 
and  the  Soldier,"  "  The  Nation's  Hope,"  "  Re- 
ligion the  Motive  Power  in  Human  Progress," 
"  Christian  Manhood,"'  "  Reason  in  Temperance," 
"  Christ  and  the  Poor,"  "  Martin  Luther," 
"Christian  Hospitals,"  "The  World  of  Books" 
and  "  Municipal  Patriotism."  His  address  in 
1885,  at  the  Sixty-first  Anniversary  of  the  Ameri- 
can Sunday-School  Union,  was  distributed  in 
many  thousand  copies  all  over  the  country.  In 
this  year,  also,  he  spoke  in  Music  Hall,  Boston, 
at  the  Seventy-fifth  Anniversary  of  the  American 
Board.  His  address  called  forth  from  Dr.  Wm. 
M.  Taylor,  of  New  York,  the  saying :  "  Dr. 
Barrows  keeps  eloquence  on  tap." 

Dr.  Barrows  is  the  pastor  of  a  very  strong  and 
benevolent  church,  whose  gifts  to  various  good 
causes  average  more  than  one  hundred  thousand 
dollars  a  year.  In  1886  his  people  kindly  sent 
him  to  Europe,  where  he  enjoyed  four  months  of 
physical  and  mental  recuperation.  While  in 
London  he  preached  before  the  great  Mildmay 
Conference.  For  four  years  Dr.  Barrows,  sup- 
ported by  his  generous  people,  carried  on  a  Sun- 
day evening  preaching  service  in  Central  Music 
Hall,  Chicago.  In  1890  he  published  a  volume 
entitled  "The  Gospels  are  True  Histories,"  which 
has  received  warm  commendations  for  its  literarj- 


BIOGRAPHICAL   DICTIOXARY  A\D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


139 


qualities  and  its  power  and  effectiveness,  from 
men  like  Prof.  Geo.  P.  Fisher,  Dr.  Richard  S. 
Storrs,  Dr.  Francis  E.  Clark,  Dr.  Theodore  L. 
Cuyler,  and  many  others.  During  the  last  two 
years  he  has  preached  in  the  evening  at  an 
elaborate  praise  service  held  in  the  First  Presby- 
terian Church.  This  service,  conducted  by  the 
eminent  organist,  Mr.  Clarence  Eddy,  has  been  a 
delight,  inspiration  and  education  to  great  num- 
bers. Dr.  Barrows  takes  an  enthusiastic  interest 
in  whatever  concerns  the  intellectual  and  moral 
progress  of  the  Queen  City  of  the  West.  He  is 
a  favorite  and  frequent  speaker  on  social  occa- 
sions, and  is  now  ser\ing  as  chairman  of  the  Com- 
mittee on  Religious  Congresses,  to  be  held  dur- 
ing the  World's  Columbian  Exposition  of  1893. 
He  is  the  originator  of  the  great  plan  of  holding 
a  Parliament  of  Religions,  to  which  representa- 
tives of  all  the  great  historic  faiths  have  been 
invited.  In  this  effort  to  bring  together,  in 
friendly  conference,  Brahmans,  Buddhists,  Mos- 
lems, Parsees,  Confucians,  Jews,  and  representa- 
tives of  the  great  churches  of  Christendom,  Dr. 
Barrows  has  secured  the  co-operation  of  religious 
leaders  of  all  lands.  The  importance  of  this 
movement  can  hardly  be  overestimated.  Its  ob- 
jects are  to  bring  into  conference  leading  repre- 
sentatives of  the  great  historic  religions  of  the 
world :  to  show  what  and  how  many  important 
truths  they  hold  and  teach  in  common :  to  pro- 
mote the  spirit  of  true  brotherhood  among  the 
religions  of  the  world  :  to  secure  from  leading 
scholars,  representing  all  faiths,  accurate  state- 
ments of  the  effects  of  their  respective  religions 
upon  the  literature,  art,  commerce,  government 
and  domestic  and  social  life  of  the  peoples  among 
whom  these  faiths  have  prevailed  :  to  show  what 
light  each  religion  has  afforded  or  may  afford  to 
the  other  religions  of  the  world  ;  to  furnish  a  per- 
manent record  of  the  condition  and  outlook  of 
religion  among  the  leading  nations;  to  discover 
what  light  religion  has  thrown  on  such  great 
questions  as  temperance,  labor,  education,  etc. 

From  an  elaborate  article  in  the  Pulpit  Treas- 
ury, of  New  York,  of  June,  1884,  we  make  the  fol- 
lowing extracts:  "Dr.  Barrows'  peculiar  function 
is  to  preach.  It  is  at  the  altar  that  his  lips  are 
touched.  His  extraordinary  gifts  are  all  arranged 
along  the  line  of  power  in  spoken  speech.  After 
his  homiletic  matter,   which  is  always  choice,  is 


well  in  hand,  his  mental  movement  is  toward 
powerful  expression.  His  sentences  are  polished 
shafts.  His  multifarious  contributions  to  the 
public  prints  force  themselves  out  into  attention 
by  way  of  the  platform  and  the  pulpit,  where  all 
his  work  takes  on  its  peculiar  animation.  Some 
passages,  for  example,  in  his  famous  sermon  on 
'  Eternity,'  after  being  once  felt  by  an  audience, 
can  never  be  forgotten.  Even  his  voice,  which  is 
of  a  rich  and  peculiarly  resonant  quality,  con- 
tributes toward  a  magical  effect.  There  is  some- 
thing magnetic  about  his  personal  presence.  He 
is  noticeably  tall  and  lithe  in  form.  His  phys- 
ique, at  first  sight,  does  not  indicate  such 
enormous  endurance  as  he  seems  to  possess. 
Perhaps  no  preacher  in  America  carries  to-day  a 
heavier  ministerial  responsibility.  His  pulpit 
work  has  all  the  elaboration  and  finish  of  the 
most  closely  written  sermon,  and  yet  has  the 
power  and  magnetism  of  extemporaneous  utter- 
ance, for  it  is  usually  given  without  a  scrap  of  a 
note.  The  pulpit  is  sometimes  pushed  aside  and 
he  stands  out  like  the  lamented  Phillips,  whom  in 
style  and  bearing  he  resembles.  In  the  lecture 
field  he  has  few  equals.  His  prose-poem  on 
'  Samuel  Adams,  the  Hero  of  the  Revolution  ' 
is  well-nigh  unrivalled  as  a  model  in  classic 
English.  When  a  man  develops  such  eloquence 
and  power  in  the  pulpit,  a  great  door  and 
effectual  is  soon  opened  unto  him.  To  Dr. 
Barrows  it  is  at  the  Central  Music  Hall,  Chicago. 
Here  flock  together  on  Sabbath  evenings  the 
great  unchurched  to  hear  him.  Very  often  it  has 
been  necessar)'  to  turn  people  away,  so  overflow- 
ing is  the  spacious  hou.se.  The  service  exactl>- 
fits  the  niche  in  the  popular  need.  The  fact  that 
a  thousand  young  men  are  frequently  present,  to 
say  nothing  of  twice  as  many  others  besides,  is 
an  inspiration  to  any  orator;  and  yet  this  mar- 
vellous ministry  is  as  far  from  being  sensational 
as  the  zenith  from  the  nadir.  Dr.  Barrows  de- 
termined at  the  start  that  his  Music  Hall  min- 
istry should  be,  first  of  all,  evangelical.  It  is 
not  orthodoxy  that  the  people  object  to,  but 
dullness.  The  music  is  both  choral  and  congre- 
gational, and  hence  is  superlatively  attractive. 
The  people  crowd  in.  The  last  ser\ice  always 
seems  the  best.  The  poor  have  the  Gospel 
preached  unto  them.  Dr.  Barrows  has  come  to 
the  first  place  among  the  young  preachers  of  the 


I40 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


day  by  dint  of  vitalized,  consecrated  personal  mental  and  spiritual  energy, 
power.  He  seems  to  have  felt  from  his  youth  right  a  prince  of  the  pulpit, 
the    presence    of    destiny.      It   is    the  stirring  of      come  to  reign  in  his  kingdom.' 


Being   by   divine 
he    has  at   length 


JOSEPH    RUSSELL  JONES, 


CHICAGO,  ILL. 


JOSEPH  RUSSELL  JONES  was  born  at 
Conneaut,  Ashtabula  county,  Ohio,  on  the 
17th  of  February,  1823.  His  father,  Joel  Jones, 
was  born  at  Hebron,  Connecticut,  May  14th, 
1792.  and  after  marrying  Miss  Maria  Dart,  the 
daughter  of  Joseph  Dart,  of  Middle  Haddem, 
Connecticut,  removed  with  his  young  family  to 
Conneaut,  Ohio,  in  1819. 

Joel  Jones  was  the  sixth  son  of  Captain  Samuel 
Jones,  of  Hebron,  Connecticut,  who  was  an  officer 
in  the  French  and  Indian  war.     The  latter  held 
two  commissions  under    George    II    of   England. 
He  returned  from  the  wars  and  settled  in  Hebron, 
where  he   married   Miss  Lydia  Tarbox,  by  whom 
he  had  six  sons  and  four  daughters.     Nine  of  the 
ten  lived  to   reach   maturity.     Samuel,  the  eldest 
son,  was  a  lawyer,  and  practiced  his  profession  for 
many  years  at  Stockbridge,  Mass.       He   was  a 
man  of  fine  cultivation.     In  1842  he  published  a 
treatise    on    the    "Right    of    Suffrage,"    which  is 
probably    the  only   work   of  the    kind  ever  pub- 
lished   by  an    American  author.      From  another 
brother  descended  the  late   Hon.  Joel   Jones,  the 
first  president  of  Girard  College,  the  late  Samuel 
Jones,  M.  D.,  of  Philadelphia,  and  Matthew  Hale 
Jones,    of    Easton,    Pennsylvania.     From  a  third 
brother    descended    Hon.    Anson    Jones,    second 
President  of  the  Republic  of  Texas.     The  family 
are  now  in  posse.ssion  of  a  letter  written  by  Cap- 
tain Samuel  Jones  to  his  wife  at   Fort  Edward, 
dated  August  i8th,  1758.     One  hundred  and  ten 
years  prior  to  the  date  of  this  letter,  his  ancestor. 
Captain  John  Jones,  sat  at  Westminster  as  one  of 
the   judges   of    King   Charles    I.      Colonel    John 
Jones  married   Henrietta  (Catherine),  the  second 
sister  of  Oliver  Cromwell,  in  1623,  and  was  put  to 
death  October  17th,   1660,  on  the  restoration   of 
Charles  II.     His  son,  Hon.  William   Jones,  sur- 
vived him,  and  one  year  before  his  father's  death 
married  Miss  Hannah  Eaton,  then  of  the   Parish 
of    St.    Andrews,   H olden,    Epenton.     He    subse- 


quently came  to  America  with  his  father-in-law, 
the  Hon.  Theophilus  Eaton,  first  governor  of  the 
colony  of  New  Haven,  Connecticut,  where  he 
held  the  ofifice  of  deputy  governor  for  some 
years,  and  died  October  17th,  1706.  Both  him- 
self and  wife  are  buried  in  New  Haven,  under  the 
same  stone  with  Governor  Eaton. 

From    the   foregoing  it    will  be    seen  that   the 
subject    of    this    sketch    is    connected    by    direct 
descent    with    the    best    blood    of    the     Puritan 
fathers,  and  came   honestly  by  the   virtues  which 
have  characterized  and  adorned    his  private  and 
official  life.     His  father  died  when  he  was  but  an 
infant,  leaving  his  mother  with  a  large  family  and 
but  slender  means  for  their  maintenance.     At  the 
age    of    thirteen,    young    Jones  was  placed    in    a 
store  at  Conneaut,  his    mother  and   other  mem- 
bers of  the  family  at  the  same  time  removing  to 
Rockton,  Winnebago  county,  Illinois.     This,  his 
first  clerkship,  gave  to   his   employers  great  satis- 
faction.    He  remained  with  them  for  two   years, 
when  he  decided  to  follow  his  family  and  seek  his 
fortune    in   the    West.     When  the  leading  mem- 
bers of  the  Presbyterian  church   were  apprised  of 
his    determination    to    depart    from    them,  they 
endeavored  to  prevail  upon  him   to  remain,  offer- 
ing to  provide  for  his  education  for  the  ministry. 
He,  however,  declined  their  generous  offer,  but 
not    without    sincere    and    grateful    acknowledge- 
ments of  their  great  kindness,  and,  taking  passage 
on  board  the  schooner  "J.  G.  King,"  he  made  his 
first  landing  at  Chicago,  on  the   19th   of  August, 
1838.     Thence  he  proceeded  to  Rockton,  where 
he  remained    with   his   family    for   the    next  two 
years,  rendering  such  .service  to  his  mother  as  his 
tender  years  and  slight   frame  would   permit.     In 
1840,   he  went    to   Galena,   then    the  largest  and 
most  flourishing  city  in  the  Northwest,  determined 
to  better  his  condition,  but  as  his  entire  available 
capital    amounted    to    only    one    dollar,    his    first 
appearance  upon  the  scene  of  his  future  successes 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


143 


was  not  encouraging.  He  was  glad  to  accept  at 
a  very  small  salary  a  clerkship,  which  he  filled  for 
about  six  months,  after  which  he  entered  the 
employ  of  one  of  the  leading  merchants  at 
Galena.  Young  Jones  found  in  this  association 
appreciative  friendship,  agreeable  surroundings, 
hearty  encouragement,  and  ample  scope  for  his 
business  talents  and  ambition.  Contact  with  the 
enterprising  spirits  of  that  region  soon  developed 
in  him  those  qualities  which  have  since  so  highK- 
distinguished  him  as  a  man  of  sterling  worth  and 
remarkable  ability.  His  employer,  percei\ing  his 
superior  qualifications,  his  ready  adaptabilit\-  to 
the  requirements  of  his  position,  his  impertur- 
bable good  nature,  self-possession,  foresight  and 
sagacity,  advanced  him  rapidly,  and  finally  to  a 
partnership  in  the  business,  which  was  continued 
successfully  and  profitably  until  1856,  when  the 
co-partnership  was  dissolved.  In  1846,  while  still 
engaged  in  the  mercantile  business,  he  was  ap- 
pointed secretary  and  treasurer  of  the  Galena  and 
Minnesota  Packet  Company.  This  highly  im- 
portant position  he  held  for  fifteen  years,  giving 
entire  satisfaction  to  the  company.  In  i860,  he 
was  nominated  by  the  Republican  party  and 
elected  member  of  the  twenty-second  General 
Assembly  from  the  Galena  District,  composed  of 
the  counties  of  Jo  Daviess  and  Carroll.  He  soon 
became  one  of  the  most  active  and  influential 
members  of  the  legislature,  and  was  prominently 
identified  with  many  measures  of  great  public 
interest  so  that  his  conduct  as  a  Representative 
received  the  high  approval,  not  only  of  his  own 
district,  but  of  the  whole  State. 

In  1 861,  Mr.  Jones  was  appointed  by  President 
Lincoln  to  the  office  of  United  States  Marshal 
for  the  northern  district  of  Illinois.  This  ap- 
pointment required  him  to  change  his  residence 
to  Chicago,  and  brought  him  in  contact  with 
other  and  larger  interests  than  those  which  had 
previously  claimed  his  attention.  In  1863  he 
organized  the  Chicago  West  Division  Railway 
Company,  was  elected  its  president,  and  by  his 
.systematic  and  skillful  management,  soon  brought 
it  to  a  high  condition  of  pros])erity.  In  the  midst 
of  his  exacting  duties,  he  found  time  to  take  part 
in  various  other  commercial  and  manufacturing 
enterprises,  all  of  which  added  to  his  ample 
fortune,  and  brought  him  into  notice  as  one  of 
the  most  successful  and   influential   men   of  Chi- 


cago. Withal  he  discharged  his  duties  as  marshal 
so  efficiently  and  with  such  satisfaction  to  the 
government  that  upon  the  commencement  of  Mr. 
Lincoln's  second  term  he  was  re-appointed,  and 
held  the  office  till  President  Grant  called  him  to 
fill  a  higher  and  much  more  conspicuous  position. 
Mr.  Jones  was  one  of  Mr.  Lincoln's  most  trusted 
friends,  and  enjoyed  his  fullest  confidence.  He 
was  summoned  by  the  latter  upon  several  occa- 
sions to  Washington  for  consultation  upon 
matters  of  public  interest,  and  at  least  once  to 
confer  upon  a  subject  of  great  personal  concern 
to  the  President.  Shortly  after  the  crushing 
victory  of  the  Union  forces,  commanded  by 
General  Grant,  over  the  Confederate  army  at 
Chattanooga,  a  movement  was  set  on  foot  by  a 
number  of  influential  men  in  New  York  to  give 
the  successful  general  an  independent  nomination 
for  the  Presidency.  Mr.  Lincoln  was  too  astute 
and  watchful  a  politician  to  remain  long  in 
ignorance  of  this  hostile  movement,  and,  as  a 
matter  of  course,  soon  discovered  the  plans  of 
his  enemies.  Perceiving  at  once  that  the  nation's 
victorious  chieftain  would  prove  a  dangerous 
competitor,  if  he  really  were  ambitious,  he  re- 
garded it  as  of  the  first  importance  to  satisfy  himself 
on  that  point.  Recalling  the  intimacy  which  had 
grown  up  between  General  Grant  and  Mr.  Jones, 
he  telegraphed  for  the  latter  to  come  to  Washing- 
ton. Mr.  Jones  lost  no  time  in  obeying  the  Pres- 
ident's summons.  On  reaching  Washington  he 
reported  his  arrival  to  the  President,  stating  that 
he  would  call  whenever  it  would  be  most  con- 
venient for  the  President  to  receive  him,  and  was 
requested  to  call  at  eight  o'clock  that  evening, 
which  he  did,  and  was  conducted  to  the  Pres- 
ident's private  office.  Closing  the  doors,  Mr. 
Lincoln  said,  "  Jones,  I've  sent  for  you  to  tell  me 
whether  or  not  Grant  wants  to  be  President." 
Mr.  Jones  replied  promptly,  in  accordance  with 
what  he  knew  to  be  the  fact:  "Certainly  not; 
he  would  not  take  the  oflfice  if  it  were  offered  to 
him.  So  far  from  being  a  candidate  himself.  I 
know  him  to  be  earnestly  in  favor  of  your  re- 
election." Mr.  Lincoln's  countenance  relaxed, 
and  the  habitual  shade  of  sadness  faded  from  his 
face,  as  he  leaned  forward,  and  putting  his  hand 
upon  Mr.  Jones'  shoulder,  said.  "  My  friend,  you 
don't  know  how  gratifying  that  is  to  me:"  add- 
ing reflectively,  "No  man  can  ever  toll  how  deep 


144 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


that  Presidential  grub  gnaws  till   he  has  had   it 
himself." 

Immediately  after  Gen.  Grant's  election,  four 
years  later,  he  nominated  Mr.  Jones  to  the  senate 
as  Minister  to  Belgium,  in  grateful  appreciation 
of  his  patriotic  support  of  the  government's 
policy  during  the  Civil  war;  in  recognition  of  his 
services  as  a  member  of  the  National  Republican 
E.xecutive  Committee  during  the  political  con- 
test which  had  just  terminated,  and  of  his  high 
qualities  as  a  gentleman  and  citizen.  He  pro- 
ceeded quietly  to  his  post,  accompanied  by  his 
family,  took  possession  of  the  Legation  on  the 
2 1st  of  July,  1869,  was  confirmed  in  due  time 
and  addressed  himself  at  once  unostentatiously 
but  industriously  to  the  mastery  of  the  situation. 
One  of  his  first  duties  was  to  make  an  elaborate 
report  upon  the  cereal  productions  of  Belgium, 
by  order  of  the  State  Department,  and  the  man- 
ner in  which  he  did  this  left  nothing  to  be  de- 
sired. Shortly  afterwards  he  was  called  upon  to 
interpose  his  good  offices  in  behalf  of  an  Ameri- 
can citizen  who  had  been  condemned  to  im- 
prisonment. He  did  so,  quietly  and  without 
display,  and  succeeded  speedily  in  effecting  the 
release  of  his  countryman.  When  the  difficulty 
arose  with  Great  Britain  in  reference  to  the  con- 
struction of  the  Treaty  of  Washington,  no  minis- 
ter was   more   active   than   he   in  disseminating 


correct  information,  and  in  giving  public  opinion 
a  turn  favorable  to  our  interests.  In  the  final 
extinguishment  of  the  Scheldt  dues,  he  served 
the  government  with  marked  capability  and  intel- 
ligence. He  also  materially  assisted  in  bringing 
about  an  understanding  between  Belgium  and 
the  United  States,  which  enabled  them  to  agree 
upon  the  terms  of  an  extradition  treaty :  and 
has  more  recently  furnished  for  the  use  of  the 
Senate  Committee  on  Transportation  an  admirable 
report  upon  the  Belgium  railways  and  canals. 

In  1848,  Mr.  Jones  married  Miss  Scott,  the 
daughter  of  the  late  Judge  Andrew  Scott,  of 
Arkansas.  She  is  a  most  excellent  and  accom- 
plished lady,  and  has,  with  her  interesting  chil- 
dren, given  the  American  Legation  at  Brussels  an 
enviable  reputation  for  elegance  and  hospitality. 
It  is  no  exaggeration  to  say  that  Mr.  Jones  and 
his  family  have  won  the  respect  and  affection  of 
everybody  who  have  felt  the  influence  of  their 
home,  or  come  within  the  reach  of  their  kindly 
offices. 

In  the  summer  of  1875,  Mr.  Jones  resigned  and 
returned  to  Chicago  and  was  soon  thereafter 
tendered  the  position  of  Secretary^  of  the  Interior, 
which  he  declined  and  was  appointed  Collector  of 
the  Port  of  Chicago. 

In  1888  he  practically  retired  from  active  busi- 
ness. 


CHARLES    HENROTIN, 


CHIC.VGO,   ILL. 


CHARLES  HENROTIN  was  born  in  1844  in 
Brussels,  and  settled  in  Chicago  in  1848. 
His  father.  Dr.  Henrotin,  who  in  the  early  days 
was  known  in  the  neighborhood  of  Chicago  as 
"  The  French  Doctor,"  had  been  for  many  years 
surgeon  in  the  Belgian  army,  and  from  1857  to 
1876,  held  the  position  of  Belgian  Consul  in  Chi- 
cago. Young  Henrotin  entered  the  Chicago 
High  School  in  1856,  and  aftenvards  studied  in 
his  native  country,  attending  the  University  of 
Tournai  from  1856  to  1861,  when  he  returned  to 
Chicago  and  entered  the  employ  of  the  Mer- 
chants' Loan  and  Trust  Co.  In  1866  he  was 
elected  cashier  of  that  bank  as  successor  to  Mr. 
L.  J.   Gage,  who    became    vice-president    of   the 


First  National  Bank  of  Chicago.  In  the  fire  of 
1 87 1,  the  books  and  papers  of  the  Merchants'  Loan 
and  Trust  Co.  were  lost,  and  Mr.  Henrotin  accom- 
plished the  remarkable  feat  of  re-establishing  all 
the  accounts  of  the  bank  and  satisfying  all  the  de- 
mands of  its  customers  without  any  interruption 
of  its  regular  business,  and  without  loss  to  the 
bank,  and  he  accomplished  it  within  three  weeks 
from  the  time  of  the  fire. 

In  1876  Mr.  Henrotin  resigned  his  position  as 
cashier  to  engage  in  his  present  line  of  business — 
banking  and  brokerage.  At  the  outset,  his  time 
was  devoted  principally  to  the  introduction  into 
the  Chicago  stock  market  of  railroad  bonds — a 
business  which  from  1876  to    18S3   assumed  enor- 


^  a 


i     /l/'C  /  i  ^rt'.^ 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIO.XARV  A.\D  PORTRAIT  OALLERY. 


M7 


mous  proportions.  Ho  also  rendered  notable  ser- 
vice to  the  city  and  county  in  successfully  hand- 
ling nearly  all  of  the  municipal  loans  made  at  that 
time.  He  bought  the  County  Court  House  5  per 
cent,  loan  of  S'--OO.ooo,  and  took  practically  all 
the  city  script  which,  in  her  then  embarrassed  posi- 
tion, had  to  be  issued  for  current  go\'ernment  ex- 
penditures. 

Mr.  Henrotin's  ability  as  a  financier  had  by  this 
time  become  well  known  far  beyond  his  own  com- 
munity, and  confidence  in  him  well  established. 
It  only  required  the  insight,  tact  and  daring  of 
his  ne.xt  enterprise  to  give  him  a  name  as  a  finan- 
cial leader  throughout  the  country.  We  refer  to 
his  splendid  work  in  the  creation  of  the  Chicago 
Stock  Exchange,  which  has  been  so  great  a  source 
of  convenience  and  profit  to  the  commercial  and 
financial  institutions  of  Chicago,  and  has  won  a 
more  than  national  repute.  Chicago  had  long 
needed  just  such  a  commercial  medium,  and  now 
that  it  has  proven  so  signal  a  success,  must  give  a 
large  share  of  the  credit  to  Mr.  Henrotin,  to 
whom  was  due  its  original  conception  and  subse- 
quent realization.  He  was  elected  its  first  presi- 
dent in  1880,  and  his  own  successor  in  1881.  In 
1886  he  was  again  made  president,  and  in  1889 
and  1890  was  elected  a  third  and  a  fourth  time. 
Mr.  Henrotin  is  also  a  member  of  the  New  York 
Stock  Exchange. 

Essentially  a  public-spirited  man,  he  has  been 
prominent  in  many  public  enterprises,  and  has 
probably  done  as  much  as  any  one  man  to  make 
Chicago  a  financial  center,  and  an  attractive  city. 
One  of  the  numerous  ventures  in  which  he  was 
foremost  was  the  building  of  the  Chicago  Opera 
House,  of  whose  company  he  has  been  vice-presi- 
dent since  its  origin.  The  Panorama  of  the  Bat- 
tle of  Gettysburg  was  also  secured  to  the  city 
through  his  influence  and  sold  by  him  to  a  syndi- 
cate of  Chicago  capitalists.  Of  late  years  he  has 
been  largely  interested  in  Chicago  Horse  and 
Cable  Railway  matters  and  is  a  director  in  the 
North  Chicago  Street  Railway  Company. 

Within  the  last  few  years,  Mr.  Henrotin  has  de- 
voted much  time  to  managing  English  syndicate 
business  in  the  West.  He  was  the  American 
broker  in  the  successful  placing  of  the  .securities 
of  the  Chicago  Brewing  and  Malting  Co.,  and 
the  Junction  Railways  and  Union  Stock  Yards 
and    the    Milwaukee    and    Chicago   Breweries  — 


securities  amounting  in  the  aggregate  to  some 
$38,000,000.  In  the  organization  of  the  Lon- 
don and  Chicago  Contract  Corporation,  he  took 
the  leading  part,  being  the  official  broker  of  this 
corporation,  as  well  as  of  the  City  of  London 
Contract  Co.,  of  England. 

In  1876  Mr.  Henrotin  was  appointed  consul  to 
Belgium  to  succeed  his  father,  and,  with  the  sanc- 
tion of  the  Belgian  government,  was  also  appoint- 
ed consul  for  the  Ottoman  Empire,  both  of  which 
positions  he  still  retains.  He  has  distinguished 
'himself  by  his  very  fine  and  e.xhaustive  reportson 
the  export  and  import  trade  of  Belgium,  and  in 
1889,  in  recognition  of  valuable  consular  services, 
he  was  knighted  by  the  King  of  Belgium,  with 
the  decoration  of  "  Chevalier  of  the  Order  of 
Leopold." 

In  politics  Mr.  Henrotin  is  a  Democrat,  not  at 
all  inclined  to  partisanship,  but  a  very  liberal- 
minded  and  unbiased  thinker.  He  is  socially 
active  as  a  member  of  the  Chicago,  Union  and 
Washington  Park  Clubs,  of  the  Germania  Manner- 
chor,  and  the  Nineteenth  Century  Club. 

As  has  already  been  suggested,  Mr.  Henrotin's 
education  was  of  a  very  superior  character,  and 
the  increasing  cares  of  business  have  not  pre- 
vented the  daily  additions  and  expansions  which 
alone  produce  the  man  of  culture.  Singular  it  is 
that  in  so  practical  a  life  the  art  of  painting 
should  receive  much  attention.  Mr.  Henrotin  is 
a  man  of  artistic  sympathies  and  discrimination, 
and  is  himself  possessor  of  .some  choice  paintings. 

Mentally  strong,  bright,  and  active,  he  is  ex- 
ceedingly well  liked  in  the  commercial  world, 
where  his  knowledge  of  the  minute  details  and 
ramifications,  as  well  as  of  the  general  interests  of 
a  business,  has  given  him  a  high  standing  as  a 
financier.  Mr.  Henrotin  has  given  much  atten- 
tion to  the  "Silver  Question,''  and  has  written 
several  important  and  valuable  articles  on  the 
subject,  that  have  gained  a  wide  circulation. 

In  social  circles  his  polished  manner  and  genial 
temperament  are  highly  appreciated.  He  is  an  ex- 
ample of  a  class  which  is  America's  peculiar  pride, 
— the  energetic  man  of  business,  who  is  yet  at 
home  in  all  the  varied  phases  and  departments  of 
society,  literature  and  art.  In  his  domestic  life 
Mr.  Henrotin  has  been  especially  felicitous.  Mrs. 
Henrotin,  who  is  the  daughter  of  Mr.  E.  Byam 
Martin,    a    descendant    of  the   English   family  of 


148 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Byam  Martins,  and  a  resident  of  Maine,  is  a  lad)- 
of  unusual  talent  and  attractiveness.  Highly  ed- 
ucated, possessed  of  unusual  literary  tastes  and 
habits,  she  is  conversant  with  both  the  French 
and  German  languages,  from  the  latter  of  which 
she  has  made  several  important  and  valuable 
translations.  She  is  the  president  of  the  Deco- 
rative Art  Society,  of  Chicago.  She  was  treas- 
urer of  the  Society  for  five  years.  Through  her 
exertions  the  Society  took  up  the  work  of  indus- 
trial education  among  the  teachers,  and  she  has 
done  much  in  many  ways  for  the  advancement  of 
her  sex.  Mrs.  Henrotin  has  been  a  very  promin- 
ent member  of  the  Woman's  Club,  Chicago,  and 
of  the  Fortnightly  and  the  Nineteenth  Century 
Clubs,  and  is  probably  the  finest  extemporaneous 


woman  speaker  in  Chicago.  She  has  given  the 
work  of  the  Kitchen  Garden  Association  her  per- 
sonal attention  ever  since  its  organization.  With 
Mrs.  Potter  Palmer,  Mrs.  Henrotin  went  to  Wash- 
ington, D.  C,  to  speak  before  the  National  Coun- 
cil of  Women,  to  present  the  claims  of  the 
Woman's  Board  of  the  Columbian  Exposition  for 
recognition.  She  is  chairman  of  the  woman's 
branch  of  the  World's  Congress  Auxiliary-  and 
one  of  the  leading  spirits  in  the  work,  also  chair- 
man of  the  general  committee,  which  has  general 
supervision  of  all  branches  of  the  work.  Many 
\aluable  essays  from  her  pen  have  gained  a  wide 
circulation. 

Mr.  and   Mrs.  Henrotin  are  blessed  with  three 
sons,  Edward,  Charles  and  N orris. 


HON.  JONAS   HUTCHINSON, 


CHICAGO,  ILL. 


JONAS  HUTCHINSON  comes  from  New 
England  stock,  and  was  born  at  Milford, 
New  Hampshire,  January  lo,  1840.  His  father, 
Abel  Hutchinson,  was  a  farmer,  and  died  when 
Jonas  was  only  six  years  old.  Having  attended 
the  public  school  for  some  time,  Jonas  was  sent 
to  the  Academy  at  Mt.  Vernon,  of  which  Mr. 
Augustus  Berry  was  principal.  He  made  such 
progre.ss,  and  showed  so  good  a  disposition  for 
study,  that  he  was  sent  to  Dartmouth  College, 
from  which  he  was  graduated  in  1863.  The 
president  of  the  college,  Nathan  Lord,  took  a 
great  interest  in  him,  and  had  such  confidence  in 
his  ability  and  acquirements  that  he  recom- 
mended him  as  a  teacher  for  the  high  school  at 
Columbus,  Ohio.  His  confidence  was  not  mis- 
placed, for  at  the  end  of  the  first  year,  Mr. 
Hutchinson  was  appointed  principal,  the  onerous 
and  responsible  duties  of  which  position  he  dis- 
charged with  ability  and  success  for  two  years. 
His  first  business  venture  was  as  Western  Agent 
of  the  school  book  publishing  firm  of  Messrs. 
D.  Appleton  &  Co.,  with  headquarters  in  Chicago, 
and  he  proved  himself  as  competent  in  the 
counting  house  as  he  had  been  in  the  school. 
In  1867,  he  began  the  study  of  law  with  Messrs. 
Sweetzer  and  Gardner,  of  Boston,  and  the  year 
following    entered    the  office  of    Mr.   Bainbridge 


Wadleigh,  an  able  and  prominent  lawyer  of 
Milford,  who  was  afterwards  United  States  Sen- 
ator for  New  Hampshire.  During  these  years 
of  study,  Mr.  Hutchinson  was  a  diligent  student, 
and  in  March,  1869,  was  admitted  to  the  practice 
of  law.  He  then  removed  to  Chicago,  where  he 
has  since  followed  the  practice  of  his  profession. 
During  his  long  residence  in  this  city  he  has  been 
engaged  in  many  of  the  most  important  cases 
that  have  come  before  the  Cook  county  bench. 
One  of  the  most  notable  was  the  case  of  Eliza- 
beth A.  Hill,  who  was  found  dead  in  her  home 
in  January,  1881.  As  she  died  intestate  and  her 
heirs  were  not  known,  the  difficulty  of  settling  up 
the  estate  was  great,  but  it  was  increased  by  an 
attempt  to  collect  on  notes  purporting  to  be 
signed  by  Mrs.  Hill,  but  which  were  shown  by 
Mr.  Hutchinson  to  be  forgeries.  He  received 
great  credit  for  his  successful  termination  of  the 
case  after  years  of  labor. 

In  1889,  Mr.  Hutchinson  was  appointed  Corpo- 
ration Council  by  the  Hon.  DeWitt  C.  Cregier, 
Mayor,  and  the  appointment  was  confirmed  by 
the  city  council.  This  office  he  held  for  two 
years,  giving  the  greatest  satisfaction  by  his 
ability,  honesty  and  courtesy.  He  is  now,  and 
has  been  for  several  years,  chairman  of  the  Dem- 
ocratic   County     Central     Committee    of    Cook 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOSARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


149 


county.  His  kindly  disposition,  thorough  knowl- 
edge of  parliamentary  law  and  long  experience  in 
managing  men,  fit  him  for  the  discharge  of  the 
duties  of  this  difficult  position,  which  he  fills  with 
credit  to  himself  and  benefit  to  his  party. 

On  November  3,  1891,  Mr.  Hutchinson  was 
elected  to  the  Superior  Court  bench,  vice  IMr. 
John  P.  Altgeld,  resigned.  He  had  previously 
declined  the  offer  of  various  nominations,  and 
acceded  to  the  request  on  this  occasion  only  in 
the  interests  of  his  party.  His  selection  by  the 
Democrats  was  endorsed  by  the  Republicans,  and 
his  election  may  be  said  to  have  been  substan- 
tially unanimous,  as  there  was  only  a  small  por- 
tion of  the  labor  vote  which  he  did  not  receive. 
He  was  elected  by  a  majority  of  over  one  hun- 
dred thousand  votes,  a  very  high  compliment, 
which  shows  the  esteem  in  which  he  is  held  by 
the  people  of  all  classes. 

Mr.  Hutchinson  was  married  on  November  14, 
1876,  to  Miss  Lettie  Brown,  of  Springfield,  Illi- 
nois. Her  maternal  great-grandfather  was  Col. 
William  A.  Dudley,  of  Lexington,  Kentucky, 
who  distinguished  himself  \yy  valorous  deeds  in 
the  Mohawk  war.  in  which  he  lost  his  life.  To 
his  and  his  comrades'  memor)',  deservedly  cher- 
ished by  all  lovers  of  braverj-,  the  people  of  Ken- 
tucky have  erected  a  handsome  monument  upon 
the  most  commandincr  site  in  the  beautiful  ceme- 


tery at  Frankfort.  Col.  Dudley's  regimentals  are 
given  a  conspicuous  place  in  the  Smithsonian 
Institute  at  Washington.  His  son,  Dr.  Jeptha 
Dudley,  acquired  a  niche  in  the  temple  of  fame 
as  the  most  prominent  physician  of  his  day,  in 
the  South.  The  Dudleys  always  stood  among 
the  first  of  Kentucky's  great  men.  Mrs.  Hutch- 
inson's father  was  a  brother  of  the  celebrated 
Presbyterian  divine,  John  H.  Brown,  D.  D.,  well 
known  on  account  of  the  part  he  took  in  the 
noted  theological  controversy  between  Alexan- 
der Campbell  and  Nathan  L.  Rice.  This  union 
has  been  blessed  with  two  children,  Helen  and 
Jonas,  Jr.,  whose  bright  smiles  and  innocent  mirth 
tend,  if  possible,  to  make  a  happy  home  happier. 

As  a  public  speaker,  Mr.  Hutchinson  attempts 
no  flights  of  oratory.  Simple  and  accurate  in 
his  statement  of  facts,  clear  in  his  deductions  and 
convincing  in  his  arguments,  he  disdains  the  art 
of  the  sophist,  and  prefers  to  quote  Blackstone 
rather  than  Shakspcare. 

Quiet,  reserved,  unostentatious,  he  hoards  his 
strength  and  only  uses  his  full  power  when  cir- 
cumstances demand  the  calling  out  of  his 
reserved  force.  He  is  an  able  and  experienced 
adviser,  a  sincere  friend  and  an  honor  to  his  pro- 
fession. Careful  and  conscientious  in  the  dis- 
charge of  every  duty,  he  is  a  man  possessed  of  a 
high  degree  of  honor  and  integrity. 


JOHN   A.  COLBY, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


JOHN  A.  COLBY  was  born  in  Fryeburg, 
Maine,  April  i,  1833.  His  parents  were 
James  and  Marj-  (Sterling)  Colby.  His  father 
was  born  in  1799,  and  died  in  1874,  in  the  same 
house  in  which  his  own  and  his  father's  families 
had  been  raised.  His  great-grandfather,  with  two 
brothers,  came  to  America  from  the  North  of  Ire- 
land. His  mother's  ancestrj'  came  from  Scotland, 
and  included  Major-General  John  Stark,  of  New 
Hampshire,  whose  heroism  is  immortalized  in 
his  famous  address  to  his  soldiers  on  the  morning 
of  the  battle  of  Bennington,  concluding  with  the 
stirring  words :  "  Boys,  we  will  whip  those  red 
coats,  or  Mollie  Stark  is  a  widow."  Monuments 
to  his  bravery  were  recently  erected  by  the  public. 


at  Manchester,  New  Hampshire,  and  at  Benning- 
ton, Vermont.  John  attended  the  public  schools 
and  academy  in  Fryeburg.  The  latter  has  the 
honor  of  once  having  Daniel  Webster  as  principal. 
When  not  in  school,  his  time,  in  summer,  was 
devoted  to  his  father's  farm,  in  winter,  to  the  labor 
of  the  logging  swamps.  Spare  time  was  given  to 
the  use  of  carpenter's  tools  and  working  in  wood, 
which  naturally  developed  a  love  for  cabinet 
work,  the  final  outcome  of  which  was  his  great 
furniture  establishment.  At  the  age  of  nineteen 
he  left  his  native  town  and  State,  and  went  to 
Lowell,  Massachusetts.  After  spending  a  few 
months  with  the  Lawrence  corporation,  he  re- 
moved to  Boston,  and  joined  his  brother,  Albert, 


'50 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIO.XARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


in  the  book  business,  at  150  Washington  street. 
He  severed  that  connection  in  1857,  and,  remov- 
ing to  Chicago,  started  in  the  book  business  on 
his  own  account  at  118  Randolph  street,  where 
he  continued  until  1861.  During  the  following 
six  years  he  was  engaged  on  the  Board  of  Trade, 
and  in  oil  and  mining  operations.  In  1867, 
his  early  love  for  cabinet  work  having  revived,  he 
started  in  the  furniture  business,  laying  the 
foundations  of  his  subsequent  success.  The 
growth  of  his  trade  has  necessitated  a  large  man- 
ufactory for  ordered  work  of  interior  decorations 
and  drapery.  In  1885,  his  sons,  Henry  C.  and 
Edward  A.,  were  admitted  to  a  partnership  with 
him  under  the  firm  name  of  J.  A.  Colby  and  Sons. 
Their  well-known  store  on  State  street  being  too 
contracted  for  their  growing  business,  they  re- 
moved, in  January,  1891,  to  the  spacious  and  ele- 
gant building  at  Nos.  148,  150,  152  and  154 
Wabash  avenue.     Here  they   have  doubled  the 


capacity  of  their  manufacturing  plant,  and  have 
the  facilities  to  store,  handle,  and  exhibit  to  the 
public  the  immense,  rare,  and  costly  styles  of 
furniture  and  artistic  work,  which  are  the  admira- 
tion of  throngs  of  visitors.  Nine  floors  as 
salesrooms  are  made  very  attractive  in  the  ar- 
rangement of  stock  and  decorations.  Prompt  and 
courteous  attention  makes  patrons  feel  at  home, 
and  has  added  to  the  popularity  which  has  made 
this  a  leading  establishment  of  Chicago. 

Mr.  Colby  was  married,  April  29,  1857,  ^o  Miss 
Abigail  Ford  Cady,  of  Scotch  descent,  at  West 
Randolph,  Vermont.  Of  four  children,  two  sons — 
members  of  the  firm — survive.  Mrs.  Colby  has 
been  a  true  helpmeet.  She  is  a  lady  of  decided 
literary  tastes,  appreciating  the  best  literature  and 
art.  She  is  identified  with  the  All  Souls'  Uni- 
tarian church,  the  Chicago  Woman's  Club,  and 
several  other  literary,  sociable  and  charitable  in- 
stitutions. 


GILBERT  WORDSWORTH    BARNARD, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


THERE  is,  perhaps,  no  better  or  more  favor- 
ably known  citizen  in  Chicago  than  Gilbert 
W.  Barnard.  His  name  is  a  familiar  one  both  at 
home  and  abroad.  He  was  born  on  the  1st  day 
of  June,  1834,  in  Palmyra,  Wayne  county.  New 
York,  and  is  the  son  of  George  Washington  and 
Sabrina  (Deming)  Barnard. 

His  father  died  while  he  was  yei  unborn,  and 
while  he  was  yet  in  his  infancy  the  bereft  widow 
located  in  Michigan  where  he  received  his  early 
education.  At  the  age  of  fifteen,  we  find  him 
coming  to  Chicago,  which  was  destined  to  become 
the  field  of  his  future  success.  He  began  work 
for  John  C.  Williams,  in  his  general  store,  and 
subsequently  was  engaged  in  the  book  and  sta- 
tionery business,  and  later,  conducted  a  general 
commercial  business.  He  was  an  active  member 
of  the  volunteer  fire  department,  from  1849  to 
1858,  and  in  that  capacity  rendered  valuable 
services.  His  business  career  in  the  city  of  Chi- 
cago has  been  marked  by  honorable  dealings, 
uprightness,  and  integrity. 

He  was  made  a  Mason  in  October,  1864,  and 
has  ever  since  been  an  active   participant  in  all 


matters  of  interest  pertaining  to  the  welfare  of 
that  organization  ;  on  December  7th,  of  the  same 
year,  he  was  made  a  Master  Mason  in  Garden 
City  Lodge,  No.  141,  A.  F.  and  A.  M. 

He  was  appointed  junior  steward  in  the  same 
lodge  the  night  after  he  was  raised  to  the  sublime 
ilegree  of  Master  Mason,  and  has  remained  in 
office  ever  since.  He  was  Master  of  this  lodge 
during  the  years  1866-67,  and  District  Deputy 
Grand  Master  for  several  years.  He  was  exalted 
to  the  Royal  Arch  degree,  October  2d,  1866,  in 
Corinthian  Chapter,  No.  69 ;  took  the  Council 
degree  in  Siloam  Council,  No.  53,  on  March  25, 
1871  ;  and  the  Knight  Templar  degree,  on  May 
13,  1870,  in  St.  Bernard  Commandery,  No.  35. 
He  received  the  32d  degree  on  April  25,  1868, 
and  the  33d  degree  on  November  13,  1873.  He 
was  a  member  of  the  first  Board  of  Grand  Ex- 
aminers of  the  Grand  Lodge,  for  five  years ; 
Grand  Lecturer  of  the  Grand  Lodge,  for  eight 
years ;  and  has  been  Secretary  or  Recorder  of 
nearly  all  side  issues  that  were  termed  Masonic, 
and  has  received  over  three  hundred  degrees  that 
are  known  to  Masonry. 


^'^^^i£/??'^ccA^^,^r^ 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  A.XD  PORTRAIT  CALLER Y. 


153 


He  is  Past  Hitjh  Priest  of  Corinthian  Chapter, 
No.  69,  R.  A.  M.,  and  Past  Eminent  Commander 
of  St.  Bernard  Commandery,  No.  35,  Knights 
Templar ;  Past  Commander-in-Chief  of  Oriental 
Consistory ;  Grand  Secretary  of  the  Grand  Chap- 
ter ;  Grand  Recorder  of  the  Grand  Council  and 
Grand  Commander}-,  and  Grand  Secretary  of  the 
Council  of  Deliberation,  S.  P.  R.  S.,  and  various 
other  bodies  of  Illinois. 

He  was,  some  fifteen  years  ago,  elected  Secre- 
tary of  the  Capitular,  Cryptic  and  Chivalric  grand 
bodies  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  where  his  signal 
ability,  and  untiring  efforts  in  the  performance  of 
his  official  and  fraternal  duties  have  won  him  a 
host  of  friends  and  admirers. 

His  connection  as  secretary  with  the  Illinois 
Masonic  Orphans'  Home,  and  his  untiring  zeal 
and  labors  in  this  connection,  have  added  greatly 
to  the  upbuilding  of  that  worthy  institution. 


Mr.  Barnard's  office,  in  Chicago,  is  filled  with 
a  collection  of  everything  of  usefulness  to  the 
lovers  and  students  of  the  laws  and  customs  of 
the  fraternity,  and  is  a  general  center  of  Masonic 
affairs,  as  well  as  the  continual  resort  for  visitors 
from  all  parts  of  the  Masonic  world. 

His  long  connection  with  the  Ancient  Accepted 
Scottish  Rite,  of  which  he  is  a  33d  degree  active 
member,  gives  him  a  correspondence  with  all 
branches  of  the  order,  wherever  they  exist,  and 
makes  him  so  well  known.  His  life  has  been 
that  of  an  upright  man  and  Mason,  and  he  has 
devoted  himself  to  the  interests  of  the  fraternity, 
administering  to  the  wants  of  his  brothers,  and 
relieving  their  widows  and  orphans  in  distress. 

He  is  affable  and  courteous  in  manner,  and 
each  new  acquaintance  he  makes  is  another  friend 
added  to  the  long  list  of  those  who  delight  to 
know  him. 


LEVI    BARNES   DOUD, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


TO  a  student  of  human  nature,  there  is  noth- 
ing more  interesting  than  to  examine  into 
the  life  of  a  self-made  man,  and  analyze  those 
principles  that  have  caused  him  to  become  a  man 
of  eminence  in  the  community,  and  an  object  of 
respect  to  all  that  know  him. 

Levi  Barnes  Doud  is  prominent  among  the  self- 
made  men  of  Chicago.  He  was  born  in  Mahon- 
ing county,  Ohio,  on  April  7,  1840.  His  parents, 
James  and  Mary  (Barnes)  Doud,  were  reared  in 
Canfield,  Ohio,  but  their  parents  were  descended 
from  old  colonial  settlers  of  Connecticut  and  Vir- 
ginia. After  finishing  his  education  at  the  Salem 
(Ohio)  Academy,  Levi  returned  to  his  father's 
farm,  and  remained  there  until  his  nineteenth  or 
twentieth  year,  when  he  began  life  for  himself  as 
a  cattle  dealer,  in  Allegheny  City,  Pennsylvania. 
He  had  good  success  in  this  business  venture,  but 
being  of  an  ambitious  nature  and  foreseeing  a 
great  future  for  the  live-stock  trade  at  Chicago, 
he  began  operations  there  in  1864,  and  in  the 
following  year  removed  thither  and  took  up  his 
abode.  He  has  been  largely  connected  with  the 
cattle  interests  of  Chicago  for  over  a  quarter  of  a 
century,  and   at    the  present  time  (1892)  is  the 


senior  member  of  the  live-stock  commission  firm 
of  Doud  and  Keefer.  He  has  also  been  identi- 
fied with  the  packing  business — but  has  disposed 
of  all  his  packing  interests  in  Chicago — but  .still 
retains  an  interest  in  the  packing  house  of  L.  B. 
Doud  and  Company,  located  at  Atlantic,  Iowa. 
For  many  years  Mr.  Doud  has  been  interested  in 
banking  institutions.  He  was  a  stockholder  in 
the  old  Stockyards  Bank,  and  in  January,  1889, 
was  elected  a  director  in  the  National  Live  Stock 
Bank,  and  six  months  later  (in  July)  was  chosen 
its  president.     This  position  he  now  holds. 

In  December,  1875,  he  was  married  to  Eliz- 
abeth R.  Dunham,  by  whom  he  has  one  child, 
Marion.  Mrs.  Doud  is  a  native  of  Newark,  Ohio; 
she  was  educated  in  Chicago,  and  at  the  time  of 
her  marriage  was  a  resident  of  Iowa. 

Our  subject  is  a  native  of  Ohio,  a  State  that  has 
been  aptly  spoken  of  by  an  eminent  historian  as 
"The  lap  of  Patriotism  and  the  mother  of  Repub- 
licanism." He  has  followed  in  the  footsteps  of  his 
father,  one  of  the  leaders  of  the  anti-slavery  move- 
ment in  Ohio,  and  is  a  staunch  Republican — a  firm 
believer  in  the  principles  of  Republicanism  as  ad- 
vocated by  Lincoln,  Grant,  Garfield  and  Blaine. 


154 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Mr.  Doud  is  a  man  of  domestic  tastas,  and 
when  not  employed  in  his  business,  in  which  he 
takes  a  natural  and  just  pride,  he  finds  in  no 
place  such  solid  enjoyment  as  in  his  own  beauti- 
ful home,  at  No.  3257  Michigan  avenue.  During 
the  heated  season  of  each  year,  he  seeks  re- 
cuperation and  rest  at  the  sea-shore,  with  his 
family. 


Such  is  a  brief  outline  of  his  biograph\- :  Pre- 
eminently a  self-made  man,  he  has  attained  to  a 
position  among  Chicago's  representative  men  of 
which  he  may  justly  be  proud.  He  started  in 
life  with  no  capital  save  health,  a  persistent  pur- 
pose and  an  honorable  ambition,  and,  by  perse- 
vering effort,  uprightness  and  fidelity,  has  risen, 
step  by  step,  to  his  present  commanding  position. 


CHARLES  T.  YERKES, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


CHARLES  TYSON  YERKES,  President  of 
the  North  Chicago  Street  Railroad  Company 
and  the  West  Chicago  Street  Railroad  Company, 
and  Director  of  the  World's  Fair,  was  born  in 
Philadelphia,  June  25th,  1837.  Up  to  the  time  of 
the  settlement  of  his  father's  estate  he  added 
"junior"  to  his  name,  as  the  two  were  the  same. 

His  mother  was  Elizabeth  Link  Broom,  who 
came  from  an  old  Philadelphia  family,  descended 
from  the  Dutch.  The  name  "Yerkes"  is  Welsh, 
the  first  settlers  coming  to  this  country  from 
England  a  few  years  before  the  Penn  colony  of 
Quakers  arrived.  The  subject  of  this  biography 
is  descended  from  these  people,  who  assimilated 
with  the  followers  of  William  Penn.  The  farthest 
the  lineage  can  be  traced  being  to  their  arrival  in 
Philadelphia  with  that  good  man  on  board  the 
ship  "Welcome,"  in  1682. 

Mr.  Yerkes'  parents  were  Quakers,  and  he  was 
brought  up  in  that  faith  ;  but  like  many  other 
members  of  that  sect,  the  straight  coat,  broad 
brimmed  hat  and  quiet  manners  were  not 
adopted  by  the  rising  generation,  and  the  mem- 
bership in  his  family  will,  in  all  probability,  go 
out  with  him.  He  received  his  education  at  the 
Quaker  school  in  Philadelphia,  and  afterwards 
graduated  at  the  Central  High  School  in  that 
city. 

In  early  life  he  was  an  active  young  man, 
always  desiring  to  be  at  the  head  of  all  schemes, 
whether  it  was  mischief  at  school  or  a  money 
making  project.  An  anecdote  of  the  boy  has 
found  its  way  into  print,  showing  his  natural 
thrift.  When  about  twelve  years  old,  he  was 
very  fond  of  attending  the  auction  sales  which 
were  held  on   Saturdays,  at  an  auction  store,  in 


the  vicinity  of  his  home.  One  day,  arriving 
early,  he  discovered  a  number  of  boxes  of  soap 
which  bore  the  same  brand  that  was  being  used 
by  his  family,  which  he  had  often  been  sent  to 
purchase  at  the  corner  grocery.  Twelve  cents 
per  pound  was  the  retail  price  he  had  always  paid. 
An  idea  struck  him  and  a  plan  was  immediately 
formed.     He    went    at    once    to    the    grocer  and 

asked    what   soap    was    worth    by  the    box. 

The  latter  thinking  the  boy  wished  to  purchase, 
told  him,  eleven  cents  per  pound.  The  boy  de- 
murred, saying  it  was  too  much.  The  grocer 
replied  that  very  little  profit  was  made  on  soap, 
and  facetiously  remarked  he  would  pay  nine  cents 
per  pound  for  any  quantity.  Young  Yerkes 
seemed  hardly  satisfied  and  left  the  store,  going 
immediately  to  the  auction.  Soon  the  lot  of 
soap  was  reached  and  the  auctioneer  announced 
the  soap  would  be  sold,  a  box  at  a  time.  "  What 
is  bid  per  pound  for  the  soap?"  "Four  cents," 
said  one  bidder;  "  Four  and  one-half  cents,"  and 
so  on  up  to  five  and  one-half  cents.  While  the 
auctioneer  was  clamoring  for  another  bid,  "  Six 
cents,"  came  from  a  shrill  but  sturdy  voice,  and 
every  one  looked  to  see  the  new  bidder.  The 
box  of  soap  was  knocked  down  to  young  Yerkes 
at  six  cents  per  pound.  "What  is  the  name?" 
said  the  auctioneer  as  he  leaned  forward. 
"Charles  T.  Yerkes,  Jr.,"  shouted  the  boy,  and 
the  man  repeated,  "  Put  it  down  to  Charles  T. 
Yerkes,  Jr.,"  and  every  one  but  the  boy  laughed. 
Another  box  was  put  up  and  the  youngster  bid 
again  six  cents.  No  one  else  bid.  They  were  all 
amused  to  watch  the  earnest  boy.  Again  the 
auctioneer  asked  the  name  and  received  the 
same    reply.      It   was  most  amusing   to   the  by- 


'/y-c^c^y^ 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  CAILERY. 


157 


slanders.  Box  after  box  was  put  up  until  fifteen 
boxes  had  been  sold.  The  auctioneer  then  said 
there  were  ten  more  boxes  and  he  would  sell 
them  in  one  lot.  The  boy  bid  five  and  one- 
half  cents.  No  one  else  would  bid-  There  was 
too  much  fun  in  seeing  the  little  fellow  get  the 
soap,  so  it  was  put  down  to  him.  Then  there 
was  a  bee  line  made  by  young  Yerkes  to  the 
grocer.     "What  did   you    say   was   the   price  of 

soap  ?  "   said  he.     "  I  told  you  I  would  sell 

by  the  box  at  eleven  cents,  which  is  low  for  it, 
or  I  would  give  nine  cents  for  a  big  lot  of  it." 
"  Well,"  said  the  boy,  "  I  have  sold  you  twenty- 
five  boxes  at  nine  cents  a  pound,  and  I  will  run 
over  to  Frank's  auction  store  and  tell  them  it 
is  to  go  to  you."  Of  course,  mutual  explanations 
followed.  The  grocer  took  the  soap,  paid  the 
amount  due  and  then  gave  the  boy  the  balance. 
He  has  said  the  making  of  this  money  so  startled 
him  that  instead  of  being  filled  with  the  idea  that 
money  was  easy  to  make,  his  great  fear  was  that 
he  might  in  some  way  lose  it.  He,  therefore,  did 
not  repeat  the  venture. 

After  leaving  school,  he  went  as  a  clerk  into 
the  flour  and  grain  commission  and  forwarding 
house  of  James  P.  Perot  and  Bro.  In  those  days 
it  was  a  great  privilege  to  be  permitted  to  enter 
a  first-class  hous;e  to  learn  the  business,  and  he, 
consequently,  had  no  salary.  However,  on  ac- 
count of  his  close  attention,  he  was  presented 
with  fifty  dollars  at  the  end  of  the  year.  In 
.1859.  although  no  more  than  a  boy,  he  started  a 
money  and  stock  broker's  office  on  Third  .street 
in  Philadelphia,  and  in  three  years  was  so  pros- 
perous as  to  be  able  to  purchase  the  banking 
house  at  No.  20  South  Third  street,  and  estab- 
lished himself  as  a  banker.  The  negotiation  of 
first-class  bonds  was  his  specialty.  It  was  during 
the  war,  and  Government,  State  and  City  bonds 
were  heavily  dealt  in.  The  high  premium  for 
gold  made  City  bonds  sell  low,  owing  to  the  fact 
that  the  interest  was  payable  in  currency.  How- 
ever, he  conceived  a  scheme  to  raise  the  price 
from  eighty-five  cents  to  par,  which  was  carried 
into  effect  with  the  anticipated  result,  and  the 
city  was  able  to  raise  money  to  pay  bounties  to 
the  soldiers  and  for  park  purchases  which  were 
then  being  made.  It  should  be  understood  that, 
in  accordance  with  their  charter,  no  City  bonds 
could  be  sold   by  the  city  at   less  than  par.  conse- 


quently, when  the  price  was  below  that  figure,  the 
city  could  not  pa\-  the  bounties  or  make  improve- 
ments. This  close  alliance  with  the  city,  however, 
proved  his  "Waterloo."  At  the  time  of  the  Chi- 
cago fire,  he  was  very  prominent  in  Third  street. 
He  had  made  money  rapidly,  and,  as  he  says,  was 
feeling  that  he  might  begin  to  take  life  more 
easily.  He  never  took  a  holiday,  but  was  always 
attending  to  business.  The  panic  occasioned  by 
the  fire  caught  him  carrying  a  large  load  of  secu- 
rities, and  he  was  in  debt  to  the  city  for  bonds 
sold  for  it,  it  being  the  custom  to  make  the  pay- 
ments at  the  end  of  every  month.  The  city  au- 
thorities demanded  settlement  at  once,  and  know- 
ing to  pay  it  in  full  would  be  unfair  to  the  balance 
of  his  creditors,  he  suspended  and  made  an  assign- 
ment. The  fact  that  the  law  did  not  provide  for 
his  having  possession  of  the  city's  money  was 
tortured  into  a  criminal  offense,  and  as  he  refused 
to  give  the  city  preference  over  his  other  credit- 
ors, severe  measures  were  resorted  to  to  compel 
him  to  do  so.  He  was  firm,  however,  and  in- 
sisted that,  as  he  had  given  up  everything  he 
possessed,  it  should  be  divided  to  every  one  alike. 
He  declared  this  was  the  most  trying  period  of 
his  life,  and  while  he  and  his  friends  feel  proud  of 
his  action,  the  severe  strain  he  was  obliged  to 
pass  through  was  such  that  few  men  could  stand. 
While  it  made  his  friends  stronger,  it  gave  his 
enemies,  for  all  time,  an  opportunity  to  cast  re- 
flections upon  him,  and  as  he  has  said,  when  any 
one  wished  to  throw  mud  at  him  they  could 
easily  manufacture  the  material  by  giving  a  one- 
sided view  of  his  old  trouble. 

At  the  time  of  his  failure  he  lost  the  large  in- 
terest which  he  held  in  the  Seventeenth  and 
Nineteenth  Street  Railway  Company,  which  had 
been  in  his  possession  since  1861,  and  which  was 
sold  to  help  pay  his  debts.  In  1873,  at  the  time 
of  the  Jay  Cook  failure,  he  commenced  the  recu- 
peration of  his  fortune.  His  business  was  rapidly 
growing  at  that  period,  and  appreciating,  at  once, 
that  Mr.  Cook's  suspension  meant  a  very  serious 
decline  in  everything,  sold  stocks  heavily  before 
purchasing.  Immense  and  quick  profits  were  the 
result,  and  he  soon  found  him.self  well  established 
again.  In  1875,  'ic  purchased  an  interest  in  the 
Continental  Passenger  Railway  of  Philadelphia, 
and  saw  the  value  of  the  stock  rise  from  fifteen 
dollars  per  share  to  over  one  hundred  dollars.     In 


158 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


1880,  he  made  his  first  visit  to  Chicago.  At  that 
time,  gold  was  coming  from  Europe  in  almost 
every  steamer  which  arrived  at  New  York  from 
that  point,  still  money  was  not  easy  there.  In- 
quiry developed  the  fact  that  it  was  going  west, 
principally  to  Chicago.  The  idea  forced  itself 
upon  his  mind  that  a  new  money  center  was  be- 
ing formed  and  from  natural  causes,  and  he  re- 
solved to  investigate.  The  result  was  that  he 
concluded  to  extend  his  investigations  still  fur- 
ther, and,  consequently,  after  returning  to  Phila- 
delphia, he  started  to  go  through  the  Northwest 
and  see  for  himself.  After  visiting  St.  Paul, 
Minneapolis  and  Duluth,  he  pushed  on  over  the 
Northern  Pacific  Railroad,  but  was  stopped  by  a 
severe  snow  storm  at  Fargo.  It  was  here,  sitting 
around  the  stove  at  the  hotel,  he  listened  to  the 
tales  of  the  boomer  who  had  arranged  to  make  a 
grand  Dakota  demonstration  in  the  spring.  The 
crops  had  been  good  and  prices  high.  No  one 
who  has  not  had  experience  can  fully  appreciate 
the  wondrous  tales  told  under  these  circum- 
stances. It  was  not  long  before  he  joined  a  syn- 
dicate and  afterwards  bought  out  his  associates. 
When  the  spring  opened  he  built  business  blocks, 
dealt  heavily  in  acre  property,  and  organized  the 
first  Fair  held  in  North  Dakota.  It  is  said  the 
display  of  farm  machinery  was  the  best  ever 
made.  All  the  large  manufacturers  were  repre- 
sented. The  shafting  to  run  the  machinery  was 
about  a  quarter  of  a  mile  long.  Having  sold  out 
most  of  his  Dakota  interests  he  came  to  Chicago, 
in  the  autumn  of  1881.  and  opened  a  banking 
house  at  the  corner  of  La  Salle  and  Madison 
streets.  This  was  operated  in  conjunction  with 
his  house  in  Philadelphia,  which  was  being  man- 
aged by  his  partner.  From  the  time  of  his  ad- 
vent in  Chicago,  he  had  looked  with  longing  eyes 
on  the  street  railways — particularly  the  North 
side — but  it  was  not  until  1886  that  he  was  able 
to  enter  into  negotiations  for  it.  A  satisfactory 
arrangement  was  then  made  with  the  stockholders 
having  a  majority  of  the  stock,  and  after  associat- 
ing with  himself  some  Chicago  capitalists  and  a 
few  of  his  old  friends  in  Philadelphia,  he  took 
possession  of  the  North  Chicago  City  Railway 
Company.  The  company  was  completely  reor- 
ganized, and  after  many  difficulties  in  which  he 
was  obliged  to  work  single-handed  against  the 
most   remarkable  efforts  of  those  who  were  jeal- 


ous of  his  appearance  in  the  street  railroad  field, 
he  at  length  accomplished  the  reorganization  and 
change  of  motive  power  from  horse  to  cable,  the 
greatest  success  achieved  being  the  utilizing  of 
the  old  La  Salle  street  tunnel  (which  had  almost 
entirely  gone  into  disuse),  thereby  overcoming 
the  great  detriment  which  was  experienced  by 
the  people  of  the  North  side  on  account  of  the 
swing  bridges.  Two  years  later  he  closed  the 
negotiations  for  the  majority  of  the  Chicago 
West  Division  Railway  Company  stock,  and  that 
company  was  reorganized  in  the  same  manner  as 
the  North  side  road. 

In  all  his  business,  Mr.  Yerkes  acted  with  full 
authority  from  his  associates,  and  it  is  said  their 
confidence  in  his  experience  and  management 
was  such  that  they  refused  to  advise  with  him, 
but  left  him  to  act  entirely  as  his  judgment 
should  dictate.  The  results  show  the  wisdom 
of  their  course.  Notwithstanding  the  fact  that 
tempting  ofTers  are  constantly  made  to  him  to 
take  hold  of  other  street  railroad  properties,  he 
invariably  refuses.  He  is  of  the  firm  opinion 
that  success  can  only  be  accomplished  by  con- 
stant and  undivided  attention  to  the  properties 
he  has  taken  hold  of,  and  that  small  cities  are 
unprofitable  for  the  introduction  of  the  improved 
systems  of  street  railroad  management. 

Mr.  Yerkes  is  a  Republican,  although  not  an 
active  politician.  He  believes  in  a  protective 
tariff,  for  the  reason  that  while  all  articles  used 
in  his  business  would  be  cheapened  by  free  trade, 
yet  he  is  of  the  opinion  that  the  prosperity  of 
the  country  demands  that  labor  should  be  pro- 
tected by  such  duty  on  imported  goods  that  our 
home  manufacturers  can  compete  with  foreign 
makers. 

In  1881,  Mr.  Yerkes  married  Miss  Mary  Ade- 
laide Moore,  daughter  of  Thomas  Moore,  of  Phil- 
adelphia, who  had  been  for  a  number  of  years 
connected  with  the  firm  of  Powers  and  Wright- 
man,  manufacturing  chemists  in  that  city. 

To  his  regular  habits,  care,  and  abstemious 
life,  he  probably  owes  his  remarkably  well  pre- 
served physical  condition.  He  has  lived  in  the 
line  of  the  old  adage,  "  early  to  bed  and  early  to 
rise,"  and  has  for  it  a  ruddy,  robust  appear- 
ance, sustained  by  a  constitution  which  would 
indicate,  that  though  he  has  passed  the  half  cen- 
tur)-  mile-stone,  for  years  to  come  he  will  still  be 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXAKV  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


159 


in  the  prime  of  life.  And  what  precision  of  habit 
has  accomplished  in  the  way  of  physical  develop- 
ment, observation,  application  and  cultivation, 
have  brought  about  in  his  mental  character. 
That  he  is  a  quick  thinker,  a  keen  observer,  and 
the  possessor  of  a  bright  intellectuality,  is  told  at 
a  glance.  His  well  rounded  head  is  evidence  of 
the  evenness  and  fiiUness  of  his  mental  develop- 
ment ;  and  his  dark  piercing  eye  tells  of  his  pow- 
er to  perceive  and  the  deep  earnestness  which 
has  been  characteristic  of  his  life.  There  is  with 
it  all,  too,  a  firmness  that  is  often  mistaken  for 
rigidity;  but  to  this  seeming  cloud  there  is  a  sil- 
very lining  which  constantly  stands  out  in  bold 
relief  to  those  who  know  him  best.  As  the  world 
sees  him,  he  is  a  calm,  austere,  pushing  business 


man ;  but  as  he  is  seen  after  office  hours,  he  is 
the  most  genial  of  men,  and  presents  a  nature 
radiant  with  pleasantry.  He  has  very  little  taste, 
however,  for  society,  and  as  a  consequence  is 
almost  a  stranger  to  club  life.  In  fact,  he  is  very 
seldom  seen  away  from  home  and  family  after  his 
day's  business.  He  is  devoted  to  his  fireside  and 
revels  in  home  life,  and  is  a  lover  of  the  beauti- 
ful. To  him.  his  pictures — rare  works  of  art  with 
which  his  gallery  abounds — and  the  flowers  of  his 
conservatory  arc  open  books.  He  reads  them 
with  peculiar  delight  and  finds  in  them  a  sooth- 
ing influence,  which  not  only  wears  ofT  the  day's 
contact  with  the  busy  world,  but  sweetens  his 
life  by  their  sublimity,  and  renews  his  mind  for 
the  labors  which  the  successive  morrows  bring. 


OSCAR   C.   DkWOLF,  A.M.,  M.D., 


CHICAGO,  ILL. 


OSCAR  C.  DeWOLF,  whose  name  has  be- 
come familiar  in  connection  with  his  faith- 
ful and  successful  service  in  the  health  depart- 
ment of  Chicago,  was  born  at  Chester,  Hampden 
county.  Massachusetts,  in  1836.  His  father,  Dr. 
T.  K.  UeW'olf,  was  born  in  1801,  and  continued  in 
the  succes-iful  practice  of  medicine  till  his  eighty- 
ninth  year,  working  with  the  vigor  and  alacritj'  of 
a  boy.  Our  subject's  mother,  Cornelia  (Benham) 
DcW'olf,  born  in  1806  in  Barkhamsted,  Connecti- 
cut, came  of  an  old  Revolutionary  family,  resident 
in  the  Northeast  since  Colonial  days.  Gen.  Ben- 
ham,  of  the  engineer  corps,  was  of  the  same  family. 
Dr.  DeWolf  is  probably  of  English  descent ;  but 
members  of  his  father's  family  were  engaged  in 
the  Revolutionary  war ;  his  ancestors  have  been  in 
Connecticut  and  Rhode  Island  for  two  hundred 
years.  He  has  one  brother,  one  half  brother,  and 
one  sister,  the  sister  being  the  wife  of  Dr.  Har- 
low fiamwcll,  of  Westfield,  Massachusetts.  His 
brother  is  an  attorney  in  Cleveland,  Ohio,  and  his 
half  brother  a  member  of  the  well-known  firm  of 
I'helps,  Dodge  and  Palmer,  of  Chicago,  and  vice- 
president  of  the  Chicago  Coal  Company. 

Our  subject  received  his  preliminary  education 
in  the  common  schools  of  Massachusetts,  and 
later  pursued  a  course  of  study  in,  and  was  gradu- 
ated   from,    Williams    College,    afterward    study- 


ing medicine  at  Pittsfield,  Massachusetts.  He 
graduated  in  medicine  from  the  Medical  College- 
at  Berkshire,  in  1857,  and  from  New  York  Medi- 
cal College  in  1858.  The  same  year  he  went  to 
Europe  and  entered  the  medical  department  of 
the  University  of  France,  where  he  remained 
until  1861.  Two  days  after  his  arrival  home,  he 
was  appointed  assistant  surgeon  of  the  First 
Regiment  Massachusetts  Volunteer  Calvalry,  and 
afterward  became  surgeon  of  the  Second  Regi- 
ment Massachusetts  Cavalry,  and  later  surgeon  of 
the  reserve  brigade  of  the  regular  cavalry,  where 
he  continued  till  the  end  of  the  war.  After  the 
close  of  the  war  in  1866,  he  settled  at  Northamp- 
ton, Massachusetts,  and  remained  there  until 
1873.  He  then  removed  to  Chicago  where  he 
has  since  made  his  home,  filling  many  positions  of 
trust  with  marked  ability.  He  was  appointed 
Commissioner  of  Health  for  the  city  of  Chicago 
in  1876,  filling  that  position  with  a  zeal  and  integ- 
rity of  which  he  may  well  be  proud.  A  promi- 
nent city  official  has  said  that  Dr.  Oscar  C.  De- 
Wolf  was  the  first  man  to  place  the  work  of  that 
office  on  a  high  plane,  and  that  his  was  an  effi- 
cient and  honest  administration.  He  made  that 
department  an  executive  part  of  the  city  govern- 
ment. He  had  the  nerve  and  decision  to  act, 
when  sure    he   was  right  in   the  premises.     That 


i6o 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AND  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Dr.  DeWolf  is  an  eminent  authority  on  sanitary 
matters  is  furtlier  sliown  in  the  fact  that  he  was 
appointed  one  of  the  sanitary  commission  to 
examine  the  site  for  the  World's  Columbian  Ex- 
position. His  associates  in  this  work  were  Dr. 
H.  A.  Johnson  and  Dr.  Fernand  Henrotin.  This 
commission  will  continue  its  sanitary  supervision 
till  the  close   of  the  Exposition. 

Dr.  DeWolf  is  a  member  of  the  Grand  Army  of 
the  Republic,  and  was  made  an  honorary  member 
of  the  French  Society  of  Hygiene.  He  is  also  a 
member  of  the  British  Association  for  the  Ad- 
vancement of  Science.  These  honors  were  con- 
ferred upon    him   in  recognition    of   his    eminent 


services  in  the  health  department  of  the  city  of 
Chicago.  He  is  a  member  of  all  the  prominent 
medical  societies,  also  a  member  of  the  Illinois 
Club,  and  a  man  of  high  social  standing  and  an 
extensive  acquaintance.  Dr.  DeWolf  is  professor 
of  State  medicine  and  public  hygiene  in  the  Chi- 
cago Medical  College,  a  position  he  has  occupied 
with  distinction  for  many  years.  He  holds  his 
religious  affiliations  with  the  Third  Presbyterian 
Church.  Always  a  Republican,  yet  he  numbers 
among  his  intimate  friends  many  who  differ  from 
him  in  his  political  belief. 

He  was  married  December,  1872,  to   Harriet  T. 
Lyman,  of  Northampton,  Mass. 


HON.   WILLIAM    ERNEST   MASON, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


AMONG  the  representative  men  of  Chicago, 
whose  position  is  due  solely  to  their  own 
efforts,  none  deserves  more  honorable  mention 
than  William  E.  Mason.  He  was  born  in  the 
village  of  Franklinville,  Cattaraugus  county.  New 
York,  on  the  7th  day  of  July,  1850.  His  parents 
were  Lewis  J.  and  Nancy  (Winslow)  Mason,  his 
father  being,  at  the  time  of  William's  birth,  en- 
gaged in  mercantile  pursuits.  He  was  a  man  of 
high  character,  and  very  active  in  politics,  and  in 
his  early  manhood  was  identified  with  the  Abo- 
litionists. Upon  the  organization  of  the  Repub- 
lican party,  he  became  an  enthusiastic  member  of 
that  body,  and  was  an  ardent  supporter  of  John 
C.  Fremont  for  the  presidency,  in  1856. 

In  1858  the  family  removed  to  Bentonsport, 
Iowa,  and  lived  there  until  the  death  of  the  father, 
in  1865.  William  was  thus,  at  the  tender  age  of 
fifteen,  practically  thrown  upon  his  own  resources 
and  left  to  battle  with  the  world.  He  had  re- 
ceived the  rudiments  of  his  education  in  the 
public  schools  of  Franklinville,  and  later  at  Ben- 
tonsport. He  had  also  studied  two  years  at 
Birmingham  College,  and  was  making  fair  pro- 
gress in  the  way  of  a  liberal  education,  when 
called  upon  to  make  his  own  way  in  the  world. 

This  shouldering  of  the  responsibilities  of  life 
developed  in  the  boy  a  self-reliance  and  strength 
of  purpose  which  have  been  distinguishing  charac- 
teristics of  the  man.     He  began  teaching  school. 


and  devoted  himself  alternately  to  teaching  and 
studying  until  1868.  During  the  next  two  years, 
he  taught  in  the  public  schools  of  Des  Moines. 
Iowa.  He  then  began  the  study  of  law  in  the 
office  of  Hon.  Thomas  F.  Withrow,  an  eminent 
corporation  lawyer,  who  was,  soon  after  this  time, 
appointed  General  Solicitor  of  the  Chicago,  Rock 
Island  and  Pacific  Railroad  Company,  and  re- 
moved to  Chicago.  Our  subject  accompanied 
him,  and  remained  in  his  office  one  year,  and  then 
became  a  student  in  the  office  of  Hon.  John  N. 
Jewett,  where  he  finished  his  preparation  for 
admission  to  the  bar. 

For  several  years  he  remained  in  the  office  of 
his  distinguished  preceptor,  leaving  it  to  form  a 
partnership  with  Judge  M.  R.  M.  Wallace,  in 
1877.  He  soon  became  known  as  a  good  lawyer 
and  safe  counselor,  and  especially  as  an  able  and 
eloquent  advocate.  Upon  separating  from  Judge 
Wallace,  he  became  the  senior  member  of  the 
firm  of  Mason,  Ennis  and  Bates,  with  which  he  is 
still  identified. 

Mr.  Mason  has  always  been  a  staunch  Republi- 
can, and,  as  his  record  will  show,  an  enthusiastic 
and  effective  worker  in  the  interests  of  that  party. 
Before  he  was  thirty  years  of  age,  he  was  a  mem- 
ber of  the  General  Assembly  of  Illinois,  and  in 
1882  was  sent  to  the  State  Senate  from  the  Ninth 
Senatorial  District  of  Illinois.  In  both  the  lower 
house  and  the  senate,  he  was  conspicuous  for  his 


\ 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIO.XAKV  A.\D  FORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


163 


abilit)-,  his  devotion  to  the  interests  of  his  con- 
stituency, good  judgment  in  the  consideration  of 
proposed  legislation,  and  close  attention  to  busi- 
ness at  all  times. 

In  1888  he  was  elected  Congressman  from  the 
Third  Congressional  District  of  Illinois,  and  as  a 
member  of  this  popular  branch  of  the  national 
legislature  won  honor  for  himself  and  reflected 
credit  upon  those  who  elected  him  by  becoming, 
in  a  comparatively  short  time,  one  of  the  most 
serviceable  members  of  that  body.  Possessing 
oratorical  powers  of  a  high  order,  a  ready  wit  and 
a  broad  knowledge  of  public  affairs,  he  distin- 
guished himself  on  the  floor  of  the  House  on 
numerous  occasions.  He  was  noted  for  brevity, 
conciseness  and  pointedness  of  statement,  and  in 
the  debate  on  the  location  of  the  World's  Colum- 
bian Exposition,  made  the  following  five-minute 
speech,  which  is  a  model  of  its  kind,  and  for 
which  he  was  highly  complimented  by  all,  and 
the  Speaker  (Mr.  Reed)  expressed  his  opinion 
that  it  was  the  best  five-minute  speech  he  had 
ever  listened  to : 

Mr.  Speaker:  When  I  think  of  the  many  things  that 
could  be  said  in  favor  of  the  city  that  I  have  the  honor,  in 
part,  to  represent,  and  of  the  few  moments  in  which  I  have 
to  say  them,  I  feel  much  hke  the  boy  who  sat  down  on  the 
inside  of  a  sugar  barrel  and  said,  "  Oh,  for  time  and  a  thou- 
sand tongues  10  do  this  thing  justice."    (Laughter.] 

Five  minutes  in  which  to  speak  of  tlie  greatest  city  in 
the  world  !  I  wish  I  had  lime  to  call  your  attention  to  the 
constitution  of  the  State  of  New  York  ;  most  of  you  have 
read  that.  I  wish  I  had  time  to  refer  to  the  eloquent  speech 
of  the  gentleman  from  New  York  (Mr.  Flower)  who  yesterday 
told  us  about  the  display  that  was  to  be  made  in  the  New 
York  harbor,  and  the  Italian  and  Spanish  ships  of  war.  I 
would  like  to  invite  him  and  colleagues  here  to  that  great 
inland  sea  on  which  rides  a  larger  fleet — (or  there  are  more 
arrivals  and  clearances  in  the  port  of  Chicago  than  in  any 
other  port  in  the  L'nited  States  of  America,  not  excluding 
New  York,  more  tonnage  and  more  arrivals  and  departures— 
not  a  fleet  of  war,  but  a  fleet  of  peace,  of  peaceful  commerce 
—commerce  between  American  citizens,  the  profits  thereof 
remaining  at  home. 

It  is  one  of  the  grandest  things  to  contemplate  that  the 
discover)'  of  Christopher  Columbus  has  led  to  the  develop- 
ment on  this  soil  of  a  nation  resting  on  the  principles  of  self- 
government— a  nation  that  needs  no  army  and  navy,  for  if 
ever)-  gun  we  have  were  spiked,  and  ever)-  ship  were  sunk,  no 
nation  on  the  face  of  God's  earth  would  dare  to  strike  a  blow 
at  our  colors  or  invade  our  soil  [applause].  We  cannot  invite 
you  to  see  a  fleet  of  war  ships,  but  we  invite  you  to  witness 
the  victories  of  peace,  greater  than  those  of  war.  You  invite 
us  to  see  the  Spanish  and  Italian  ships  of  war,  not  a  color  of 
which,  from  any  mast,  stands  for  human  liberty;  we  invite 
you  to  see  the  commercial  fleet  of  peace,  larger  by  far  than 


that,  manned  by  American  citizens,  and  from  every  mast  fly- 
ing the  colors  that  we  love  [applausej.  I  would  like  to  say 
one  thing  further  during  my  five  minutes,  and  that  is 
all  I  have  to  say.  My  brethren  on  the  other  side,  you  have 
charged  the  Republicans  on  this  side  of  the  house  with  most 
unfair  and  ungenerous  criticism  in  matters  of  politics.  The 
gentleman  from  Texas  (Mr.  Mills)  discussed  at  great  length 
this  morning  the  fact  that  the  negro  has  the  right  to  vote  in 
the  South,  and  has  no  right  to  vote  in  the  District  of  Colum- 
bia. It  is  true  that  in  the  heat  of  politics  we  indulge  in 
things  of  that  kind.  But  is  it  not  also  true  that  you  have 
criticised  us  and  have  given  us  back,  with  interest,  wliat  we 
gave  you  ? 

But  what  is  the  best  way  to  avoid  such  things  ?  How 
can  we  do  better  in  the  future  for  the  people  we  represent  and 
whose  prosperity  we  should  consider  from  a  united  stand- 
point ?  How  can  we  do  better  than  meet  upon  common 
ground,  at  that  great  central  city  of  Chicago,  for  a  common 
purpose  ?  Come  to  Chicago  in  1S92,  my  friends,  and  see 
whether  our  hospitality  differs  from  the  hospitality  for  which 
you  are  so  justly  noted  in  Georgia,  Kentucky  and  Missis.sippi. 
Come,  I  say,  and  with  the  shoulder-touch  let  us  march,  in 
1892,  to  a  better  understanding.  Come,  and  warm  vour  hearts 
at  the  forges  of  the  North  as  we  melt  the  ores  of  the  South,  and, 
with  the  anvil  and  hammer  of  personal  contact,  let  us  beat 
out  a  better  friendship  for  the  North  and  the  South  [ap- 
plause]. Bring  your  looms  from  New  England;  bring  your 
cotton  from  the  South,  weave  it  into  cloth  in  the  presence  of 
the  great  .Northwest,  and  into  the  web  and  woof  of  that  cloth 
we  will  weave  a  new  song  for  a  better  and  more  permanent 
union  of  the  States. 

Eighteen  hundred  and  ninety-two  will  be  a  famous  year, 
my  friends— famous  for  the  advancement  of  the  arts  and 
sciences,  famous  for  the  advancement  of  agriculture,  famous 
for  the  advancement  of  ever)'thing  that  makes  us  great  and 
glorious,  but,  better  still,  famous  because  we  will  begin  to 
tear  down  the  walls  that  have  kept  us  apart  ;  fampus  because 
we  will  draw  the  North  and  the  South  and  the  East  closer 
and  nearer  and  more  truly  together.  Drinking  from  the  same 
fountain,  drawing  our  inspiration  of  patriotism  from  a  com- 
mon source,  we  will  not  be  confined  to  the  old  couplet : 

"  In  fourteen  hundred  and  ninety-two. 
Columbus  crossed  the  ocean  blue," 

but  With  less  poetry  and  more  sentiment,  we  will  say : 

In  eighteen  hundred  and  ninety-two 
We  will  unite  the  grray  and  blue. 

[Loud  applause.] 

Mr.  Mason  is  a  man  of  the  people,  and  from 
experience  knows  their  needs,  their  hopes  and  their 
ambitions,  and  enters  heartily  into  any  movement 
calculated  to  better  their  condition.  Personally, 
.Mr.  Mason  was  one  of  the  most  popular  men  in 
Congress,  being  under  all  circumstances  a  most 
genial  and  affable  gentleman.  The  courtesy 
which  has  characterized  him  in  his  political  and 
social  life  has  won  for  him,  in  addition  to  the 
respect  and  admiration  which  men  of  genuine 
ability  always  command,  the  kindly  regard  of  his 
associates. 


164 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  A.\D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


In  the  presidential  campaign  of  18S8,  he  became 
widely  known  as  an  effective  political  speaker, 
and  during  the  hotly-contested  campaign  of  1890, 
in  Ohio,  in  which  he  participated,  he  won  renown 
as  a  campaign  orator,  who  seldom  failed  to  carry 
conviction  to  the  minds  of  his  auditors. 

In  1873,  about  the  time  he  completed  his  law 
studies,  Mr.  Mason  was  married  to  Miss  Edith 
Julia  White,  the  accomplished  daughter  of    Mr. 


Geo.  White,  a  prominent  citizen  of  Des  Moines, 
Iowa. 

Mr.  Mason  is  a  man  of  domestic  tastes,  never 
happier  than  when  by  his  fireside  with  his' inter- 
esting family  of  children  and  charming  and  esti- 
mable wife.  Mrs.  Mason,  though  much  sought 
after  in  society,  and  though  a  cultured  hostess, 
prefers  to  devote  her  time  to  household  duties 
rather  than  to  social  pleasures. 


SAMUEL  J.  JONES.  M.D.,  LL.D. 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


SAMUEL  J.  JONES,  a  native  of  Bainbridge, 
Pa.,  was  born  on  March  22,  1836,  the  son 
of  Dr.  Robert  H.  and  Sarah  M.  (Ekel)  Jones. 
The  father,  who  died  in  1863,  had  been  a  practicing 
physician  in  Pennsylvania  for  thirty-three  years. 
The  mother  belonged  to  one  of  the  oldest  families 
of  the  old  town  of  Lebanon  in  that  State.  In 
early  life,  Samuel  enjoyed  a  good  educational 
advantage,  and  having  finished  his  preparatory 
studies,  at  the  age  of  seventeen  entered  Dickin- 
son College,  at  Carlisle,  Pa.,  graduating  with  the 
degree  of  A.  B.  in  1857,  being  then  twenty-one 
years  of  age. 

Three  years  later  he  received  from  his  alma 
mater  the  degree  of  A.  M.,  and  in  1884  the  same 
institution  conferred  upon  him  the  degree  of 
LL.  D.  He  early  decided  to  fit  himself  for  the 
medical  profession,  and  upon  leaving  college, 
with  that  purpose  in  view,  spent  three  years  in 
study  under  the  preceptorship  of  his  father,  and  in 
1858  attended  his  fir.st  course  of  lectures  in  the 
medical  department  of  the  University  of  Pennsyl- 
vania, graduating  in  i860,  just  thirty  years  after 
the  graduation  of  his  father  from  the  same  insti- 
tution. Being  attracted  to  the  United  States 
naval  service,  by  reason  of  its  many  advantages 
for  the  young  practitioner,  both  professionally 
and  otherwise,  he  submitted  to  a  competitive  ex- 
amination for  the  position  of  assistant  surgeon, 
and  being  successful,  received  his  appoint- 
ment just  before  the  beginning  of  the  War  of  the 
Rebellion.  In  April,  1861,  he  was  ordered  to  the 
U.  S.  steam  frigate  "Minnesota,"  which  sailed, 
under  sealed  orders,  from  Bo.ston  on  May  8, 
1861,  as  the  flag.ship  of  the  Atlantic  blockading 


squadron.  Dr.  Jones  participated  in  the  nav4l 
battle  at  Hatteras  Inlet  in  August,  1861,  which 
resulted  in  the  capture  of  the  Confederate  forts, 
and  ended  the  troublesome  blockade-running  at 
that  point,  and  in  which  fifteen  hundred  prisoners 
were  taken.  It  was  the  first  naval  battle  in  his- 
tory- in  which  steamships  were  used  and  kept  in 
motion  while  in  action.  ' 

In  Januaiy,  1862,  he  was  temporarily  detached 
from  the  "  Minnesota  "  and  detailed  as  surgeon  of 
Flag  Officer  Goldsborough's  staff  on  the  Burnside 
and  Goldsborough  e.xpedition  against  Roanoke 
Island.  After  its  capture  he  was  assigned  to  duty 
as  the  staff  surgeon  of  Commander  Rowan  in  the 
expedition  which  resulted  in  the  capture  of  New- 
bern,  Washington,  and  other  important  points  on 
the  inner  waters  of  North  Carolina.  Later  he 
accompanied  Lieut.  Gushing,  of  "  Albermarle" 
fame,  and  Lieut.  Lamson  in  their  operations  on 
the  Nansemond  River  for  the  relief  of  the  Union 
forces  then  shut  in  by  General  Longstreet  at 
Suffolk,  Va.  In  the  .spring  of  1863  Dr.  Jones 
was  assigned  to  duty  at  Philadelphia,  and  there 
passed  a  second  examination  and  was  promoted 
to  the  grade  of  surgeon.  He  was  next  assigned 
to  duty  at  Chicago,  and  there,  in  addition  to  his 
other  duties,  acted  as  examining  surgeon  of  those 
desiring  to  enter  the  medical  corps  for  the  naval 
service  on  the  Mississippi  River.  While  here  he 
visited  the  various  military  prisons,  and  examined 
and  passed  over  three  thousand  Confederate 
prisoners  who  had  asked  to  be  shipped  into  the 
Government  naval  service. 

In  1864  he  was  ordered  to  the  sloop-of-war 
"  Portsmouth,"  of  Admiral  Farragut's  West  Gulf 


/TT^i^^, 


\ 


BIOGRAI'HICAL  UICTIO.XAKV  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


167 


blockading  squadron,  but  soon  thereafter  was 
assigned  to  duty  as  surgeon  of  the  New  Orleans 
Naval  Hospital.  In  the  fall  of  1865,  the  war 
having  closed,  Surgeon  Jones  was  sent  to  Pensa- 
cola,  F"lorida,  as  surgeon  of  the  navy  yard  and 
naval  hospital,  and  remained  until  again  assigned 
to  duty  at  Chicago,  in  1866.  When  the  marine 
rendezvous  there  was  closed,  in  1867,  he  was 
ordered  to  the  frigate  "  Sabine,"  a  practice  ship  for 
naval  apprentices  cruising  along  the  Atlantic 
coast. 

In  1868,  desiring  to  engage  in  private  practice, 
he  tendered  his  resignation,  which  was  accepted 
on  the  first  of  March  of  that  year,  and  his  con- 
nection with  the  navy  closed,  after  eight  years  of 
active,  and  during  mucli  of  the  time  hazardous, 
service. 

Upon  lea\ing  the  Government  service,  Dr.  Jones 
returned  to  Philadelphia,  and  was  sent  as  a  dele- 
gate from  the  American  Medical  Association  to 
the  meetings  of  the  medical  societies  of  Europe, 
being  at  the  same  time  commissioned  by  Gov. 
Geary,  of  Pennsylvania,  to  report  upon  hospital 
and  sanitary  matters  of  England  and  the  Conti- 
nent. He  attended  the  meetings  of  the  noted 
European  medical  societies  at  0.\ford,  Heidel- 
berg and  Dresden,  and  at  the  last  named  place  par- 
ticipated in  organizing  the  first  otological  congress 
ever  held.  This  was  in  September,  1868.  He 
spent  the  remainder  of  that  year  visiting  various 
parts  of  Europe,  extending  his  investigation  in 
medical  and  sanitary  affairs,  and  giving  especial 
attention  to  diseases  of  the  eye  and  of  the  ear. 
He  returned  to  the  United  States  and  established 
himself  at  the  beginning  of  1869  in  private  prac- 
tice at  Chicago.  During  the  same  year  he  was 
elected  president  of  the  Board  of  Examining  Sur- 
geons for  United  States  pensions  at  Chicago,  and 
was  also  made  a  member  of  the  medical  staff  of 
St.  Luke's  Hospital,  and  there  established  a  de- 
partment for  treatment  of  diseases  of  the  eye  and 
of  the  ear,  with  which  he  has  been  connected 
since  its  establishment.  In  1870  he  was  again 
accredited  a  delegate  from  the  American  Medical 
Association,  to  meetings  of  European  associa- 
tions, and  while  abroad  spent  .several  months  in 
research  and  investigation.  During  the  same 
year  he  was  appointed  to  the  chair  of  ophthal- 
mology and  otology  just  e.stablished  in  North- 
western   University   [Chicago    Medical  College]. 


a  professorship  which  he  has  continued  to  hold 
ever  since.  He  also  established  an  eye  and  car 
department  at  Mercy  Hospital  and  another  at 
the  South  Side  Dispensary,  and  had  charge  of 
them  for  some  ten  years,  and  for  a  number  of 
years  was  one  of  the  attending  staff  of  the  Illinois 
Charitable  Eye  and  Ear  Infirmary,  located  in 
Chicago.  Dr.  Jones  has  applied  himself  to  the 
acquirement  of  knowledge  pertaining  to  the 
special  department  to  which  he  has  devoted  him- 
self for  the  past  twenty  years,  and  is  recognized 
both  by  the  medical  profession  and  the  public  as 
authority  on  all  matters  pertaining  to  ophthalmol- 
ogy and  otology.  He  has  always  stood  high  in 
the  esteem  of  his  professional  brethren,  and  has 
been  active  and  influential  in  their  councils 
and  deliberations.  In  1876  he  was  a  delegate 
from  the  Illinois  State  Medical  Society  to  the 
Centennial  International  Medical  Congress  at 
Philadelphia.  In  1881  he  represented  the  Ameri- 
can Medical  Association  and  the  American  Acade- 
my of  Medicine  at  the  Seventh  International 
Medical  Congress,  at  London,  England.  Again, 
in  1887.  at  the  Ninth  International  Medical  Con- 
gress, held  in  Washington,  D.  C,  as  president  of 
the  section  of  otology,  he  was  ex-officio  a  member 
of  the  executive  committee,  whose  duty  it  was  to 
arrange  for  the  preliminary  organization  of  the 
congress.  In  1889,  at  its  thirteenth  annual 
meeting,  held  in  Chicago,  Dr.  Jones  was  elected 
president  of  the  American  Academy  of  Medicine, 
whose  objects  as  stated  in  its  constitution  are  : 
"  First,  to  bring  those  who  are  alumni  of  col- 
legiate, scientific  and  medical  schools  into  closer 
relations  with  each  other.  Second,  to  encourage 
)oung  men  to  pursue  regular  courses  of  study  in 
classical  and  scientific  institutions,  before  entering 
upon  the  study  of  medicine.  Third,  to  extend 
the  bounds  of  medical  science,  to  elevate  the  pro- 
fession, to  relic\c  human  suffering,  and  to  prevent 
disease."  , 

Being  himself  a  man  of  broad  culture  and 
extensive  knowledge  of  the  principles  and  prac- 
tice of  medicine.  Dr.  Jones  has  labored  untiringly 
to  raise  the  standard  of  medical  education  to  the 
highest  plane,  both  by  his  work  in  the  various 
societies  and  associations  with  which  he  is  con- 
nected, and  by  his  writings,  which  have  frequently 
appeared  in  the  medical  journals.  He  was  for 
scseral  years  editor  of  the  Chicago  Mciical  Jour- 


1 68 


BIOuRAPIIICAL  DICTIOXARY  A.\D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


nal  and  Examiner,  one   of  the  leading  medical 
periodicals  of  this  country. 

Dr.  Jones  is  a  man  of  fine  physical  proportion, 
with  a  rugged  constitution.  He  is  a  man  of 
fixed  opinions,  with  a  decided  will  power  and 
strong   determination,   and    by   nature   a  leader. 


Courteous  in  manner,  genial  and  generous,  yet 
dignified  in  bearing,  he  has  attracted  to  himself 
a  wide  and  influential  clientele  in  the  special  de- 
partment to  which  he  has  devoted  himself,  and 
enjoys  the  reward  of  his  painstaking  and  con- 
scientious work. 


HENRY  BEIDLER, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


AMONG  the  great  commercial  interests  of 
Chicago,  none  has  developed  more  rapidly 
or  brought  to  its  promoters  more  substantial  re- 
turns than  the  lumber  trade.  Being  the  center 
of  a  vast  railroad  system  spreading  out  through 
the  West  and  Northwest,  Chicago  has  come  to 
be  the  distributing  point  for  the  lumber  products 
of  the  great  pineries  of  Michigan  and  Wisconsin, 
whence  it  is  brought  via  the  great  lakes  and  thence 
carried  over  this  net-work  of  railroads.  Of  the 
men  who  have  devoted  themselves  to  this  line  of 
trade,  few,  it  may  truthfully  be  asserted,  have  at- 
tained to  a  higher  place  or  reaped  more  substan- 
tial rewards  than  Henr>'  Beidler,  the  subject  of 
this  biography.  He  is  a  native  of  Bucks  county, 
Pennsylvania,  and  was  born  in  the  town  of  Bed- 
minster,  on  November  27,  1812,  the  son  of  Jacob 
and  Susanna  (Krout)  Beidler.  Both  his  father 
and  grandfather  (who,  also,  was  named  Jacob 
Beidler)  were  natives  of  Bucks  county,  Pennsyl- 
vania, and  farmers  by  occupation.  His  father 
was  also  a  carpenter  by  trade,  and  lived  to  the 
advanced  age  of  eighty-nine  years.  The  grand- 
father died  in  the  year  1781,  and  was  interred  in 
Perkasie  burying-ground  in  Hilltown  township. 
Bucks  county,  Pennsylvania,  where  our  subject, 
on  a  recent  visit  to  his  native  place,  erected  to 
his  memory  a  beautiful  granite  monument.  The 
mother  of  our  subject,  also,  was  born  in  Bucks 
county,  Pennsylvania,  anfl  died  at  the  age  of 
eighty  years.  Henr\-  passed  his  boyhood  and 
early  manhood  on  the  farm,  receiving  a  good 
common-school  education  and  laying  the  founda- 
tion of  his  financial  success.  It  was  here  that  he 
earned  his  first  thousand  dollars,  a  fact  to  which 
he  points  with  pardonable  pride. 

In  the  spring  of  1843,  attracted  by  the  superior 
inducements  offered  in  the  West  to  young  men  of 


enterprise  and  thrift,  he  removed  to  the  then 
sparsely  settled  State  of  Illinois,  and  located  at 
Springfield  in  the  grocery  trade.  After  five 
years  of  success  in  this  business,  he,  in  1848.  re- 
moved to  Chicago,  and  engaged  in  the  lumber 
business  in  partnership  with  his  brother,  Jacob 
Beidler,  who  was  then  in  business  there.  In  1855 
Mr.  Beidler  went  to  Muskegon,  Michigan,  and 
took  charge  of  the  manufacturing  branch  of  the 
firm's  business  there,  his  brother  continuing  in 
charge  of  the  Chicago  branch.  The  business  rap- 
idly increased,  and,  under  his  careful  management, 
brought  to  its  promoters  large  returns,  so  that  in 
1876,  our  subject  was  enabled  to  retire  from  active 
participation  in  the  business  with  an  ample  com- 
petence. At  that  time  he  returned  to  Chicago, 
where  he  has  since  made  his  home,  and  retained 
an  interest  in  the  business  for  several  years,  when 
the  firm  was  dissolved  by  mutual  consent.  Since 
his  retirement  from  active  business,  Mr.  Beidler 
has  spent  much  of  his  time  in  travel  throughout 
all  parts  of  his  native  land,  and  has  also  visited 
some  foreign  lands.  During  these  travels  he  has 
collected  a  great  variety  of  curiosities,  consisting 
of  rare  shells,  precious  stones,  etc.,  which  he  has 
preserved  in  a  handsome  cabinet  at  his  home  at 
No.  49  South  Sangamon  street.  Throughout  his 
life  Mr.  Beidler  has  been  known  for  his  business 
integrity  and  firm  adherence  to  the  strict  princi- 
plesof  justice  and  equity,  so  that  wherever  known, 
his  word  was  regarded  as  good  as  his  bond.  He 
is  a  man  of  generous  impulses,  cheerful,  genial, 
benevolent  and  charitable.  Coming  as  he  does  of 
a  long-lived  ancestry,  and  having  had  regard  to 
the  laws  of  health  throughout  his  life,  he  is  now, 
at  the  age  of  eighty  years,  well  preserved  and 
hale  and  hearty,  and  able  to  enjoy  the  fruits  of 
his  labors.     His  political  sentiments  are  Republi- 


^9^      To 


;- 


BIOGliAI'UlCAL  DICTIOSARY  A.\D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY 


171 


can,  though  he  has  never  taken  any  part  in  politi- 
cal matters  more  than  to  perform  his  duties  as  a 
citizen.  Mr.  Beidler  holds  broad  and  liberal  views 
on  religious  questions,  and,  with  his  family,  is 
identified  with  the  "  People's  Church  "  under  the 
pastoral  care  of  H.  W.  Thomas,  D.D. 

Mr.  Beidler  was  married  on  April   33,  1S60,  to 
Miss   Sarah    Sammons,    a   daughter   of    Thomas 


Sammons,  Esq.,  of  Syracuse,  N.  Y.  Mrs.  Beidler 
died  on  October  2,  1886.  She  was  a  woman  of 
many  noble  qualities,  a  fond  and  devoted  wife 
and  mother,  and  by  her  kindness  and  goodness  of 
heart,  her  charities,  and  purity  of  life,  endeareni 
herself  to  a  large  circle  of  friends.  Of  this  union 
was  born  one  son,  Herbert  A.  Beidler,  president 
of  the  Standard  Elevator  Company,  of  Chicago. 


CAPT.  BENJAMIN    M.  MUNN, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


AMONG  the  residents  of  Chicago  who  claim 
the  Green  Mountain  State  as  the  place  of 
their  nativity,  many  have  become  truly  represen- 
tative citizens,  and  among  these  is  the  subject  of 
this  biography. 

He  was  born  in  West  Fairlee,  Orange  county, 
Vermont,  on  February  11,  1826,  and  passed  his 
youth  and  early  manhood  on  his  father's  farm. 
After  leaving  the  district  schools,  he  attended 
Williams  College,  and  after  finishing  his  studies 
there  he  went  to  Boston,  to  study  law  with  Col. 
Stickney,  afterwards  completing  his  law  course 
with  the  Hon.  William  S.  Holman,  the  well- 
known  Indiana  congressman.  He  was  admitted 
to  the  bar  in  1852,  and  then  spent  two  years  in 
teaching.  During  that  time,  he  was  principal  of 
the  Rising  Sun,  Indiana,  Female  Seminary,  and 
of  the  Charleston,  Illinois,  Academy,  and  also  had 
charge  of  one  of  the  public  schools  in  Galena, 
Illinois,  where  he  became  acquainted  with  Cap- 
tain U.  S.  Grant. 

In  1854,  he  began  an  active  practice  of  law  at 
Charleston,  Illinois,  and  continued  the  same  in 
that  place  and  Litchfield,  Illinois,  until   1861. 

During  his  residence  in  central  Illinois,  he  had 
as  co-workers  in  the  circuit  such  men  as  Abraham 
Lincoln,  Governor  Palmer,  Leonard  Sweet,  S.  T. 
Logan,  and  Benjamin  Edwards,  and  he  argued 
many  important  cases  in  the  Federal  Court, 
before  Judge  David  Davis. 

At  the  o])ening  of  the  war  of  the  rebellion  in 
1 861,  in  response  to  the  call  of  President  Lincoln 
for  men,  Benjamin  M.  Munn,  like  a  true  son  of 
the  patriotic  Green  Mountain  State  and  a  worthy 
citizen  of  Illinois,  left  his  business  and  volun- 
teered his  services  to  his  country. 


He  enlisted  as  a  private  soldier,  but  was  im- 
mediately elected  Captain  of  Company  D,  7th 
Regiment  Illinois  Infantry,  and  he  holds  the 
oldest  captain's  commission  in  the  volunteer 
service. 

While  in  Springfiekl  assisting  in  organizing  the 
7th  Regiment,  he  suggested  to  Governor  Vates 
that  the  man  most  needed  in  the  organization  of 
State  Troops  was  Captain  U.  S.  Grant,  of  Ga- 
lena, whom  he  had  met  while  teaching  in  that 
place. 

The  Governor  immediately  acted  upon  Captain 
Munn's  suggestion,  and  called  Captain  Grant  to 
Springfield,  where  he  arrived  a  few  days  later, 
and  since  then  the  name  and  fame  of  Ulysses  S. 
Grant  have  been  sounded  around  the  world.  It 
is  often  true  that  the  slightest  and  most  trivial 
causes  lead  to  great  results.  History  records 
where  the  destiny  of  a  nation  has  been  changed 
by  the  effect  of  a  single  sentence,  uttered  thought- 
lessly, and  it  may  be  true  that  the  suggestion 
offered  to  Governor  Yates  by  Captain  Munn,  not 
only  brought  Grant  into  a  position  where  he  was 
able  to  utilize  his  remarkable  ability  and  genius, 
but  also  gave  to  the  country  a  leader  who  was 
enabled  to  unite  a  disrupted  people,  and  bring 
peace  and  prosperity  to  us  once  more. 

During  the  fir.st  year  of  the  war.  Captain  Munn 
was  in  General  Grant's  command,  and  it  may  be 
stated  here  that  Grant  had  no  more  faithful 
soldier  under  him  than  was  he.  In  1869,  Captain 
Munn  became  a  resident  of  Chicago,  and  during 
1 872-73,  was  deputy  collector  of  internal 
revenue,  and  afterwards  was  assistant  corpora- 
tion counsel  of  Chicago,  under  the  late  Hon. 
Jesse    O.    Norton,    and    was    acting   counsel    for 


172 


niOGRAFinCAL  DICTIOXARY  A.\D  rORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


several  months.  In  all  these  different  capacities, 
whether  acting  for  the  public  or  for  individual 
clients,  he  has  devoted  himself  to  the  conscientious 
discharge  of  his  duty,  and  has  always  been  faith- 
ful and  honorable.  He  has  the  respect  of  all 
members  of  his  profession,  and  is  esteemed  by 
his  extensive  and  ever-increasing  clientage. 

For  many  years,  Mr.  Munn,  in  connection  with 
Mr.  Thomas  E.  Davis,  of  Washington,  D.  C, 
made  a  specialty  of  internal  revenue  practice,  and 
collected  from  the  United  States  Government 
large  sums  of  money  which  had  been  collected 
from  brewers  and  distillers  upon  erroneous  assess- 
ments under  the  internal  revenue  laws. 

Captain  Munn,  true  to  the  principles  that  were 


ingrafted  into  his  heart  in  boyhood  days,  princi- 
ples that  he  always  believed  were  founded  in 
justice  and  truth,  has  always  been  an  uncompro- 
mising Republican,  and  a  believer  in  and  an 
advocate  of  Republican  doctrines ;  and,  although 
he  has  always  taken  an  active  part  in  political 
campaigns,  he  has  never  sought  any  office  or 
position. 

Such  is  the  biography  of  a  man  who  started  in 
life  with  a  capital  consisting  only  of  health, 
ambition  and  determination,  and,  who,  using 
these  qualities  to  good  advantage,  has  not  only 
reached  a  high  place  in  his  profession,  but  has 
also  won  the  confidence  and  respect  and  esteem 
of  his  fellow-citizens. 


JAMES   C  ANDERSON, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


IT  would  be  impossible  within  the  scope  of  a 
biographical  sketch  of  this  character,  to  more 
than  outline  the  life-work  of  the  prolific  inventor 
and  manufacturer,  James  Caldwell  Anderson. 

The  public  records  of  the  Patent  Office  of  the 
United  States  give  abundant  evidence  of  his 
genius,  and  a  full  description  of  his  inventions 
alone  would  take  volumes  if  recorded  separately. 
As  a  manufacturer,  he  stands,  to-day,  pre-emi- 
nently the  leader  in  his  chosen  field  of  industry. 

Born  in  the  Monongahela  Valley,  Pennsyl- 
vania, August  13,  1838,  of  American  parentage, 
although  of  Scotch-Iri.sh  descent,  he  developed 
from  early  childhood  a  passionate  love  of  me- 
chanics, and  the  .playhouse  of  the  child  was  a 
miniature  workshop  which  was  never  abandoned, 
but  grew  in  novel  mechanical  appliances  with  the 
man.  So  the  playwhecls  set  in  motion  by  the 
boy,  developed  into  the  most  intricate  and  pow- 
erful machinery  of  the  present  time. 

Owing  to  the  protracted  illness  and  death  of 
his  father,  he  was;  at  the  early  age  of  sixteen, 
compelled  to  take  a  man's  place  and  begin  the 
struggle  of  life  in  earnest,  which  led  up  a  few 
years  later  to  la'rge  manufacturing  enterprises  re- 
quiring much  of  construction  and  invention  of 
versatile  scope,  among  which  was  the  metallurgy 
of  steel  and  other  metals. 

.'\dded  to  this  experience  was  an   ardent  love 


for  his  native  Pennsylvania  hills,  with  their  up- 
turned and  tilted  strata  exposed  to  view  with  the 
other  ores  of  the  metals,  abundant  clay  and  clay 
shale  deposits,  rich  in  aluminum  metal,  appeal- 
ing to  the  inventor  to  solve  the  problem  of  its 
extraction,  giving  it  such  an  irresistible  charm 
that  he  pursued  this  line  of  investigation  until  it 
led  to  another  invention  of  what  is  known  as 
the  dry  clay  process,  by  which  brick  and  other 
like  clay  articles  are  manufactured  with  a  beautj- 
of  finish  and  solidity  of  texture  never  before  at- 
tained. The  invention  involved  numerous  other 
inventions  of  powerful  machinery,  apparatus,  and 
processes,  for  which  he  has  been  granted  more 
than  one  hundred  patents,  and  which  has  practi- 
cally revolutionized  the  art  of  brick  making  in 
this  country. 

By  the  state  of  the  art  no  brick  were  produced 
prior  to  Mr.  Anderson's  invention,  having  a  body 
color  other  than  that  of  the  natural  clay,  and  the 
clays  of  Chicago  burned  only  a  white  or  buff 
color,  while  the  clays  of  Philadelphia,  and  adja- 
cent thereto,  burned  a  beautiful  red,  a  color  then 
much  sought  after.  Hence  the  red  bricks  from 
Philadelphia  were  shipped  to  this  market  at  great 
cost. 

These  circumstances  induced  Mr.  Anderson  to 
establish  his  first  plant  at  Chicago,  which  was 
done  in   1879,  ^"^  which  time   Mr.  .A^ndcrson,  with 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTIiAIT  GALLERY. 


175 


his  family,  became  a  resident  of  Highland  Park, 
selecting  this  lovely  suburb  in  Lake  county  for  its 
high  elevation  above  the  lake  and  picturesque 
ravines,  which  reminded  him  of  the  hills  and  val- 
leys of  his  old  Penns\-lvania  home. 

Mr.  Anderson  possesses  the  rare  combination 
of  talents,  which  denotes  not  only  an  eminent 
inventor,  but  also  an  excellent  business  man.  He 
is  an  indefatigable  and  ceaseless  worker,  one  who 
is  never  more  happy  than  when  busily  employed 
in  solving  some  knotty  problem  in  mechanics,  or 
making  improvements  in  the  various  devices  in 
which  clays  are  a  prominent  factor.  Having  in- 
domitable will  power  and  a  keen  insight  into 
character,  he  is  a  master  among  men.  The  soul 
of  honor,  he  is  thoroughly  scrupulous  in  all  his 
transactions.  An  artist  by  nature,  the  bent  of 
his  mind  is  decidedly  artistic. 

A  genial,  modest,  and   refined  gentleman,  it  is 


not  surprising  that  Mr.  Anderson  possesses  so 
many  warm  friends  and  admirers,  while  his  hospi- 
tality is  proverbial,  and  his  interest  on  behalf  of 
those  who  need  it,  is  both  practical  and  sincere. 
Eminent  as  an  inventor,  and  highly  esteemed  by 
all  who  enjoy  his  personal  acquaintance,  James 
Caldwell  Anderson  has  carved  for  himself  a  prom- 
inent place  in  the  temple  of  fame.  The  architect 
of  his  own  fortunes,  he  has  given  to  the  world,  in 
his  inventions,  a  legacy  that  will  perpetuate  his 
memory  among  many  generations  yet  to  come. 

He  was  married,  July  26,  i860,  to  Amanda  S. 
Birmingham,  of  Westmoreland  county,  Pennsyl- 
vania, daughter  of  Dr.  Samuel  Birmingham.  Two 
children,  a  daughter  and  son,  were  born  unto 
them.  Lillie  Eva  married  Dr.  Charles  F.  Mc- 
Gahan,  now  of  Chattanooga,  Tennessee ;  James 
Franklin  married  Jennette  L.  Lewis,  of  Racine, 
Wisconsin,  and  resides  at  Highland  Park,  Illinois. 


HKXRV    IVES   COBB, 


CHICAGO.    ILL 


HEXRV  IVES  COBB  was  born  in  Brook- 
line,  Massachusetts.  Having  received  a 
thorough  preliminary  education,  he  entered  Har- 
vard University,  taking  the  literary  and  scientific 
course.  His  preliminary  architectural  training 
was  received  at  the  Massachusetts  institute  of 
Technology  and  in  Europe.  Entering  the  office 
of  one  of  the  leading  architects  of  Boston,  he 
soon  rose  to  a  prominent  position  among  the 
architects  of  the  United  States.  In  1881.  he 
visited  Chicago  and  designed  and  superintended 
the  construction  of  the  Union  Club  House.  The 
demand  which  then  arose  for  his  services  was 
such  as  to  warrant  him  in  locating  there  perma- 
nently. Since  that  time  he  has  ranked  as  one  of 
the  most  skillful  architects  in  this  country. 

In  1882,  Mr.  Cobb  married  Miss  Emma  M. 
Smith,  a  daughter  of  the  late  Augustus  Smith, 
Esq.,  a  prominent  attorney  of  New  York  City. 
They  have  six  children  :  Henry  Ives,  Jr.,  Cleve- 
land, Leonore,  Candler,  Elliot  and  Priscilla. 

Mr.  Cobb  is  one  of  the  National  Board  of 
Architects  of  the  World's  Columbian  Exposition, 
1893.  Among  the  many  notable  buildings  which 
Mr.  Cobb  has  designed,  and  which  are  conspicuous 


monuments  to  his  skill  and  enterprise,  are  the 
Owings  building,  Adams  and  Dearborn  streets, 
Chicago,  a  magnificent  structure,  and  where  his 
offices  are  located  ;  the  Chicago  Opera  House, 
the  Kinzie  Hotel,  the  St.  Charles  Roman  Catholic 
Buildings,  the  Chicago  Athletic  Association  Club 
House,  the  Newberry  Library  building,  and 
Cook  County  Abstract  building.  Outside  of 
Chicago  may  be  mentioned  as  the  work  of  Mr. 
Cobb;  The  Knoxville  Hotel,  Knoxvillc,  Tenn., 
probably  the  largest  building  in  that  State ;  the 
Bishop  Hospital,  Pittsficld,  Mass.;  the  South  San 
Francisco  Co.  buildings,  a  whole  town  of  build- 
ings designed  by  him,  at  South  San  Francisco, 
California;  Blackstonc  Memorial  buildings, 
Brantford,  Conn.;  Donald  Fletcher's  residence, 
Denver,  Colorado;  Watkin's  Bank  building, 
Lawrence,  Kansas,  one  of  the  finest  structures  in 
the  State. 

He  has  been  a  great  traveler,  having  traveled 
over  the  civilized  world,  and  has  visited  every 
important  library  in  making  a  study  of  libraries. 
Every  other  year  he  goes  to  Europe  for  study, 
research  and  investigation  in  connection  with 
professional  work. 


176 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  A.\D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


For  about  five  years,  beginning  with  1882,  he 
had  a  partner  and  conducted  his  business  under 
the  firm  name  of  Cobb  and  Frost.  Since  the 
year  1887,  however,  he  has  been  in  business  by 
himself. 

Mr.  Cobb  is  a  man  of  robust  constitution,  easy, 


graceful  demeanor,  cool  and  deliberate,  yet  active 
and  energetic,  a  man  who  involuntarily  impresses 
his  hearers  with  his  ir  tellectual  worth.  He  is  a 
member  of  the  Chicago,  Universitj-  and  Union 
Clubs  and  president  of  the  Mascoutah  Kennel 
Club  of  Chicago. 


SAMUEL   PARKER    HEDGES.  I\LD., 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


AS  early  as  1730,  there  came  to  America  an 
English  family  by  the  name  of  Hedges. 
There  was  also  another  English  family  here  be- 
fore the  Revolutionary  war,  which  was  noted  in 
the  person  of  Sir  Charles  Parker,  who  com- 
manded a  fleet  before  Boston  harbor  in  that  war. 
Sprung  from  this  brave  ancestry  were,  respec- 
tively, Elias  S.  Hedges  and  Rebecca  Parker,  from 
whose  union  came  the  subject  of  this  sketch. 

Samuel  Parker  Hedges  was  born  July  23,  1841, 
in  Sinclairsville,  Chautauqua  county,  New  York. 
After  graduating  from  the  public  schools  he  pre- 
pared for  college  at  the  Jamestown  Academy. 
He  had  just  entered  the  office  of  his  uncle,  Dr. 
W.  S.  Hedges,  of  Jamestown,  to  begin  the  study 
of  medicine,  when  there  was  issued  by  President 
Lincoln  a  call  for  additional  soldiers  to  carry  on 
the  late  Civil  war.  A  true  patriot,  he  laid  aside 
his  books  and  enlisted  as  a  private  in  the  one 
hundred  and  twelfth  regiment  of  New  York  Vol- 
unteer Infantry,  entering  service  on  the  23d  day 
of  July,  1862,  the  same  being  his  twenty-first 
birthday.  From  private  to  sergeant  and  orderly- 
sergeant,  were  quick  promotions.  His  superior 
officers  being  disabled  he  commanded  his  com- 
pany in  the  battle  of  the  Deserted  House,  and 
won  a  second  lieutenant's  commission.  Soon 
after,  he  was  made  aide-de-camp  on  the  staff  of 
Brigadier-General  R.  S.  P'oster,  and  later,  first 
lieutenant  and  adjutant  of  his  regiment. 

In  1864,  Foster's  brigade,  under  the  command 
of  Gen.  Butler,  was  operating  on  the  James  River, 
and  on  May  i6th  of  that  year,  Lieut.  Hedges  was 
captured  by  the  confederates.  Three  weeks  in 
Libby  Prison,  two  months  at  Macon,  five  weeks 
at  Savannah  and  two  months  at  Charleston,  S.  C, 
exposed  to  the  Union  batteries,  were  followed  by 
a  winter  in  the  open  fields  across  Siluda  Ri\er. 


After  ten  months,  the  confederates,  unable  to 
provide  even  the  most  wretched  fare  for  the  four- 
teen hundred  prisoners,  offered  a  parole  if  they 
would  bind  themselves  to  abstain  from  service 
against  the  confederacy.  Not  a  man  would  take 
the  oath,  and  they  were  finally  turned  loose  nine 
miles  from  Wilmington,  North  Carolina.  When 
Lieut.  Hedges  went  into  prison  his  weight  was 
one  hundred  and  forty  pounds.  On  the  day 
he  dragged  himself  to  Wilmington  he  weighed 
barely  eighty-seven  pounds,  and  he  has  never  en- 
tirely recovered  from  the  effects  of  his  captivit\-. 
He  closed  his  career  under  the  Union  flag  as 
captain  of  his  company. 

After  the  war  he  resumed  the  study  of  medi- 
cine in  the  Cleveland  Homceopathic  College,  tak- 
ing his  degree  in  1867,  at  Hahnemann  Medical 
College,  Chicago,  where,  from  1869  to  1874,  he 
filled  the  chair  of  general  and  descriptive  anato- 
my. In  1887  and  in  1890,  he  was  made  chair- 
man of  the  Bureau  of  Gynaechologj*  in  the 
American  Institute  of  Homceopathy.  He  was 
secretary  and  president  of  the  Cook  County 
Homoeopathic  Medical  Society,  and  has  been 
president  of  the  Illinois  State  Homoeopathic 
Medical  Society,  and  an  esteemed  member  of 
many  others. 

Dr.  Hedges  has  traveled  all  over  the  United 
States  and  Canada,  but  it  was  in  his  native  State 
that  he  found  his  wife,  Miss  Rachel  Danforth, 
daughter  of  Dr.  E.  H.  Danforth,  of  Jamestown. 
Mrs.  Hedges,  a  graduate  of  Mt.  Holyoke  Sem- 
inary, is  devoted  to  her  domestic  affairs,  and  is 
highly  valued  in  her  church,  and  as  a  Bible 
teacher.  From  this  union  have  been  born  nine 
children,  of  whom  five  are  now  living,  viz. : 
Corinna,  aged  si.xteen  ;  William  E.,  aged  fifteen  ; 
Robert  D.,  aged   thirteen  :    Grace,  aged  twelve. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


179 


and  Samuel  G..  aged  seven.  Dr.  Hedges  has  one 
brother  who  lives  in  Dakota,  and  who  is  surveyor 
of  his  county,  and  an  irrigation  engineer. 

In  1872,  Dr.  Hedges  was  made  a  Master  Ma- 
son at  the  Lincoln  Park  Lodge,  No.  611.  He 
has  always  been  a  staunch  Republican,  although 
non-partisan. 

Probably  in  no  capacity  is   Ur.    Hedges  more 


appreciated  than  as  a  church-member.  He  is  an 
Elder  and  Sunday-School  Superintendent  in  the 
First  Presbyterian  Church,  of  Lake  View,  and  is 
known  as  an  earnest  and  active  worker,  and  a 
generous  giver  to  every  worthy  cause.  As  a 
physician,  he  ranks  among  the  eminent  of  his 
profession  ;  as  a  man,  he  is  honored  and  trusted, 
and  beloved  by  all  who  know  him. 


WARREN    F.  LELAND, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


THE  subject  of  this  sketch  is  one  of  seven 
brothers  whose  name  and  fame  have  be- 
come world-wide  in  connection  with  elegant, 
finely  appointed  hotels. 

He  is  a  native  of  the  Green  Mountain  State, 
and  was  born  at  Landgrove,  June  i,  1845,  the 
son  of  Aaron  P.  and  Submit  (Arnold)  Leland, 
both  of  whom  were  natives  of  New  England. 
Aaron  P.  Leland  was  an  extensive  stage  proprie- 
tor and  mail  contractor  fifty  years  ago,  and  well 
known  in  the  New  England  States  and  New  York 
as  an  energetic,  thorough-going  business  man,  and 
about  1810  Simeon  Leland,  his  father,  opened 
the  Green  Mountain  Coffee  House.  His  great- 
grandfather, the  Rev.  Aaron  Leland,  was  a  noted 
Baptist  minister  and  author,  of  Berkshire  county, 
Mass.  He  was  a  man  of  large  brain,  great  sagac- 
ity and  strong  will  power,  and  had  a  great 
influence  among  the  common  people  of  western 
Massachusetts  in  the  early  days  of  the  Republic. 
In  1801  he  sent  Thomas  Jefferson,  then  just 
seated  in  the  presidential  chair,  a  cheese,  out  of 
pure  regard  for  the  author  of  the  Declaration  of 
Independence.  The  Leland  family  came  origi- 
nally from  England,  two  brothers  coming  to  this 
country'  soon  after  the  settlement  of  Plymouth 
and  Boston.  The  maternal  grandfather  of  our 
subject  was  Judge  Samuel  Arnold,  of  London- 
derry, V^ermont,  an  eminent  jurist  of  his  day. 
When  our  subject  was  quite  young,  the  family 
removed  to  Ohio,  and  afterwards  to  New  York. 

Grandfather  Simeon  Leland  had  si.\  sons,  Lewis, 
Aaron  P.,  Simeon,  William,  Warren  and  Charles. 
The  last  four  became  noted  and  successful  hotel- 
keepers.  Of  these  si.x,  but  one  is  now  (1892)  alive, 
viz.,  Warren  Leland,  formerly  of  the  Grand  Union 


Hotel  of  Saratoga,  now  Oglethorpe  Hotel,  Bruns- 
wick, Ga.  The  father  of  our  subject,  Aaron  P. 
Leland,  ultimately  located  near  Newburgh,  Ohio, 
and  engaged  in  stock  raising.  Our  subject's 
brothers  were:  John,  who  died  at  an  early  age; 
Lewis,  formerly  of  the  Sturtevant  House,  New 
York  City  ;  Horace,  of  the  Sturtevant,  and  also  of 
the  Leland  Hotel,  at  Springfield,  Illinois,  who 
died  in  August,  1889;  George  S.,  formerly  of  the 
Sturtevant,  who  died  in  August,  1881  ;  Jerome, 
formerly  of  the  Sturtevant,  and  the  Columbian, 
at  Saratoga,  New  York,  who  died  in  April,  1884, 
and  Charles  E.,  proprietor  of  the  Delevan,  at 
Albany,  the  Clarenden,  at  Saratoga,  New  York, 
and  the  Portland  Hotel,  at  Portland,  Oregon. 

In  1852  Warren,  being  then  fifteen  years  old, 
went  to  New  York  City  and  took  a  humble  posi- 
tion in  the  Metropolitan  Hotel,  of  which  his  four 
uncles  were  then  proprietors.  Beginning  in  the 
store-room,  he  was  gradually  promoted  until,  in 
1866,  he  had  the  honor  of  holding  the  position  of 
room  clerk.  In  that  year  he  went,  in  connection 
with  his  brother  Horace,  and  opened  the  Leland 
Hotel,  of  Springfield,  Illinois,  but  in  1867  re- 
turned to  the  East  and  took  the  position  of  chief 
office  man  in  the  Delevan  House  at  Albany,  New 
York,  of  which  his  brothers,  Charles  E.  and 
Lewis,  were  proprietors.  In  1872  he  became  a 
partner  in  the  business,  and  remained  there  until 
1880,  when  he  sold  his  interest  to  his  brother 
Charles,  his  brother  Lewis  having  previously 
withdrawn  from  the  firm.  Removing  to  Chicago 
in  1881,  Mr.  Leland  purchased  the  Gardiner 
House  property,  reconstructed  the  interior,  hand- 
somely refitted  and  furnished  it.  and  opened  what 
has  since  been  known  as  the  Leland  Hotel. 


I  So 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


As  a  business  venture,  the  enterprise  has  been 
eminently  successful  and  profitable,  the  invest- 
ment having  more  than  doubled  in  value. 

Mr.  Leland  was  married  December  i6,  1868,  to 
Miss  Lsabella  C.  Cobb,  of  Cleveland,  Ohio,  a  lady 
of  education  and  refinement.  They  have  four 
children,  viz.:  Warren,  Fannie  A.,  Ralph  C.  and 
Helen  M. 

Mr.  Leland  is  a  member  of  the  Calumet  Club, 
Washington  Park  and  Kenwood  Clubs,  and  of  the 
Masonic  order,  being  a  Knights  Templar.  He  is 
identified  with  the  Republican  party,  and  takes 
much  interest  in  local  and  national  politics,  but 
has  always  declined  ofifice,  both  civil  and  political. 

He  holds  to  the  Protestant  faith  in  religious 
matters,  but  is  not  identified  with  any  denomina- 
tion, being  somewhat  liberal  in  his  views. 

Mr.  Leland  was  largely  instrumental  in  procur- 
ing the  location  of  the  last  three  national  conven- 
tions at  Chicago,  viz.:  the  Republican  and  Demo- 
cratic conventions  of  1884,  and  the  Republican 
convention  of  1888.     He  also  took  a  prominent 


part  in  securing  the  location  of  the  World's  Co- 
lumbian E.xposition  at  Chicago.  He  has  taken 
an  active  interest  in  preserving  the  Lake  Front 
Park,  and  has  been  tireless  in  his  efforts  to  pre- 
vent encroachment  thereon.  The  Leland  Hotel 
is  located  at  the  corner  of  Michigan  avenue  and 
Jackson  street,  overlooking  this  park,  and  giving 
a  delightful  view  of  Lake  Michigan. 

Mr.  Leland  is  a  genial,  companionable  gentle- 
man, with  quick  perception  in  looking  after  the 
details  of  his  business,  always  watching  for  the 
comfort  and  welfare  of  his  guests.  His  hotel  is 
always  in  perfect  order,  and  it  is  but  just  to  say 
that  the  "  Leland  "  of  Chicago,  for  home  com- 
forts and  good  living,  is  second  to  no  hotel  on  the 
American  continent.  It  is  wonderfully  popular 
with  the  traveling  public,  and  particularly  with 
that  large  class  whose  opportunities  aptly  qualify 
them  to  be  judges  of  what  constitutes  a  good 
hotel  in  all  its  appointments  and  equipments — the 
commercial  travelers.  All  unite  in  saying  the 
"  Leland"  is  one  of  the  finest. 


ABRAM    WILLIAMS, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


OF  all  the  prominent  insurance  companies  and 
their  managers,  located  or  having  Western 
departments  in  Chicago,  there  are  none  more 
prominent,  more  successful,  or  better  known  than 
is  the  subject  of  this  sketch — Abram  Williams, 
born  March  31,  1830,  at  Utica,  N.  Y.  His 
father  was  Abraham  B.  Williams,  one  of  the 
State  Canal  Commissioners.  His  paternal  grand- 
father was  a  prominent  minister  amongst  the 
Baptist  denomination  of  that  State  ;  he  came  to 
this  country  from  Chester,  England,  in  1795;  his 
mother  was  Olive  Barnum,  of  Danbury,  Con- 
necticut, daughter  of  Ezra  Barnum,  a  clergyman, 
who  took  active  part  in  the  Revolutionary  war. 

Educated  in  the  common  schools  and  acade- 
mies of  his  native  town,  Utica,  N.  Y.,  at  the  age 
of  fourteen  young  Williams  left  school,  having 
acquired  a  good  common  school  education,  and 
being  desirous  of  making  his  own  way  in  life,  for, 
on  the  death  of  his  father,  in  1844  (our  subject 
being  just  then  fourteen  years  of  age),  the  task 
of  supporting  a  family  of  five  children  devolved 


upon  his  mother,  who,  be  it  said  to  her  credit, 
carried  out  this  task  in  an  exemplary  and  thor' 
ough  manner.  One  of  his  brothers.  Nelson  G., 
being  educated  at  West  Point,  afterwards  be- 
came colonel  of  the  Third  Iowa  Regiment, 
and  was  promoted  to  brigadier-general  for  gal- 
lant service  at  the  battle  of  Shiloh.  His  three 
sisters  have  all  done  well,  received  a  good  educa- 
tion and  have  been  prominent  in  their  own  circles 
generally. 

Deciding  to  try  his  luck  in  the  great  city  of 
New  York,  young  Williams,  with  but  a  few  dol- 
lars in  his  pocket,  proceeded  there,  and  after  much 
effort — for  he  was  young  and  inexperienced — 
he  obtained  a  situation  with  Peter  Murray,  im- 
porter of  fancy  goods,  notions,  etc.,  Maiden 
Lane,  New  York  City,  remaining  here  for  a 
number  of  years.  Subsequently  he  became  a 
a  buyer  for  Wm.  H.  Cary  &  Co.,  who  conducted 
a  business  of  a  similar  nature,  and  in  1852 
formed  the  house  of  Sheldon,  Harris  &  Williams, 
Liberty  street,  New  York.     This  business  grew  in 


^<^^<a4t<^ 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  A.XD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


183 


proportions:  success  attended  their  efforts.  In 
fact,  the  trade  they  did  became  of  such  import- 
ance as  to  warrant  their  establishing,  in  1854,  a 
branch  house  in  Paris,  and  here  Mr.  Williams  for 
some  time  resided.  But  his  attention  to  his 
duties  and  the  business  affairs  generally  of  the 
house  had  been  such  that  at  length  his  health 
gave  way,  and  he  was  forced  to  relinquish  his 
connection  with  the  firm.  Going  west  in  1856  he 
settled  at  Dubuque,  Iowa.  Two  years  later  this 
city  underwent  a  severe  financial  crisis,  and  Mr. 
Williams,  amongst  the  other  prominent  mer- 
chants of  the  city,  was  for  a  time  considerably 
embarrassed,  but  he  manfully  determined  to  per- 
severe ;  he  brought  to  bear  upon  his  business 
renewed  energy,  and  the  result  was  that  by  i860 
he  had  wiped  out  every  debt  he  had,  through 
these  unfortunate  circumstances,  contracted. 
Though  in  accomplishing  this  he  was  left  virtu- 
ally without  a  dollar  of  available  capital  with 
which  to  restart.  Appointed,  however,  a  deputy 
court  clerk  this  year,  he  occupied  this  position 
until  he  entered  the  army,  in  1862. 

Commissioned  first  lieutenant  in  the  Sixth 
Iowa  Cavalry,  he  was  ultimately  promoted  to 
Chief  of  Cavalry  on  Gen.  Alfred  Sully's  staff.  In 
the  winter  of  1864-5,  being  assigned  to  additional 
duties  of  (A.  A.  Q.  M.)  Acting  Assistant  Quarter- 
master, the  active  and  energetic  manner  in  which 
he  filled  this  position,  and  the  ingenuity,  tact 
and  great  determination  he  displayed  in  deal- 
ing with  the  recreant  Illinois  Central  Railroad  at 
this  time,  who  much  embarrassed  the  government 
by  their  seemingly  stubborn  behavior,  received 
the  highest  commendation  —  all  this  is  a  mat- 
ter of  military  history.  He  took  possession  of 
their  road  as  far  as  the  necessity  of  government 
service  and  facility  required,  and  also  of  the 
railroads  of  Iowa,  shipped  the  grain  required  to 
Cairo,  kept  up  the  supply  and  thus  carried  out 
the  orders  and  commands  of  his  superior  officers. 
This  course,  though  it  necessitated  or  rather 
resulted  in  considerable  inconvenience  to  the 
numerous  shippers  along  these  roads,  it  was, 
nevertheless,  unavoidable.  The  people,  and 
through  them  the  government,  required  certain 
supplies,  and  this  fact  alone  was  sufficient  legally. 
The  necessity  was  great,  the  cause  just,  and  the 
end  in  view  certainly  justified  the  means.  The 
railroad  companies  appealed  to  General  Pope,  and 


he  undertook  to  rescue  them  from  Assistant  Quar- 
termaster Williams'  hold,  but  his  attempt  was 
futile,  for  the  Quartermaster  determined  to  hold 
them,  and  he  did  hold  them  until  the  supply  had 
been  shipped,  and  General  Thomas'  Army  of  the 
Tennessee  was  thus  enabled  to  continue  its 
campaign.  For  this,  Mr.  Williams  received  the 
commendations  of  his  superior  officers,  though 
the  railroad  company  sued  the  government  for 
heavy  damages,  with  what  result  is  not  known. 

His  term  of  service  expiring  in  1865,  he  re- 
turned to  Dubuque,  Iowa,  and  here  became  con- 
nected with  the  insurance  business,  becoming 
general  agent  for  the  Yonkers  and  New  York 
Fire  Insurance  Co.,  of  New  York.  In  1869  the 
States  of  Ohio  and  Michigan,  and  all  the  States 
and  Territories  west,  were  added  by  this  com- 
pany, the  head  offices  being  then  removed  to 
Chicago,  Mr.  Williams  himself  locating  here  in 
August  of  this  year,  continuing  its  successful 
career.  In  the  great  fire  of  1871,  Mr.  Williams 
was  crippled,  and  forced  to  have  recourse  to 
the  use  of  crutches  for  over  two  years,  owing 
to  his  endeavors  during  the  fire  to  save  his  com- 
pany's books  and  valuable  documents,  etc.  In 
1874  the  Continental  Fire  Insurance  Company, 
of  New  York,  appointed  him  their  Western  man- 
ager, in  which  position  he  continued  until  the  fall 
of  1884,  when  he  was  offered  and  accepted  a 
similar  position  with  the  Connecticut  Hartford 
Company,  organizing  its  Western  department, 
its  business  at  this  time  amounted  to  but  a 
little  over  two  hundred  thousand  dollars,  while 
now  it  has  so  grown  and  developed  that  at  present 
it  amounts  to  over  six  hundred  thousand  dol- 
lars! Truly  a  phenomenal  growth!  He  is  still 
its  Western  manager.  He  has  also  held  the 
office  of  president  of  the  Northwestern  Associa- 
tion of  Fire  Underwriters.  Prominent,  also,  in 
spcial  circles,  he  has  been  a  vice-president  of  the 
Iroquois  Club.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Union 
League  and  Calumet  Clubs.  A  warden  of  Grace 
Episcopal  Church,  he  has,  for  si.xteen  years,  been 
an  officer  of  this  church.  A  man  of  much  cul- 
ture, he  has  traveled  extensively,  both  in  this 
country  and  in    Europe. 

In  politics  a  Democrat,  measures  and  men, 
rather  than  party,  have  his  strongest  support. 

Married,  in  1852,  to  Miss  Frances  S.  Raynolds, 
of  Rochester,  N.  Y.     Mrs.  Williams  is  a  daughter 


1 84 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


of  William  L.  Raynolds,  a  prominent  merchant 
engaged  in  forwarding,  shipping,  etc.  They  have 
had  four  children,  two  of  whom  are  dead.  His 
son.  Nelson  B.  Williams,  is  an  iron  merchant  and 
warehouseman  in  this  city,  his  daughter,  Frances 
J.,  is  a  resident  at  home. 


Of  much  ability,  general  worth  and  of  social  and 
commercial  prominence,  Abram  Williams  stands 
high  amongst  the  citizens  of  Chicago,  and  as  a 
thoroughly  representative  citizen  of  this  great 
city  he  is  entitled  to  a  place  amongst  her  repre- 
sentative men. 


FRANKLIN    W.  FISK, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


FRANKLIN  WOODBURY  FISK,  son  of 
Ebenezer  and  Hannah  Proctor  Fisk,  was 
born  in  Hopkinton,  New  Hampshire,  February 
1 6,  1820.  On  his  father's  side,  his  lineage  is 
traceable  to  Symond  Fisk,  Lord  of  the  Manor  of 
Stradhaugh,  Parish  of  Laxfield,  County  of  Suf- 
folk, England,  who  lived  in  the  reigns  of  Henry 
IV  and  V  (from  A.  D.  1399  to  1422). 

He  entered  Phillips  Academy,  Andover,  Mass., 
in  the  autumn  of  1835.  Having  no  pecuniary 
resources  with  which  to  acquire  a  liberal  education, 
he  engaged  alternately  in  teaching  and  study 
until  he  entered  Yale  College,  in  1845.  At  his 
graduation,  in  1849,  he  was  the  valedictorian  of 
his  class.  He  was  graduated  at  the  Yale  Divinity 
School  in  1852  ;  was  tutor  in  Yale  College  from 
185 1  to  1853  ;  attended  lectures  in  Andover  Theo- 
logical Seminary  from  January  to  May,  1853,  and 
traveled  in  Europe  from  May  till  November  of 
that  year.  Compelled  by  disease  of  his  eyes  to 
give  up,  for  a  time,  the  hope  of  entering  the  min- 
istry, he  declined  several  invitations  to  important 
pastorates  and  accepted  the  professorship  of  rhet- 
oric and  English  literature  in  Beloit  College,  Be- 
loit,  Wisconsin,  to  which  he  had  been  appointed 
while  abroad,  entered  upon  its  duties  in  April, 
1854,  and  continued  in  that  position  till  July, 
1859. 

He  was  elected,  April,  1856,  to  the  chair  of 
sacred  rhetoric  in  Chicago  Theological  Seminary, 
and  was  inaugurated  April  28,  1859.  He  received 
the  degree  of  doctor  of  divinity  from  Olivet  Col- 
lege, Michigan,  in  1865,  and  from  Yale  University 
in  1886,  also  the  degree  of  doctor  of  laws  from 
Beloit  College  in  1888.  In  the  autumn  and  winter 
of  1871-72,  he  attended  lectures  in  the  University 
of  Berlin,  after  which  he  spent  a  year  in  traveling 
in  Europe,  Egypt  and  Palestine. 


In  1887  he  became  president  of  Chicago  Theo- 
logical Seminary,  with  which  he  was  connected 
as  professor  for  thirty-three  years.  His  lectures 
on  homiletics  have  been  published  in  a  manual  of 
preaching,  which  is  used  as  a  text-book  in  several 
institutions.  He  has  been  conspicuous,  also,  in 
aiding  to  secure  the  endowment  and  equipment 
of  the  Seminary.  This  "  School  of  the  Prophets  " 
has  a  standing  not  inferior  to  that  of  any  theo- 
logical seminary  in  this  countrj'.  It  was  organ- 
ized in  1854  by  a  convention  of  the  Congrega- 
tional churches  of  the  Northwest.  It  opened  its 
doors  for  students  in  1858,  and  has  since  had 
remarkable  growth  and  prosperity.  The  youngest 
but  one  of  the  seven  Congregational  theological 
seminaries  in  the  United  States,  it  has  now  the 
largest  number  of  students.  To  its  English 
departments,  with  their  nine  professors  and  in- 
structors, there  have  been  added  German,  Swed- 
ish, and  Dano-Norwegian  departments,  with  six 
professors  and  instructors.  It  has  graduated  four 
hundred  and  eighty-three  students,  and  about  one 
thousand  have  been  connected  with  its  classes 
for  a  longer  or  shorter  period.  They  are  now 
laboring  successfully  in  nearly  every  State  and 
Territory  of  the  Union,  and  in  many  foreign  fields. 
Its  buildings — Keyes  Hall,  Carpenter  Hall,  and 
Fisk  Hall,  beautifully  located  opposite  Union 
Park — furnish  ample  study  and  dormitory  rooms 
for  the  accommodation  of  two  hundred  and  ten 
students,  besides  chapel,  lecture,  and  reception 
rooms,  professors'  studies,  treasurer's  office,  gym- 
nasium, etc.  Hammond  library,  with  its  more 
than  eleven  thousand  volumes,  and  its  reading- 
room  well  supplied  with  a  large  variety  of  the 
best  newspapers  and  periodicals,  has  room  for 
fifty  thousand  volumes.  The  board  of  direc- 
tors   of    the    Seminary,    tweiUy-four    in    number, 


-**^ 


uAi.:. 


v^ 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIO.XARY  A.\D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


187 


represent  Michigan,  Indiana,  Illinois,  Wisconsin, 
Iowa,  Missouri,  Minnesota,  Kansas,  Nebraska, 
North  and  South  Dakota,  Colorado  and  Wyo- 
ming. Its  board  of  examiners  are  appointed  by 
the  several  State  associations,  and  through  its  tri- 
ennial conventions,  which  elect  the  directors,  the 
Seminary  is  kept  in  vital  connection  with  the 
churches.  At  this  date,  1892,  the  permanent 
productive  endowments  of  the  Seminary  amount 
to  four  hundred  and  eighty-eight  thousand  two 
hundred  and  twenty-nine  dollars.  The  estimated 
value  of  its  buildings,  grounds,  etc.,  is  three  hun- 
dred and  eight  thousand  two  hundred  and  twenty- 
nine  dollars,  and  its  miscellaneous  assets  thirty- 
five  thousand  four  hundred  and  twenty-seven 
dollars.  The  officers  of  the  board  of  directors 
are  William  E.  Hale,  Esq.,  president:  Messrs.  E. 
W.  Blatchford  and  H.N.  Holden,  vice-presidents; 


Rev.  G.  S.  F.  Savage,  D.D.,  secretary,  and  Mr. 
H.  W.  Chester,  treasurer.  Its  faculty  comprises 
Professors  Franklin  W.  Fisk,  George  N.  Board- 
man,  Samuel  I.  Curtiss,  Giles  B.  Willcox,  Hugh 
W.  Scott,  George  H.  Gilbert.  J.  Edward  Hermann, 
Reinert  A.  Jornberg,  Fridolf  Risberg,  Caleb  F. 
Gates,  Magnus  E.  Peterson,  J.  R.  J.  Anthony, 
Marcus  W.  Montgomery,  Edward  T.  Harper,  and 
O.  C.  Graucr. 

In  1S54,  President  Fisk  was  united  in  marriage 
with  Mrs.  Amelia  A.  Austin,  daughter  of  the  late 
George  Bowen,  Esq.,  of  Woodstock,  Connecticut. 
Mrs.  Fisk  died  in  May,  1 881,  and  in  December, 
1885,  he  married  Mrs.  S.  J.  Hitchcock,  daughter 
of  Deacon  Elijah  Gardner,  of  Lake  Geneva,  Wis- 
consin. Three  children  were  born  to  him  by  his 
first  marriage — Franklin  Proctor,  Amelia  Maria, 
and  Henry  Edward. 


HON.  FRANK   SCALES, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


IN  the  spring  of  171 5  the  treacherous  tribe  of 
the  Yemasses,  made  a  sudden  and  unex- 
pected attack  upon  the  colonists  of  the  Carolinas, 
resulting  in  the  massacre  of  over  four  hundred 
persons  and  the  burning  of  hundreds  of  homes. 
An  organized  force  was  raised  by  the  colonists 
and  led  by  Colonel  Scales  against  the  Indians, 
who  were  defeated  and  chased  through  the  wilder- 
ness across  the  Florida  border.  This  is  the  first 
record  we  have  of  the  Scales  family  in  the  Caro- 
linas, whose  lineage  runs  back  amongst  the  oldest 
of  the  early  settlers.  The  family  was  not  only 
prominent  in  the  defense  of  the  colony,  but  was 
intimately  connected  with  the  progress  and  devel- 
opment of  that  commonwealth.  Colonel  Samuel 
H.  Scales,  the  father  of  the  subject  of  this  sketch, 
was  born  in  Carolina  and  inherited  valuable  plan- 
tations, which  for  years  he  successfully  cultivated. 
In  1826  he  removed  to  La  Fayette  county,  Wis- 
consin, where  he  at  once  identified  himself  with 
the  farming  and  mining  interests  of  the  district. 
Here  Frank  was  born,  February  19th,  1848,  on 
his  father's  farm,  and  remained  there  until  he  was 
seventeen  years  old. 

The   opportunities   for   education    forty   years 
ago,    on    a    Wisconsin    farm,    were  few,    and  the 


amount  limited,  yet  it  is  a  remarkable  fact  that 
many  of  the  ablest  men  of  this  century  are  those 
who  had  these  difficulties  in  early  life.  Young 
Scales  received  his  elementary  education  by  pri- 
vate tuition  and  at  the  public  school.  When  old 
enough  he  assisted  on  the  farm  in  summer  and 
went  to  school  in  winter.  He  was  physically  strong 
and  well  developed  and  had  both  facility  and 
success  in  study — often  doing  as  much  in  the 
winter  half  as  other  boys  could  complete  in 
the  whole  year.  His  ability  and  aptitude  was 
easily  recognized  and  he  was  sent  to  Chicago  to 
study,  where  he  completed  his  course  in  1S66. 
He  was  then  entered  at  the  University  of  George- 
town, D.  C.  Amongst  his  fellow-students  he  was 
very  popular  by  his  social  habits  and  cheerful  dis- 
position, his  quiet  but  earnest  application  to  study, 
and  by  his  fondness  for  and  success  in  outdoor 
.sports.  His  professors  had  a  high  opinion  of 
him,  not  only  because  he  was  an  industrious  and 
docile  pupil  but  because  of  his  cheerful  and 
honorable  character.  He  finished  his  university 
course  in  1868  with  honor,  and  immediately  se- 
lected the  law  as  a  profession.  In  order  to  carry 
out  this  resolution  he  entered  the  law  office  of 
Messrs.   Knowlton  and  Jameson,  of  this  city,  and 


i88 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AND  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


there  studied  the  principles  and  practice  of  law. 
Gifted  with  an  excellent  memory,  a  clear  under- 
standing and  a  firm  will,  he  readily  mastered  the 
principles  of  his  chosen  profession.  He  was  ad- 
mitted to  practice  by  the  late  Judge  McAllister 
in  1870.  His  thorough  knowledge  of  the  prin- 
ciples of  common  law  and  his  facility  in  applying 
them,  was  easily  recognized  by  the  able  lawyers 
with  whom  he  studied,  and  they  readily  admitted 
him  to  the  firm,  which  from  that  time  became: 
Knowlton,  Jameson  &  Scales.  His  untiring  in- 
dustry and  natural  ability  soon  gained  for  him  a 
high  position  at  the  Cook  County  bar,  where  he 
has  practiced  uninterruptedly  for  twenty-one 
years. 

In    1 87 1    an  incident  occurred  that  tested  the 
grit  of  the  young  lawyer.     In  the  fire  of  that  year 
the  firm  lost  its  extensive  library   and  valuable 
papers.     To  increase  the  dif^culty.  Judge  Knowl- 
ton retired  from  the  firm  through  ill  health,  and 
Mr.   Jameson  was   elected   City   attorney.     This 
crisis  only  brought  out  more  clearly  the  strength 
of  character  and  indomitable  energy  of  Mr.  Scales. 
He  continued  the  work  alone,  built  up  a  lucrative 
practice  and  earned  a  high  reputation.    Since  that 
time  he  has  been  engaged  in  some  of  the  most 
important  cases  of  litigation  that  have  come  before 
the   Cook  County  bench.     He  was   the   leading 
counsel  in  the  litigated  case  of  the  estate  of  Dean 
Richmond,  which   involved   very  large  interests, 
and   although  opposed  by  lawyers   of   the   very 
highest   reputation  he  came  out   of  the  contest 
successful.     He   was   also  engaged  in  the   Gage 
real  estate  case,  where,  in  conformity  with  his  argu- 
ment, it  was  settled  that  when  real  estate  was  sold 
for  taxes  it  should  henceforth  be  the  duty  of  the 
county  clerk  to  include  all  subsequent  taxes  in  the 
claim.     This  settled  a  question  of  very  great  im- 
portance to  the  owners  of  real  estate;  and  for  his 
able  statement  and  argument  Mr.  Scales  received 
great  credit.     During  late  years  Mr.  Scales  con- 
fined himself  to  office  practice.     As  a  lawyer  he  is 
ready  in  his  application  of  the  fundamental  prin- 
ciples of  law,  exhaustive  in  his  examination  of  a 
subject,  painstaking  in  weighing  and  comparing 
authorities,  simple  and  concise  in  his  arrangement 
of  facts,  and  clear  and  logical  in  his  deductions. 
His  statement  of  a  case  is  natural,   forcible  and 
convincing.     As  an  orator  he  stands  high  in  his 
profession,  but  he  prefers  logic  to  poetry  and  is 


more  willing  to  quote   Blackstone  than  Shakes- 
peare. 

In  politics  he  is  a  life-long  democrat.      While 
tolerant  and  liberal  with  those  who  differ  from 
him,  he  is  an  earnest  and  able  exponent  of  the 
principles  of   his   party.     He  seeks  no  office  out- 
side his  profession.     In  October,  1890,  the  Demo- 
cratic party  unanimously  selected  Mr.  Scales  as 
their  candidate  for  the  County  Court  bench    of 
Cook  County,  and  they  secured  his  election  the 
following  month  by  a  verj^  large  majority.     This 
honor  and  well-deserved  preferment  was  conferred 
upon  him  unsolicited  and  was  accepted  as  a  proof 
that  his  practice  as  a  lawyer  and  his  conduct  as  a 
democrat  was  considered  honorable  and  honest. 
Since  his  elevation  to  the  bench  Judge  Scales  has 
won  for  himself  golden    opinions.     Impartial   in 
the  discharge  of  his  duty,  and  kind  in  his  manner, 
he  receives  with  ease  and  dignity  the  humblest 
individual  that  appears  in  his  court.  While  always 
affable  and  courteous,  he  sets  a  high  standard  of 
professional  ethics.    His   decisions   are   delivered 
in  the  most  concise  form  consistent  with  an  easy 
and  graceful  style.  Simple,  lucid,  perspicuous  and 
bearing  evidence  of  care  and  study.     When  we 
consider  the  various  and  important  duties  of  the 
County  Court  Judge,  which  in  addition   to  the 
common  law  cases  which  necessarily  come  before 
him,  and  also  the  duties  of  the  Election  Board  of 
which  he  is  ex-ofificio  the  presiding  officer,  he  has 
also   the  insane  and  the  support   cases,   the   in- 
solvency, voluntary  assignment  and  imprisonment 
for  debt  cases;  to  which  we  may  add  the  examina- 
tion of  requisitions,  assessments  and  taxes;  we  have 
to  admit  that  the  time  of  the  Judge  is  fully  occu- 
pied and  that  to  accomplish  its  many  duties  satis- 
factorily deserves  the  greatest  credit.     Amongst 
the  very  able  men  who  have  presided  in  this  court 
no  one  has  received  higher  encomiums  from  the 
press,   the   people   and   the   profession   than    its 
present  occupant,  and  we  believe  that  the  desire  is 
to  request  him  to  retain  the  position  he  so  ably 
fills. 

Judge  Scales  is  about  forty-three  years  of  age, 
above  the  average  height,  well  proportioned,  with 
pleasing  and  expressive  features.  He  is  graceful 
and  dignified  in  manner  and  never  seems  more  at 
ease  than  when  presiding  over  his  court  and  guid- 
ing, checking  and  encouraging  the  galaxy  of  talent 
that  practice  there.     The  Judge  is  well  versed  in 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIO.XARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


189 


general  literature  and  spends  much  of  his  leisure  plished  wife  and  daughter.  An  affectionate  hus- 
in  the  study  of  classic  authors.  He  married  in  band  and  an  indulgent  father,  he  delights  to  sur- 
1872  and  resides  on  the  West  Side  with  his  accom-     round  his  family  with  every  comfort  and  luxury. 


ABNER   SMITH, 


CHIC.-\GO.    ILL. 


THE  gentleman  whose  name  heads  this  article 
is  a  prominent  lawyer  at  the  Chicago  bar. 
He  is  very  adroit  in  the  management  of  cases,  and 
he  has  a  power  and  quickness  of  repartee  and  an 
ability  to  adapt  himself  to  emergencies,  that  are 
singularly  effective  in  his  clients'  interests  and  de- 
structive to  the  plans  of  opposing  counsel.  He  is 
an  able  advocate,  ready,  fluent  and  logical.  He  is 
thoroughly  posted  in  all  of  the  intricacies  of  his 
profession,  being  familiar  with  the  authorities  and 
can  readily  support  his  propositions  with  decisions 
directly  in  point.  He  is  a  good  judge  of  human 
nature,  and  his  cross-examinations  show  him  to  be 
master  of  the  art. 

Our  subject  is  a  native  of  Massachusetts,  and 
was  born  at  Orange  in  that  State  August  4, 
1843.  and  is  the  fourth  son  of  Humphrey  and 
Sophronia  A.  Smith.  He  was  liberally  and  thor- 
oughly educated,  having  graduated  with  honors 
from  Middlebury  College,  Vermont,  in  1866. 

Like  many  other  sons  of  New  England  who 
have  risen  in  the  world,  he  commenced  life  as  a 
teacher.  In  that  capacity  he  was  in  charge  of 
Newton  Academy  at  Shoreham.  Vt.,  until  1867, 
when  he  came  to  Chicago. 

He  entered  the  ofifice  of  J.  L.  Stark  as  a  student, 
and  assiduously  applied  himself  to  the  study  of 
the  rudiments  of  his  profession,  and  in  1868  he  was 
admitted  to  the  Illinois  bar.  He  afterwards  be- 
came a  partner  of  Mr.  Stark  under  the  firm  name 
of  Stark  &  Smith,  and  so  continued  until  Mr. 
Stark'sdeath  in  1873.  He  succeeded  to  his  business, 
retaining  all  of  the  clients  who  patronized  the  firm 
during  the  lifetime  of  his  former  partner.  Mr. 
Smith  has  steadily  pursued  the  practice  of  the  law, 
and  has  been  amply  repaid  for  his  diligence  and 
close  attention  to  the  interests  of  his  clients.  He 
now  enjoys  an  extensive  practice  in  the  State  and 
Federal  courts  and  has  an  excellent  clientage. 

Mr.  Smith  is  a  gentleman  of  fine  address,  is  a 
pleasant  companion,  and  knows  how  to  gain  the 


respect  and  friendship  of  all.  He  has  a  refined 
literarj'  taste,  is  fond  of  music  and  the  fine  arts, 
and  is  the  owner  of  an  extensive  and  well-chosen 
law  library,  and  also  of  a  large  collection  of  books 
devoted  to  literature  and  science,  and  in  fact  every- 
thing to  the  taste  of  a  highly  cultivated  gentle- 
man. Although  very  liberal  in  assisting  those  who 
come  to  him  in  need,  he  is  never  ostentatious  or 
fond  of  parade,  but  he  quietly  gives  in  obedience 
to  his  inborn  generous  impulses  and  his  strict  sense 
of  justice. 

The  following  extract  from  the  Undergraduate, 
a  paper  published  at  Middlebury  College,  shows 
how  Mr.  Smith  has  ever  been  regarded  by  those 
who  know  him  best :  "  When  in  college  Abner 
Smith  was  a  candid,  earnest,  substantial  and  relia- 
ble young  man  and  student,  and  has  maintained 
that  character  to  this  day.  He  evidenced  in  col- 
lege the  possession  of  abilities  which  would  enable 
him  to  rise  to  and  above  the  average  in  whatever 
profession  he  might  choose  to  follow,  which  he  has 
done  in  the  profession  of  the  law.  He  has  never 
aimed  at  ephemeral  brilliancy  or  signal  momen- 
tary results,  but  a  thoughtful  and  careful  avoid- 
ance of  fatal  mistakes  and  permanent  achie\e- 
ments.  He  has  succeeded  in  all  respects  which 
constitute  success  of  an  attorney-at-law ;  a  result 
attained  by  devotion  to  his  profession  and  close 
attention  to  business.  This  outcome  is  not  the 
result  of  chance,  but  eventuates  from  his  native 
abilities  which  he  has  cultivated  and  given  direc- 
tion to,  and  he  has  made  good  use  of  his  oppor- 
tunities. In  the  walks  of  life  where  intelligence, 
honor  and  manliness  are  regarded  for  what  they 
are  worth,  he  has  by  the  practice  of  these  virtues 
attained  an  honorable  position  at  the  bar  and  in 
the  community,  and  won  the  respect  of  all  who 
know  him.  He  is  a  noteworthy  and  creditable 
alumnus  of  his  alma  mater." 

Mr.  Smith  is  attorney  for  the  National  Life 
Insurance  Company  of  Wrmont,  and  is  the  attor- 


IQO 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


ney  of  the  Life  Indemnity  &  Investment  Company 
of  Iowa,  and  one  of  the  directors  of  the  last  named 
company,  and  is  also  the  attorney  for  the  Lake 
View  Telephone  Exchange,  which  covers  the  north- 
ern portion  of  the  city  of  Chicago.  He  is  a  stock- 
holder in  the  Duluth  &  Winnipeg  Railroad,  a  road 
well  advanced  in  construction,  enjoying  the  benefit 
of  a  land  grant  and  opening  up  a  good  country, 
shortening  the  distance  between  Duluth  and  Win- 
nipeg (when  finished)  150  miles;  and  he  is  one  of 


the  directors  in  the  North  Star  Construction  Com- 
pany, which  is  building  the  Duluth  &  Winnipeg 
Railroad  and  operating  that  road. 

In  political  sentiments  Mr.  Smith  is  a  Repub- 
lican, but  he  finds  in  the  midst  of  the  multiplicity 
of  duties  in  his  profession  but  little  time  to  devote 
to  that  subject. 

He  was  married  October  5,  1869,  to  Miss  Ada 
C.  Smith,  daughter  of  Sereno  Smith,  of  Shore- 
ham,  Vt. 


ISAAC   NEWTON    DANFORTH,  A.M.,  M.D., 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


ISAAC  NEWTON  DANFORTH  was  born  in 
Barnard,  Vermont,  in   the    year    1835.     His 
grandfather.  Dr.  Isaac  Danforth,  was  one  of  the 
most   eminent  physicians  in   Vermont,  and   was 
one  of  the  founders  of  the  medical    department 
of    Dartmouth  College.     In  the  early  history    of 
Massachusetts,    one    of    the    doctor's    ancestors, 
Nicolas  Danforth,  who,  in  1634,  immigrated  from 
Framhingham,  England,  was  one  of  the  Colonial 
legislators    and    one    of    the    twelve     organizers 
aiKl  incorporators  of  Harvard  University.     Nico- 
las   Danforth    had   three    sons:  Thomas,    Samuel 
and  Jonathan.     Thomas  was  most  eminent.     He 
was  treasurer  of  Harvard  for  years;  treasurer  of 
Suffolk  county  for  many  years ;  deputy  governor 
of  Massachusetts   Bay  Colony;  one  of  the   first 
judges  of  the  Colonial  courts;  first  president   of 
the  Colony  of  Maine;    and  was  also  leader  of  the 
rebellion  against  Sir  Edmund  Andros,  heading  a 
deputation  that  sent    Sir   Edmund  into  confine- 
ment until  he  was  recalled   by  his  government. 
The  second  son,  Samuel   Danforth,  a  dissenting 
minister,  was  a  colleague  of  the  apostle   Elliott, 
who   translated   the   Bible   into   the   Indian   lan- 
guage, and  according  to  the  testimony  of  Cotton 
Mather  was  one  of  the  most  eminent  and  enlight- 
ened divines  of  his  time.     Jonathan  Danforth  was 
a  surveyor,  well  known  in  his  time.     He  laid  out 
and  was  called  the  father  of  the  town  of  Billerica, 
Massachusetts.     He  was  a  prominent  citizen   of 
Massachusetts  and  a  captain  in  the  militia  taking 
part  in  the  Indian  wars. 

In  later  times,  the  history  of  that  branch  of  the 
family    to  which    our   subject    belongs   has    been 


closely  connected  with  that  of  the  State  of  Ver- 
mont, where  his  relatives  have  stood  among  the 
first  in  social,  professional  and  public  life,  num- 
bering among  them  several  physicians  of  local 
eminence. 

Mr.  Albert  H.  Danforth,  the  father  of  our  sub- 
ject, and  now  residing  with  him,  was  born  in  the 
year  1 808,  at  Barnard,  Vermont,  whence  he  re- 
moved to  New  Hampshire  in  the  year  1846.  He 
was  a  member  of  the  State  legislature  and  held 
all  the  responsible  offices  in  the  gift  of  his 
adopted  town.  He  is  a  man  of  retiring  dispo- 
sition, of  unblemishe4  reputation,  and  now,  enjoy- 
ing the  confidence  of  all  who  know  him,  is  living 
a  serene  old  age,  ready  to  go  whenever  the  sum- 
mons shall  come.  Dr.  Danforth's  mother,  Elvira 
(Bosworth)  Danforth,  was  born  in  Royalton,  Ver- 
mont, and  died  at  an  early  date,  when  but  thirty- 
three  years  of  age.  Her  ancestry  were  originally 
well-to-do  English  farmers.  Dr.  Danforth  has 
one  brother,  Charles  B.,  who  is  a  prosperous  mer- 
chant in  Dedham,  Massachusetts.  His  only  sis- 
ter, Elvira,  who  died  in  1884,  was  the  wife  of  Mr. 
John  L.  Skelton,  a  well-known  resident  of  Chi- 
cago, and  brother  of  Doctor  Danforth's  wife. 

The  early  education  of  our  subject  was  ob- 
tained in  the  common  schools  of  Vermont  and 
New  Hampshire,  and  in  one  or  two  terms  of 
academic  study — although  he  has  since  come  to 
regard  the  educational  system  of  those  days  as 
practically  worthless.  Owing  to  a  disastrous 
indorsement  of  a  note,  by  which  his  father  lost 
all  his  property,  young  Danforth  was  obliged  to 
begin  earning  his  livelihood  at  the  age  of  thirteen. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXA/iV  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


193 


He  first  entered  a  retail  grocery,  then  a  dry  goods 
house,  and  lastly  tried  book-keeping,  and  in  these 
several  vocations  succeeded  in  demonstrating  his 
conspicuous  unfitness  and  his  utter  dislike  for 
mercantile  pursuits.  At  last,  following  his  early 
taste  for  literature  and  science,  at  the  age  of 
twenty-three  he  began  the  study  of  medicine  in 
the  office  of  his  Uncle  Samuel  P.  Danforth,  M. 
D..  of  Royalton,  Vermont.  He  studied  part  of 
the  time  in  the  office  of  Nathaniel  Tolles,  M. 
D..  of  Claremont,  New  Hampshire,  and  attended 
two  courses  of  lectures  in  the  medical  depart- 
ment of  Dartmouth  College,  where,  in  his  second 
term,  he  was  assistant  to  Professor  Albert  Smith 
in  the  chair  of  Materia  Medica.  He  was  gradu- 
ated in  1 86 1,  second  in  his  class,  and  commenced 
practice  in  Greenfield,  New  Hampshire,  where  he 
endeared  himself  to  the  people  in  his  four  years' 
sojourn  among  them.  He  next  went  to  Phila- 
delphia and  spent  a  winter  in  study,  and  in  1866 
settled  in  Chicago,  where  he  has  risen  to  emi- 
nence both  as  a  practitioner  and  teacher  of  med- 
icine. In  1867  he  was  given  the  lectureship  on 
chemistry  in  Rush  Medical  College;  in  1869  that 
of  general  pathology,  which  he  held  ten  years, 
being  then  made  professor  of  pathology,  which 
position  he  resigned  one  year  later.  In  the 
meantime  he  was  made  professor  of  general 
pathology  in  the  Woman's  Medical  College,  of 
Chicago,  and  held  that  position  until  1886  when 
he  resigned,  being  then  made  professor  of  renal 
diseases  in  the  same  college,  which  position  he 
still  holds  (1892).  After  resignation  in  Rush 
Medical  College  he  was  elected  professor  of 
clinical  medicine  in  the  Chicago  Medical  College, 
and  also  for  two  years  held  the  chair  of  renal 
diseases  in  the  didactic  course,  from  which  he 
was  compelled  to  resign  because  of  over-work  and 
press  of  private  business. 

Dr.  Danforth  was  formerly  attending  physician 
to  the  Central  Free  Dispensary,  of  which  he  was 
one  of  the  founders,  in  company  with  Professor 
H.  M.  Lyman  and  R.  M.  Lackey,  under  the  name 
of  The  Hrainard  Free  Dispensary.  He  is  con- 
sulting physician  to  the  Illinois  Charitable  Eye 
and  Ear  Infirmary.  In  1870  was  elected  patholo- 
gist to  St.  Luke's  Hospital,  and  on  the  death  of 
Dr.  Heydock  was  elected  attending  physician,  a 
position  which  he  still  holds.  Probably  in  none 
of  his  offices  does  Dr.  Danforth  take  more  pride 


than  as  physician  and  chairman  of  the  medical 
board  of  Wesley  Hospital.  This  noble  institu- 
tion is  really  a  child  of  his  own  heart,  founded 
through  his  instrumentality  and  maintained 
largely  by  his  liberality  of  time,  money  and  tal- 
ent. Dr.  Danforth  is  a  member  and  ex-president 
of  the  Chicago  Pathological  Society ;  a  member 
of  the  Chicago  Medical  Society ;  of  the  Illinois 
State  Medical  Society;  of  the  Illinois  State  Mi- 
croscopic Society ;  of  the  American  Medical 
Association  ;  and  of  the  Association  of  American 
Physicians,  of  which  the  membership  is  limited  to 
one  hundred.  He  is  also  a  member  of  the  La 
Salle  Club. 

In  1886  Dr.  Danforth  received  his  degree  of  A. 
M.  from  Dartmouth  College.  He  was  made  a 
Mason  in  1863  at  Altamont  Lodge,  A.  F".  &  A. 
M.,  New  Hampshire.  He  has  been  an  extensive 
traveler  in  the  United  States  and  Europe,  visiting 
England,  Scotland,  Ireland,  Germany,  Holland, 
Belgium  and  France.  Always  a  devoted,  loyal 
member  of,  and  liberal  contributor  to,  the  church, 
he  has  been  a  steward  or  trustee  and  regular  at- 
tendant of  the  Centenary  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church  for  twenty  years.  Dr.  Danforth  has 
always  been  a  staunch  Republican,  having  voted 
first  for  General  John  C.  P'remont.  and  for  every 
Republican  candidate  for  the  presidency  since, 
although  in  local  elections  he  votes  for  honesty 
and  ability  rather  than  party.  He  has  never  as- 
pired to  political  preferment,  being  in  a  rare 
degree  devoted  to  professional  work.  Dr.  Dan- 
forth is  a  man  of  much  magnetic  power,  a  fluent 
speaker,  having  a  ready  command  of  language 
and  expressing  his  ideas  with  force  and  clearness. 
Accomplished  and  refined  in  every  fibre  of  his 
being,  his  clientage  is  among  the  highest  circles 
of  the  city.  No  ordinary  practitioner,  but  well 
known  in  the  profession  as  having  risen  to  the 
dignity  of  independent  work  and  original  discov- 
ery, few  men  have  better  succeeded  in  attaining 
their  ideals  or  fulfilling  their  aspirations  than  Dr. 
Danforth. 

In  i86g  Dr.  Danforth  was  married  to  i\Iiss 
Elizabeth  Skelton,  a  daughter  of  Rev.  John 
Skclton,  a  Methodist  preacher,  whose  wife  was  a 
woman  of  rare  literary  accomplishments,  and 
from  her  Mrs.  Danforth  probably  inherits  her 
intellectual  qualities.  Mrs.  Danforth  is  a  woman 
of  broad  education  and  superior  accomplishment, 


194 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


eminently  fitted  to  make  a  pleasant  home,  and  to 
grace  her  social  position.  Systematic  as  she  is  in 
everj-  department  of  life,  the  doctor  accredits 
a  large  part  of    his  success  to   his  wife,  a   fact 


which  he  takes  great  pleasure  in  acknowledging. 
Two  children  have  been  born  to  them,  William 
Clark  and  Sarah  Esther,  aged  thirteen  and  ele\en 
years  respectively. 


HOSMER   ALLEN   JOHNSON,  A.M.,  M.D.,  LL.D. 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


DR.  HOSMER  ALLEN  JOHNSON,  a 
native  of  Erie  County,  N.  Y.,  was  born 
October  6th,  1822,  the  eldest  child  of  Samuel 
Johnson  and  Sallie  (Allen)  Johnson.  His  family 
came  originally  from  England.  His  grandfather, 
Samuel  Johnson,  was  a  native  of  Worcester, 
Mass.  His  maternal  grandfather,  Capt.  Parmalee 
Allen,  was  a  cousin  of  the  famous  Colonel  Ethan 
Allen,  of  Revolutionary  fame,  and  both  he  and 
the  paternal  grandfather  served  through  the 
seven  years  of  the  Revolutionary  struggle. 

In  early  life  his  parents  settled  in  the  State  of 
Michigan.  He  early  evinced  a  decided  fondness 
forthe  studies  of  painting  and  sculpture,  and  espe- 
cially of  those  scientific  and  literary  pursuits  that 
so  characterized  his  later  years.  He  prepared 
for  college  at  the  village  of  Romeo,  Mich.,  and  in 
1849  graduated  from  the  literary  department  of 
the  University  of  Michigan  with  the  degree  of 
A.  B.,  and  three  years  later  received  from  his 
alma  mater  the  degree  of  M.  A.  The  year  fol- 
lowing his  graduation,  he  removed  to  Chicago  and 
entered  Rush  Medical  College,  graduating  in 
1852  with  the  degree  of  M.  D.  One  year  later 
he  became  a  member  of  the  faculty  of  that  insti- 
tution and  continued  in  that  connection  until 
1859,  when  he  resigned  his  chair,  and  with  Dr.  N. 
S.  Davis,  Dr.  Isham  and  Dr.  David  Rutter, 
founded  the  Chicago  Medical  College,  now  the 
medical  department  of  the  Northwestern  Univer- 
sity, which  institution  in  1883  conferred  upon 
him  the  honorary  degree  of  LL.D.  During  the 
first  years  of  the  Chicago  Medical  College,  Dr. 
Johnson  was  Professor  of  Physiology  ;  later  he 
was  Professor  of  Pathology  and  Pathological 
Anatomy,  and  from  1881  until  his  demise,  was 
Emeritus  Professor  of  the  principles  and  practice 
of  medicine.  Throughout  his  career  Dr.  Johnson 
was  especially  active  in  hospitals,  and  as  attending 
or  consulting  physician  met  with  great  success. 


During  the  War  of  the  Rebellion,  Dr.  Johnson 
was  president  of  the  Board  of  Examining  Sur- 
geons, appointed  by  the  Governor  to  examine 
and  pass  upon  applicants  for  admission  as  army 
physicians  and  surgeons,  and  from  1 861  to  1865 
visited  the  seat  of  war  and  saw  much  of  army  life 
among  the  troops  on  the  battle-field  and  in  camp. 
A  man  of  large  heart,  his  sympathies  always  went 
out  to  the  suffering,  and  this  quality,  with  his 
good  judgment  and  known  executive  ability,  led 
to  his  being  called  to  many  positions  of  responsi- 
bility and  trust. 

During  the  great  fire  of  October  9,  1871,  and 
after  that  calamity,  when  one  hundred  thousand 
people  were  rendered  destitute,  to  be  cared  for 
and  fed,  Dr.  Johnson  was  chosen  one  of  the 
directors  of  the  relief  and  aid  society  that  ex- 
pended some  iive  millions  of  dollars  in  relieving 
the  needy,  this  society  having  the  entire  responsi- 
bility respecting  the  distribution  and  use  of  the 
money.  During  that  time  and  for  a  term  of 
six  years,  he  was  a  member  of  the  Board  of 
Health,  and  for  five  years,  from  1879  to  1884, 
was  a  member  of  the  National  Board  of  Health. 
He  was  honored  with  membership  in  a  large 
number  of  leading  societies  and  often  called  to 
their  presidency  or  board  of  trustees.  He  was  a 
member  of  the  American  Medical  Association, 
and  of  the  American  Association  for  the  Ad- 
vancement of  Science  from  1853  until  his  death. 
For  thirty-eight  years  he  was  connected  with  the 
Chicago  Medical  Society,  and  during  the  same 
period  was  a  member  of  the  Illinois  State  Medi- 
cal Society.  He  was  one  of  the  original  mem- 
bers of  the  American  Public  Health  Association 
and  president  of  that  organization  in  1889.  He 
also  helped  to  organize  the  Chicago  Academy  of 
Sciences  and  was  several  times  its  president  and 
on  its  board  of  trustees.  Among  other  noted 
societies    with    which  he  was    identified,  may  be 


\ 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARV  .iXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


197 


mentioned  the  American  Laryngological  Society, 
the  American  Climatological  Society,  the  Ameri- 
can Academy  of  Medicine,  the  Association  of 
American  Physicians,  and  the  United  States 
Sanitary  Commission.  Ur.  Johnson  belonged 
also  to  the  Twentieth  Century  Club,  was  an 
honorar\-  member  of  the  Military  Order  of  Loyal 
Legion,  and  a  member  of  the  Chicago  Club,  the 
first  club  organized  in  that  city.  Dr.  Johnson 
belonged  to  the  Masonic  order  and  became  a 
Master  Mason  in  1853,  ^"^  was  many  times 
presiding  officer  in  the  various  Masonic  bodies. 
He  was  a  member  of  the  Supreme  Council  of  the 
Northern  Masonic  Jurisdiction,  33rd  degree,  whose 
active  membership  is  limited  to  about  fifty,  in 
the  northern  United  States,  and  ranked  near  the 
first  in  the  order  of  seniority. 

Dr.  Johnson  was  one  of  the  founders  of  the 
Illinois  State  Microscopical  Society,  and  was  at 
various  times  its  president,  and  ranked  among 
the  leading  microscopists  of  the  United  States. 
He  was  a  member  of  the  American  Microscopical 
Society  and  also  a  Fellow  of  the  Royal  Micro- 
scopical Society  of  London.  England.  During 
the  last  years  of  his  life.  Dr.  Johnson's  practice 
was,  for  the  most  part,  confined  to  consultations, 
his  specialty  being  diseases  of  the  throat  and 
lungs,  in  which  branch  he  was  regarded  as  the 
most  eminent  authority  in  the  Northwest. 

Dr.  Johnson  was  a  great  traveler,  having  visited 


Europe  seven  times,  traveling  through  England, 
France,  Germany  and  other  foreign  countries. 
He  also  traveled  extensively  throughout  his  own 
country,  spending  his  winters  in  California,  Texas, 
Me.xico,  Florida,  and  other  mild  climates.  He 
was  a  sharp  observer  of  men  and  events,  and  pos- 
sessed a  wonderful  fund  of  useful  information. 

In  politics  Dr.  Johnson  was  non-partisan,  but 
as  a  rule  supported  the  Republican  party.  In 
religious  belief  he  was  an  Episcopalian,  but  was 
broad-minded,  liberal  and  charitable  in  his  views, 
and  worshiped  at  the  Central  Church  under  the 
pastoral  care  of  Prof.  David  Swing.  He  was  a 
man  of  domestic  tastes,  social  and  companionable, 
and  numbered  among  his  associates  and  intimate 
friends  many  of  the  leading  families  of  Chicago, 
and  was  never  happier  than  when  dispensing  the 
hospitalities  of  his  elegant  home.  Dr.  Johnson 
was  married  in  May,  1855,  to  Miss  Margaret  Ann 
.Seward,  daughter  of  Mr.  John  B.  Seward,  a  cousin 
of  VVm.  H.  Seward,  Secretary  of  State  under 
President  Lincoln.  Mrs.  Johnson  is  an  accom- 
plished woman  and  a  charming  hostess,  and  the 
Doctor  was  accustomed  to  acknowledge  himself 
largely  indebted  to  her  for  his  own  success.  Dr. 
Johnson  died  at  Chicago,  February  26,  1891. 

They  had  one  son  and  one  daughter.  Flora 
Belle  Johnson,  born  in  1858,  died  in  18S8.  Frank 
Seward  Johnson,  born  in  1856,  is  a  practicing 
physician  in  Chicago. 


HENRY   BEADMAN   BRYANT. 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


IN  1853,  a  young  man,  attending  college  in 
Cleveland,  Ohio,  preparatory  to  graduating  as 
a  teacher,  saw  in  that  city  an  advertisement,  "Com- 
mercial College,"  and  from  it  conceived  the  idea 
of  a  course  of  study  made  up  of  business  subjects 
exclusively.  The  rapid  growth  of  our  cities  de- 
manded sound  business  training  for  those  in- 
tended for  commercial  pursuits.  The  superficial 
knowledge  of  the  classics,  science  and  higher 
mathematics,  which  young  people  received  in  the 
limited  time  of  the  regular  college  course,  was 
only  of  partial  use  to  them  in  the  counting-house. 
The  business  college  was  a  necessity,  and  its 
founder  ought   to  feel  gratified  by  the  fact   that 


during  a  period  of  nearly  forty  years,  it  has  had  a 
career  of  gradual,  but  constant,  success.  The  pro- 
moter of  this  common-sense  system  of  study  was 
Henry  Beadman  Bryant,  the  proprietor  of  the 
Bryant  and  Stratton  Business  College  of  Chicago. 
Henry  B.  Bryant  was  born  in  Gloucestershire, 
England,  on  April  5th,  1824,  and  was  the  youngest 
son  in  a  family  of  six  children.  His  father  be- 
longed to  the  comfortable,  well-to-do  farmer  class, 
to  which  we  are  indebted  for  many  of  our  most 
successful  business  and  professional  men.  When 
only  five  years  old,  his  parents  immigrated  to  the 
United  States,  and  lived  a  short  time  in  New 
York  and  Philadelphia,  but  finally  settled  at  Am- 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


herst,  Lorain  Co.,  Ohio,  where  his  father  had  pur- 
chased a  farm.  At  that  time,  about  sixty  years 
ago,  they  found  the  place  partly  occupied  by  an 
Indian  camp.  The  Bryants,  however,  had  very 
little  trouble  with  the  red  men,  who  remained  for 
some  time  as  friendly  neighbors.  Henry  received 
his  early  education  in  a  log  school  house  and, 
when  old  enough,  he  worked  on  the  farm  in  sum- 
mer and  went  to  school  in  winter.  When  four- 
teen years  old,  he  attended  the  public  school  and 
the  seminary  at  Norwalk.  Having  acquired  some 
proficiency  in  elementary  subjects,  he  taught 
school  for  a  time,  and  then,  desiring  to  complete 
his  studies  and  prepare  himself  for  a  teacher,  he 
entered  college  at  Cleveland.  After  finishing  his 
studies,  he  took  a  position  with  a  business  house, 
and  after  acquiring  a  thoroughly  practical  knowl- 
edge in  this  house,  he  took  a  position  as  college 
professor  and  proved  himself  a  painstaking,  me- 
thodical and  successful  teacher.  The  principal  of 
the  college  soon  after  retired,  and  young  Bryant, 
together  with  Mr.  Henry  D.  Stratton,  with  whom 
he  entered  into  partnership,  became  proprietors 
of  the  first  of  the  now  famous  Bryant  and  Strat- 
ton Colleges.  This  was  in  1853.  Such  was  its 
success  and  their  encouragement,  that  another 
college  was  opened  in  Buffalo,  in  1854.  This  was 
followed  by  the  Chicago  College,  which  was 
opened  in  1856,  Philadelphia  in  1857,  and  so  on 
until  in  1864  there  were  forty-eight  colleges  located 
in  the  principal  cities  of  the  United  States  and 
Canada.  There  were  at  that  time  two  hundred 
and  fifty  teachers  engaged,  and  fully  thirty  thou- 
sand business  men  held  the  college  diplomas. 
The  course  of  study  and  the  system  of  manage- 
ment were  uniform  throughout  the  entire  chain  of 
colleges,  so  that  students  removing  from  one  city 
to  another  could  be  transferred  if  they  so  de- 
sired. The  death  of  Mr.  Stratton,  who  was  a 
man  of  indomitable  energy  and  perseverance  and 
of  great  executive  ability,  in  1867,  threw  the 
whole  responsibility  of  this  large  business  on  Mr. 
Bryant.  Acting  for  himself  and  for  the  estate  of 
his  deceased  partner,  Mr.  Bryant  now  disposed  of 
all  the  colleges  except  that  in  Chicago,  which  he 
himself  retained  and  has  since  conducted  under 
the  name  of  The  Bryant  and  Stratton  Business 
College  of  Chicago.  It  is  located  on  Washington 
street  near  the  Lake  Front.  The  premises  are 
spacious  and  suitable,  the  teaching  staff  large  and 


efficient,  and  the  attendance  of  students  large  and 
constantly  increasing.  The  study  rooms  are 
elaborately  furnished  and  afford  ample  accommo- 
dation for  over  one  thousand  pupils.  During  the 
thirty-five  years  of  its  existence,  the  Chicago  col- 
lege has  had  amongst  its  students  some  of  the 
most  representative  and  successful  merchants  of 
that  city.  Many  improvements  have  been  made 
in  the  text  books  and  in  the  course  of  study,  yet 
the  method  and  system  remain  as  originally 
adopted  by  Air.  Bryant. 

His  success  in  business  has  enabled  him  to  be- 
come the  owner  of  a  large  amount  of  real  estate 
in  Chicago,  and  this  interest  alone  would  be 
ample  to  take  the  time  of  its  owner,  were  he 
willing  to  give  it,  for  its  management  and  devel- 
opment, but  Mr.  Bryant  takes  such  pride  in  the 
practical  education  of  young  men  and  women 
that  he  gives  his  time  and  thoughts  to  the  fur- 
ther development  of  his  great  institution,  making 
his  other  interests  of  secondary  consideration. 

He  is  the  author  of  a  work  on  commercial 
arithmetic  and  of  a  system  of  book-keeping,  .and 
has  had  prepared  under  his  supervision  a  treatise 
on  commercial  law  and  a  series  of  interest  tables. 
The  latter  is  considered  so  complete  and  correct 
that  it  has  been  adopted  for  use  by  the  United 
States  Treasury  Department,  and  is  now  used  in 
most  of  the  banks  of  the  United  States. 

Although  over  sixty  years  of  age,  Mr.  Bryant 
looks  much  younger,  and  is  the  picture  of  robust 
health.  He  is  active,  energetic  and  devoted  to 
his  work.  He  is  quiet,  unassuming  and  agreeable 
in  manner;  laconic,  pleasing  and  interesting  in 
conversation.  His  extensive  reading  and  great 
experience  render  him  a  ready  and  reliable  au- 
thority in  his  profession.  As  a  painstaking,  ear- 
nest and  efficient  teacher,  he  attracts  the  attention 
and  gains  the  esteem  of  his  students.  He  might 
appropriately  adopt  as  his  motto :  ''Siiavitcr  in 
inodo,  for  titer  in  re." 

In  May,  1854,  Mr.  Bryant  married,  in  Cleve- 
land, Ohio,  Miss  Lucy  A.  Stratton,  sister  of  his 
late  partner.  They  have  had  a  family  of  two 
sons  and  one  daughter.  His  eldest  son,  Mr.  H. 
W.  Bryant,  is  connected  with  the  institution  as 
secretary  and  junior  partner.  He  is  a  young  man 
of  much  ability,  a  graduate  of  Harvard  Univer- 
sity, and  has  proved  himself  a  successful  educator. 

In  the  death  of  his  wife,  in    1S73,    Mr.    Bryant 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARV  A.\D  I'ORTRAl r  GALLERY. 


199 


suffered  one  of  those  afflictions  to  which  all  must 
submit.  She  was  an  amiable  lady,  a  devoted  wife 
and  an  affectionate  mother,  whose  loving  voice 
and  gentle  nature  are  sadly  missed  by  her  children 
and  her  husband. 

The  Commissioners  of  the  World's  Columbian 
Exposition  have  paid  Mr.  Bryant  a  very  high 
compliment  in  appointing  him  a  member  of  the 
World's  Congress  Au.xiliary.     That  body  will  con- 


sist of  men  from  the  various  countries  of  the 
civilized  world,  selected  because  of  their  emi- 
nent knowledge  of  the  subject  which  they  repre- 
sent. Their  duty  will  be  to  compare  the  progress 
of  science,  art  and  literature,  and  to  discuss  the 
most  approved  methods  of  education,  etc.  Mr. 
Bryant  is  not  only  a  member  of  the  general  com- 
mittee, but  is  also  a  member  of  the  committee  on 
special  education,  institutions,  etc. 


CHARLES    D.    HAM  ILL, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


IT  is  rare,  in  business  circles,  to  find  a  man  who 
has  during  life  crept  up  from  messenger  boy 
to  president  of  the  Board  of  Trade,  and  who  has 
found  time  to  devote  himself  to  the  fine  arts. 
Such  is  the  case  in  the  career  of  Charles  D.  Hamill, 
who,  while  applying  himself  earnestly  to  business, 
has  become  a  recognized  critic,  connoisseur  and 
collector  in  art  and  a  liberal  patron  of  music,  and 
one  to  whom  Chicago  is  largely  indebted  for  the 
rapid  growth  of  musical  and  art  education. 

Charles  D.  Hamill  was  born  November  14, 
1839.  ^^  Bloomington,  Ind.  His  father,  Dr.  Rob- 
ert C.  Hamill,  was  a  successful  medical  practi- 
tioner in  this  city,  where  he  resided  uninterruptedly 
from  1852  until  his  death  in  1888. 

Young  Hamill,  in  1847,  commenced  his  educa- 
tion in  a  private  school  taught  by  the  Rev.  A.  M. 
Stewart.  This  school  was  held  in  the  basement 
of  the  old  First  Presbyterian  Church,  a  frame 
building  that  stood  on  Clark  near  Washington 
street.  After  a  year  in  Chicago  he  was  sent  back 
to  Bloomington,  where  he  remained  at  school 
until  he  was  thirteen  years  old.  Soon  after  his 
return  to  Chicago,  young  Hamill  became  mes- 
senger boy  in  the  dry  goods  house  of  L.  D.  Olm- 
sted &  Co.,  of  Lake  street,  and  received  the 
munificent  sum  of  fifty  dollars  per  annum.  He 
was  afterward  employed  by  Messrs.  T.  B.  Carter 
&  Co.,  where  by  diligence  and  ability  he  rose  to 
the  position  of  cashier.  We  next  find  him  clerk 
in  the  Bank  of  Commerce,  and  then  jiaying  teller 
in  the  Western  Marine  Insurance  Company's  Bank. 
This  position  he  filled  with  credit  for  several 
years,  when,  in  1864,  he  resigned  to  become  part- 
ne"-  in  the  firm  of  Singer  &  Co.,  provision  mer- 


chants. This  was  the  beginning  of  Mr.  Hamill's 
long,  successful  and  honorable  business  career. 

We  may  mention  here  parenthetically  that, 
with  the  exception  of  John  De  Koven,  Orson 
Smith,  Charles  B.  Far\vell,  Frank  Sherwood,  and 
probably  one  or  two  others,  the  bank  clerks  con- 
temporary with  Mr.  Hamill  are  either  dead  or 
have  left  the  city,  but  those  who  remain  have 
attained  a  high  position  in  the  financial  world. 

In  1873  Mr.  Hamill's  health  failed  him,  and  by 
the  advice  of  his  physician  he  made  a  visit  to 
Europe.  In  two  years  he  returned  entirely  re- 
stored to  health,  and  immediatoU-  ontered  into  a 
partnership  with  James  Van  Inwagen  to  do  a 
commission  business  under  the  name  of  Van  In- 
wagen &  Hamill.  This  partnership  continued 
until  1882,  and  the  firm  had  the  reputation  of 
doing  the  largest  business  on  the  floor  of  the  E.x- 
change.  After  this  firm  was  dissolved,  Mr.  Hamill 
managed  his  commission  business  alone  for  two 
years,  and  then  became  a  partner  of  George  J. 
Brine.  In  1887  Mr.  Brine  retired  from  the  busi- 
ness, and  Mr.  Hamill's  son  Robert  became  a  part- 
ner under  the  name  of  Charles  D.  Hamill  &  Co., 
which  firm  still  continues. 

Mr.  Hamill,  whose  long  and  honorable  business 
career  in  this  city  has  won  for  him  a  wide  circle 
of  friends,  has  just  received  from  his  commercial 
associates  a  very  high  compliment  and  a  very 
strong  expression  of  their  confidence,  esteem  and 
friendship  by  his  election  as  president  of  the 
Chicago  Board  of  Trade.  This  tribute  of  the 
bankers  and  merchants  of  the  city  was  well  de- 
served, and  is  the  just  reward  of  business  integrity, 
warm-hearted    friendship    and   broad    and   liberal 


200 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


principles.  In  the  prime  of  life,  in  the  enjoyment 
of  robust  health,  and  trained  in  business  methods 
and  principles,  he  brings  to  his  presidential  duties 
not  only  the  precepts  of  commerce  but  the  cour- 
tesy and  culture  of  a  gentleman. 

Mr.  Hamill  is  a  member  of  the  executive  com- 
mittee of  the  Washington  Park  Club,  which  he 
helped  to  organize.  He  is  also  a  member  of  the 
Chicago  Club  since  1875  and  has  served  as  a  direc- 
tor and  as  vice-president  :  a  member  of  the  Chicago 
Literary  Club,  the  Tolleston  Club,  the  Calumet, 
a  director  of  the  Chicago  Orchestra  Association, 
president  of  the  Twentieth  Century  Club,  and  a 
trustee  and  member  of  the  executive  committee 
of  the  Art  Istitute. 

During  his  long  and  busy  life  Mr.  Hamill  has 
been  a  great  lover  of  music,  and  has  used  his 
ample  means  liberally  to  encourage  and  his  cul- 
tured taste  to  create  a  classic  and  true  appre- 
ciation of  art  in  this  city.  He  was  quite  a 
young  man  when  he  first  became  interested  in 
musical  affairs.  His  associates  were  young  men 
of  musical  tastes,  in  whose  companionship  his 
cultured  mind  received  a  bent  for  music  and  fine 
arts  that  succeeding  years  have  only  tended  to 


strengthen.  In  1858  he  was  a  delegate  to  the 
first  musical  convention  held  in  Chicago,  a  charter 
member  of  the  Mendelssohn  Society,  and  his  con- 
nection with  the  famous  Apollo  Club  dates  from 
its  organization,  and  for  many  years  he  was  chair- 
man of  its  musical  committee.  He  organized  the 
musical  festivals  which  Theodore  Thomas  directed 
with  so  much  success.  Mr.  Hamill's  friendship 
for  this  celebrated  musical  director  dates  back  to 
1859,  ^^^  '^o  \ivm  more  than  to  any  other  individ- 
ual belongs  the  credit  of  establishing  the  Chicago 
Orchestra,  which  made  Director  Thomas  a  prom- 
inent addition  to  the  Chicago  musical  world, 
and  induced  him  to  make  this  city  permanently 
his  home.  Mr.  Hamill  has  a  great  liking  for  rare 
etchings  and  valuable  paintings,  and  at  his  beau- 
tiful home  on  Prairie  avenue  may  be  seen  some 
of  the  rarest  specimens  of  etchings  that  can  be 
found  in  the  West.  His  present  superb  collec- 
tion is  the  result  of  years  of  careful  selection,  and 
is  probably  the  finest  in  this  city. 

Mr.  Hamill  was  married  in  1861  to  Miss  Susan 
Walbridge,  daughter  of  Hon.  Henry  S.  Wal- 
bridge.  of  Ithaca,  N.  Y.  Five  sons  and  one 
daughter  are  the  result  of  this  union. 


MICHAEL  CUDAHV, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


AMONG  the  many  prominent  men  of  Chicago 
who  have  been  the  pioneers  of  their  own 
fortunes,  there  is  perhaps  no  name  that  is  more 
widely  known  than  that  of  Michael  Cudahy.  He 
was  born  at  Callan,  an  historical  old  town,  County 
Kilkenny,  Ireland,  December  7th,  1841. 

His  mother's  people  were  residents  for  some 
time  of  Dublin,  but  later  removed  to  Callan,  where 
they  established  a  potter}'  for  the  manufacture  of 
Crocker}-.  His  father,  Patrick  Cudahy,  believing 
that  the  new  world  offered  better  inducements  for 
advancement,  if  not  for  him.self  at  any  rate  for 
his  family,  decided  to  emigrate  hither,  and,  to- 
gether with  his  wife,  Elizabeth  (Shaw)  Cudahy, 
and  family,  came  to  America  in  1849,  ^'"<^  shortly 
afterward  located  at  Milwaukee,  Wisconsin.  It 
was  in  that  city  that  young  Cudahy  got  his  first 
insight  into  the  packing  house  and  stock-}-ard 
work.     Doing  chores  about  the  slaughter  houses 


and  attending  school  between  times,  he  acquired 
the  rudiments  of  a  simple  education,  which  he 
improved  upon  as  opportunities  offered  in  later 
years. 

When  but  fourteen  years  of  age,  he  entered  the 
employ  of  Messrs.  Layton  &  Plankinton,  pack- 
ers, Milwaukee,  and  when  nineteen  years  old,  ac- 
cepted a  position  with  Ed.  Roddis,  packer,  also  of 
Milwaukee,  remaining  with  the  latter  until  the 
business  was  closed  out  in  1866,  when  he  went 
into  business  for  himself;  but  Mr.  Fred  Layton,  of 
Milwaukee,  offered  him  sufficient  inducements  to 
dispose  of  his  business  and  to  enter  the  employ 
of  Layton  &  Co.  as  private  meat  inspector,  at  the 
same  time  securing  for  him  the  position  of  meat 
inspector  on  the  Milwaukee  Board  of  Trade. 

Mr.  Cudahy  received  much  practical  encourage- 
ment from  Mr.  Layton ;  their  associations  were 
cemented  by  a  close  friendship,  and  of  this  Mr. 


^--'-^•^^«^^=t^<='^  /6.^^^, 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


203 


Cudahy  has  always  been  duly  sensible.  In  1869, 
he  accepted  a  position  with  Messrs.  Plankinton 
&  Armour,  Milwaukee,  Wis.,  and  took  charge  of 
their  packing  house,  which  at  that  time  consi.sted 
of  a  .small  frame  building;  the  whole  plant,  includ- 
ing machinery,  would  not  exceed  the  value  of 
$35,000,  but  has  since  grown  to  be  one  of  the  larg- 
est packing  establishments  in  the  country.  His 
success  in  the  management  of  this  business  was 
such  that,  in  1873,  Mr.  P.  D.  Armour  ofTered  him, 
and  he  accepted,  a  partnership  in  the  now  cele- 
brated firm  of  Armour  &  Co.,  of  Chicago,  a  firm 
which  is  the  largest  of  its  kind  in  existence,  and 
whose  fame  is  known  throughout  the  civilized 
world  With  a  thoroughly  practical  knowledge 
of  the  business  in  all  its  branches,  Mr.  Cudahy 
took  control  of  the  stock-yard  end  of  the  enter- 
prise, and  for  nearly  seventeen  years  he  has  been 
the  ruling  spirit  in  its  practical  management. 

He  was  appointed  chairman  of  the  committee 
formed  to  solicit  subscriptions  from  the  packers 
for  the  World's  Columbian  Exposition. 

In  politics  he  is  a  Democrat,  though  not  an  e.x- 
tremist,  preferring  to  give  his  support  to  the  best 
men  of  either  party. 

In  religious  matters  he  is  a  Catholic,  and  a  con- 
sistent member  and  liberal  supporter  of  his  church. 
In  sentiment  a  thorough  American,  he  loves  his 
adopted  country,  and  is  a  great  admirer  of  its 
noble  institutions. 

He  was  married,  in  1866,  to  Miss  Catherine 
Sullivan,  a  daughter  of  Mr.  John  Sullivan,  a  well- 
to-do  farmer,  residing  near  Milwaukee,  Wis.  The 
union  has  been  blessed  by  seven  children,  four 
daughters  and  three  sons.  The  eldest  daughter, 
Elizabeth,  is  the  wife  of  Mr.  Wm.  P.  Nelson,  one 
of  Chicago's  successful  business  men.  Mrs.  Cud- 
ahy is  a  lady  of  many  estimable  qualities,  exceed- 
ingly charitable  and  kind  to  the  poor,  and  thor- 
oughly devoted  to  her  family,  all  of  whom  are 
finely  educated  and  arc  thoroughly  conversant 
with  the  accomplishments  of  the  day. 

Mr.  Cudahy  is  the  eldest  of  four  brothers  and 
one  sister,  Catherine,  who  is  now  in  the  convent 
of  the  Good  Shepherd,  Milwaukee,  Wis.,  William 
having  died  when  thirty-seven  years  of  age.  John 
and  Patrick  succeeded  John  Plankinton  &  Co., 
formerly  Plankinton  &  Armour,  of  Milwaukee, 
in  their  packing  business,  under  the  firm  name  of 
Cudahy  Brothers.     Patrick  resides  in  Milwaukee- 


John  resides  in  Chicago.  The  latter  is  more 
prominently  identified  with  Chicago  packing  in- 
terests. He  was  formerly  a.ssociated  with  Mr. 
Chapin,  as  Chapin  &  Cudahy,  but  for  the  past 
twelve  years  he  has  been  operating  very  success- 
fully alone  as  John  Cudahy,  packer. 

Edward  A.  is  a  partner  with  our  subject,  form- 
ing the  corporation  of  the  Cudahy  Packing  Co., 
Omaha,  Nebraska,  which,  before  the  withdrawal 
of  Mr.  P.  D.  Armour  from  the  firm,  was  the 
Armour-Cudahy  Packing  Co.  E.  A.  is  well  known 
in  business  circles  as  an  unusually  bright  and  ener- 
getic business  man.  He  resides  at  Omaha,  where 
they  have  a  large  and  rapidly  increasing  packing 
and  provision  business.  They  have  been  located 
there  only  three  years.  An  idea  of  the  extent  of 
their  interests  may  be  gained  from  the  fact  that 
their  distributive  sales  the  past  year  amounted  to 
§13,471,000,  and  their  pay-roll  reached  the  sum 
of  $700,000. 

Mr.  Cudahy  has  but  recently  withdrawn  from 
the  firm  of  Armour  &  Company,  Chicago — Nov- 
ember, 1890.  It  was  a  business  association  which 
had  borne  good  fruit  and  had  been  profitable  to 
both  alike,  and  in  .speaking  of  this  separation 
Mr.  P.  D.  Armour  says :  "  He  leaves  me  after  a 
connection  honorable  throughout,  devoid  of  any 
clash,  rich,  prosperous  and  with  an  enviable  repu- 
tation in  the  business  world." 

Personally,  Mr.  Cudahy  is  a  man  of  exceed- 
ingly robu.st  constitution  and  fine  physical  propor- 
tions; he  is  of  a  social  disposition,  and  takes 
considerable  interest  in  all  manly  sports;  he  is 
al.so  a  lover  of  the  fine  arts  and  has  an  especial 
fondness  for  music,  for  which  he  has  a  natural 
instinct.  Possessing  in  no  small  degree  the  wit 
and  exuberance  of  spirits  so  characteristic  of  his 
race,  he  is  a  genial  companion,  a  pleasing  conver- 
•sationalist  and  warm  friend.  Devoid  of  preju- 
dice, he  is  not  easily  swayed,  determination 
being  one  of  his  chief  characteristics.  Thorough 
and  cautious  in  his  dealings,  his  judgment  is  sound 
and  sure.  He  is  generous  in  his  contributions  to 
all  objects  of  a  worthy  and  benevolent  character, 
and  takes  great  pleasure  in  befriending  and  plac- 
mg  in  positions  such  young  men  as  he  may  deem 
worthy  of  his  support ;  and  many  young  men 
owe  to  Mr.  Cudahy  their  first  start  in  life. 

He  owes  his  present  position  to  perseverance, 
hard  work,  mastery  of  the  details  of  his  business 


204 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AND  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


and  determination  to  succeed.  He  has  achieved 
that  practical  dexterity  and  thorough  knowledge 
of  his  business  which  has  placed  him  in  the  front 
rank  amongst  the  citizens  of  Chicago  and  the 
packers  of  the  world.  A  man  of  sterling  worth, 
inflexible  integritj-  and  quiet  manner,  he  leaves 
upon  others  the  impress  of  his  own  character,  and 
reveals  by  his  life  the  power  of  a  noble  manhood. 
Since  going  to  press  we  have  received  the  an- 
nouncement  of    Sister    Stanilaus'    death,   which 


occurred  January  19,  1892,  at  the  House  of  the 
Good  Shepherd,  Milwaukee,  Wisconsin.  Her  life 
was  consecrated  to  a  noble  cause.  In  1883  she 
became  a  sister  of  the  Good  Shepherd,  Ahich 
order  she  endowed  with  a  handsome  sum  of 
money.  The  untimely  death  of  one  so  good,  so 
noble  and  true  saddened  many  hearts.  She  was 
greatly  beloved  by  those  who  knew  her  in  the 
world  as  Miss  Cudahy  and  by  those  who  knew 
her  in  religion  as  Sister  Stanilaus. 


JOHN   QUINCY   ADAxMS, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


THE  Old  Bay  State  has  given  to  Chicago 
many  sons  and  daughters  whose  indomita- 
ble enterprise,  inherited  from  sturdy  ancestors, 
has  done  much  to  raise  her  to  the  high  place  she 
holds  among  the  cities  of  our  land.  Of  that  hon- 
orable number  is  the  subject  of  this  biography. 

John  Ouincy  Adams  is  connected  with  the 
illustrious  Massachusetts  family  of  that  name,  his 
great-grandfather,  William  Adams,  and  John 
Adams,  the  second  president  of  the  United 
States,  having  been  cousins.  He  was  born  No- 
vember 23,  1824,  on  a  farm  at  Hopkinton,  Massa- 
chusetts, twenty-eight  miles  from  Boston.  His 
parents'  names  were  John  and  Johanna,  whose 
o'ffspring  consisted  of  five  sons  and  two  daughters. 
John  Quincy  being  the  sixth  child.  John  Adams, 
the  father,  died  at  the  age  of  thirty-nine,  when 
John  Quincy  was  but  five  years  old.  He  left  but 
little  property,  and  even  the  farm  was  under 
mortgage.  Thus  situated — the  family  head  re- 
moved, a  debt  as  part  of  the  heritage,  a  living  for 
a  large  family  to  be  gotten  out  of  a  small,  and  at 
best,  unfertile  piece  of  land — John's  opportunities 
for  schooling  were  meager,  and  he  was  obliged  to 
limit  himself  to  from  eight  to  twelve  weeks  at- 
tendance in  winter  at  the  district  school,  while 
the  remainder  of  the  year  was  spent  in  labor  on 
the  farm.  This  course  was  pursued  until  he  at- 
tained his  majority,  when  he  attended  the  acade- 
my at  Leicester,  and  later  at  Worcester,  for  a 
time  paying  his  own  expenses.  After  his  school 
days  were  over,  time  went  on  uneventfully  with 
John  for  several  years.  One  by  one,  his  elder 
brothers,  attracted  by   the   greater  opportunities 


afforded  in  the  West,  had  left  the  homestead  and 
gone  thither,  and  John  Quincy  being  also  seized 
with  a  strong  desire  to  "  go  West,"  it  was  at  last 
deemed  expedient  to  sell  the  farm.  This  was 
done,  and  in  185 1,  accompanied  by  his  mother 
and  sister,  he  made  what  was  then  a  long  and 
tedious  journey  to  the  young  city  of  Chicago, 
which  was  destined  to  be  the  scene  of  a  remarka- 
bly successful  career,  far  exceeding  his  greatest 
expectations.  While  having  a  fair,  rudimentary 
education,  he  realized  his  deficiency  in  special 
business  training,  hence,  wisely  determined  to  de- 
vote his  first  winter  in  Chicago  to  a  course  of  in- 
struction at  Bell's  Commercial  College.  After 
finishing  his  studies,  he  commenced  his  active 
business  career  by  going  to  Belvidere  and  Rock- 
ford  and  buying  grain  for  shipment  to  Chicago. 
Subsequently,  from  1853  to  1855,  he  was  in  the 
coal  business  for  himself  in  Chicago,  having  his 
yards  on  North  Water  street.  He  then  formed 
a  co-partnership  with  his  brothers,  B.  and  G.  P. 
Adams,  under  the  style  of  B.  Adams  and  Com- 
pany, for  the  carrying  on  of  the  milling  and  grain 
business  in  Chicago.  At  the  end  of  two  years 
G.  P.  Adams  withdrew,  and  the  remaining  broth- 
ers continued  the  business  under  the  original  firm 
name  until  the  great  Chicago  fire  of  1871,  since 
which  time  our  subject  has  conducted  business  en- 
tirely in  his  own  name. 

Mr.  Adams  has  been  a  member  of  the  Board  of 
Trade  since  the  second  year  of  its  existence,  the 
number  of  his  membership  ticket  being  nine. 
His  dealings  have  been  of  the  most  extensive 
character;    but   in    no   case   has  he   entered   into 


^ 


a. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AND  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


207 


any  combination  for  the  control  of  the  market. 
It  is  related  of  him  that,  in  more  than  one  in- 
stance, when  an  opportunity  has  been  presented 
to  him  for  manipulating  the  grain  market  with 
enormous  gains  for  himself,  he  has  resolutely 
refused  to  exercise  his  power  to  the  disadvan- 
tage of  others.  Throughout  his  long  career  on 
'Change,  his  transactions  have  all  been  accord- 
ing to  honorable  methods,  although  this  course 
has  not  always  been  unattended  with  sacrifice. 

But  Mr.  Adams'  large  wealth  has  not  all,  nor 
mostly,  been  acquired  in  the  grain  business. 
With  great  foresight  and  business  sagacity,  he 
early  began  to  invest  his  surplus  earnings  in  real 
estate,  and  that  of  the  most  valuable  kind,  im- 
proved Chicago  business  property,  and  he  is  to- 
day the  fortunate  possessor  of  several  large  build- 
ings on  the  principal  business  thoroughfares  of 
the  city,  all  of  wjiich  are  very  profitable. 

Mr.  Adams  was  united  in  marriage  Jan.  19th, 
1859,  with  Miss  Marilla  F.  Phipps,  a  daughter  of 
William  A.  Phipps,  of  Hopkinton,  Mass.  Her 
grandparents  were  descendants  of  Sir  William 
Phipps,  a  sea  captain,  and  one  of  the  earliest 
English  settlers  in  Massachusetts.  It  is  told  of 
him.  that  under  a  commission  from  the  English 
King,  he  recovered  a  large  amount  of  treasure 
from  a  sunken  Spanish  vessel,  and  turned  it  over 
entire  to  the  King,  which  act  of  fidelity  so  pleased 
his  royal  master  that  he  graciously  bestowed  a 
knighthood  upon  him.  In  1874,  Mr.  Adams' 
faithful  companion  was  removed  by  death,  and 
he  has  since  remained  single.  Of  four  chil- 
dren born  to  them,  two  died  in  childhood,  and  a 
son  and  daughter  are  now  living.  The  former, 
W.  P.  Adams,  was  educated  in  the  public  schools 
of  Chicago  and  at  Racine  College.  He  is  the 
proprietor  and  manager  of  an  extensive  farm  of 
five  thousand  acres  in  Dakota.  In  1889  it  yielded 
a  crop  of  one  hundred  thousand  bushels  of  grain, 
and  it  is  said  to  be  one  of  the  finest  and  best 
equipped  farms  in  the  entire  West. 

Since  1876,  Mr.  Adams  has  been  a  resident  of 
Wheaton,  a  suburb  of  Chicago,  where  he  owns  a 
beautiful,  modern  home,  with  ample  grounds, 
over  which  his  daughter.  Miss  K.  S.  Adams,  a 
lady  of  rare  qualities  and  artistic  tastes,  grace- 
fully presides.  She  was  liberally  educated  at 
Rockford  and  Vassar,  and  is  a  patron  of  the 
Chicago  Art  Institute. 


In  1883,  Mr.  Adams  laid  aside  the  cares  of  busi- 
ness long  enough  to  make  an  extensive  Euro- 
pean tour,  visiting,  besides  Great  Britain,  France, 
Belgium,  Holland,  Switzerland,  Italy,  Greece, 
Turkey  and  other  countries.  His  travels  have 
also  extended  over  a  large  part  of  the  United 
States.  In  order  to  avoid  the  rigors  of  the  North- 
ern winters,  he  has  been  obliged,  for  some  jears, 
to  pass  that  season  in  the  more  salubrious  climate 
of  Florida,  California  or  Texas. 

Mr.  Adams  is  a  Republican,  but  he  is  not  a 
politician.  He  keeps  himself  thoroughly  in- 
formed on  the  great  political  issues  of  the  day, 
hence,  is  always  able  to  vote  intelligently.  His 
retiring  nature  and  thoroughly  domestic  qualities 
have  caused  him  to  decline  all  tenders  of  public 
office.  With  rare  exceptions,  night  always  finds 
him  within  the  sacred  precincts  of  his  home. 

Mr.  Adams  is  a  regular  attendant  at  the  Con- 
gregational Church  in  Wheaton,  of  which  he  is 
a  very  liberal  supporter.  He  is  a  true  philan- 
thropist, and  believes  in  making  good  use  of 
his  wealth  while  yet  living.  As  a  practical  and 
most  valuable  illustration,  he  is  erecting  for  his 
adopted  city,  Wheaton,  at  his  sole  expense,  a 
magnificent  public  library  building,  fifty  by  sev- 
enty-five feet,  to  cost  when  finished,  about  sixty 
thousand  dollars.  The  building,  which  will  be  of 
stone,  will  also  contain  a  public  hall.  He  has  do- 
nated the  library.  The  citizens  of  Wheaton  will 
regard  the  beautiful  and  useful  structure  as  an 
enduring  monument  which  will  keep  alive  the 
memory  of  the  benefactor  long  after  he  shall  have 
passed  away.  But  Mr.  Adams'  philanthropy  and 
benevolence  are  not  directed  exclusively  to  the 
rearing  of  a  noble  temple  of  literature,  invaluable 
as  it  will  be  in  its  far-reaching  results.  His  pri- 
vate donations  to  various  charitable  institutions 
of  the  city  and  to  deserving  needy  persons,  would, 
if  enumerated,  be  further  eloquent,  as  silent  testi- 
mony to  his  generous  and  sympathetic  nature. 
In  summing  up  the  character  of  John  Quincy 
Adams,  he  may  be  said  to  be  a  man  whose  in- 
tegrity, whether  tested  in  the  numerous  and  ex- 
tensive transactions  of  an  eventful  commercial 
career,  or  in  minor  dealings  with  his  fellow-men. 
has  never  been  questioned  :  a  man  who,  while 
possessing  to  an  unusual  degree  the  ability  to  ac- 
quire wealth,  happily  combines  with  it  a  generous 
heart  and  open  hand ;  a  man  whose  social  quali- 


2o8 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AND  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


ties,  strict  habits,  domestic  tastes  and  personal 
bearing  toward  all,  win  for  him  universal  esteem. 
He  is,  indeed,  "  a  prophet "  with  "  honor  "  "  in  his 
own  country  "  as  well  as  abroad.  A  quiet,  though 
close  student  of  current  events,  foreign  and  do- 
mestic,   he   is    an    interesting    conversationalist. 


especially  upon  topics  which  affect  our  national 
interests. 

The  ambitious  youth  of  to-day,  who  would 
profit  by  example,  has  in  the  life  of  John  Ouincy 
Adams  an  example  of  a  self-made  man,  worthy  of 
emulation. 


NORMAN  THEODORE  CASSETTE, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


IN  March,  1891,  IMr.  Cassette  said  to  the  writer: 
"  I  am  a  sick  man,  but  people  never  so  think 
of  me."  He  was  in  his  private  office  at  110-112 
Dearborn  street,  looking  the  picture  of  health^ 
large,  full  face,  broad-,  heavy  shoulders,  strong, 
muscular  limbs,  clear,  comprehensive  intellect,  and 
steady,  resonant  voice.  Surprise  was  expressed 
at  his  remark.  Then  he  spoke  with  calm  resigna- 
nation  of  the  physical  organism  which  defied  med- 
ical treatment.  Thursday  morning,  March  26, 
1 891,  the  older  residents  of  Chicago,  with  whom 
he  grew  up,  and  hosts  of  others  with  whom  he 
had  enjoyed  pleasant  business  and  social  relations, 
were  amazed,  shocked,  grieved  by  the  public 
announcement  of  his  sudden  and  untimely  death. 
A  cold,  la  grippe,  combined  with  unyielding  ail- 
ments, did  the  fatal  work  in  a  few  days,  in  the  very 
presence  of  the  best  and  most  solicitous  medical 
skill.  During  the  last  days  of  his  office  duties,  he 
stated  that  he  never  desired  to  be  made  promi- 
nent in  any  one  special  work  to  the  e.xclusion  of 
his  like  interest  and  life's  labors  in  other  lines  of 
effort,  to  which  his  best  thought  and  tireless  en- 
ergy had  always  been  successfully  given.  His 
desire  will  govern  in  the  preparation  of  this 
sketch. 

Mr.  Cassette  was  born  April  21,  1839,  at  Town- 
,send,  Vt.  His  parents  were  Silas  B.  and  Susanna 
P.  (Martin)  Cassette.  The  family  removed  to 
Springfield,  Mass.  Here,  Norman  began  his 
schooling  at  about  four  years  of  age,  passed 
through  the  eleven  grades,  and  was  admitted  to 
Parish's  High  School  in  his  tenth  year.  In  De- 
cember, 1849,  the  family  came  to  Chicago,  and 
Norman  had  the  privileges  of  the  Carden  City 
Institute,  Professor  Hathaway's  Academy,  and 
private  instruction  by  Professor  A.  J.Sawyer,  until 
his  fifteenth  year.     Thence  to   Shurtliff  College, 


Alton,  111.,  and  the  next  year  to  the  Atw'ater  In- 
stitute, Rochester,  N.  Y.  Here  he  compassed 
the  curriculum  of  Harvard  University  under  pri- 
vate tutors. 

The  roar  of  cannon  at  Fort  Sumter  had  now 
startled  the  whole  land,  and  young  Cassette's 
patriotism  was  fully  aroused.  June  17,  1861,  he 
was  mustered  into  his  country's  service  as  private 
of  Company  A,  Nineteenth  Illinois  Volunteer 
Infantry.  In  July,  he  was  with  his  regiment 
near  the  enemy's  lines  in  Missouri.  In  1862,  for 
meritorious  service,  he  was  promoted  to  first 
lieutenant  and  assigned  to  staff  duty  as  aide-de- 
camp. For  special  gallantry  at  the  memorable 
battle  of  Chickamauga,  his  brigade,  division  and 
corps  commanders,  recommended  his  promotion 
in  rank  to  brevet-lieutenant  colonel.  He  was 
honorably  mustered  out  in  October,  1864,  having 
faithfully  served  more  than  the  "  three  years' " 
enlistment.  During  the  next  two  years  he  com- 
pleted the  full  course  in  the  law  school  of  the 
University  of  Chicago,  and  was  admitted  to  the 
bar.  From  1866  to  1868,  he  was  deputy  county 
clerk  with  Cen.  Edward  S.  Salomon,  and  had  charge 
of  the  records  in  the  county  court  before  Judge 
James  B.  Bradwell.  While  discharging  these 
duties  he  did  full  work  every  night  in  the  Chicago 
postoffice,  and  supported  his  own  and  his  father's 
family.  In  1868,  he  was  elected  clerk  of  the  Cir- 
cuit Court,  and  ex-officio  recorder  of  deeds — a 
"  fee  office."  With  the  expiration  of  his  term, 
December,  1872,  the  offices  of  clerk  and  recorder 
became  distinct  and  the  "  fee  "  compensation  abol- 
ished. He  was  an  untiring  worker  in  the  Repub- 
lican party,  and  seven  times  chairman  of  cam- 
paign committees.  One  of  these  conducted  the 
notable  Farwell-Wentworth  contest  for  Congress 
in  the  interest  and  election  of  Charles  B.  Farwell. 


yr3-r7. 


'u<z^  W.  ya-^u-cJ^ 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AM)  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


211 


After  1873,  he  retired  from  activity  \\\  the  party 
counsels. 

In  1864,  Mr.  Cassette  was  raised  a  Master 
Mason  in  Blair  Lod<je,  No.  393.  Subsequentlj', 
he  affiliated  with  Home  Lodge,  No.  508,  until  his 
death.  His  usual  zeal  procured  his  rapid  ad- 
vancement through  all  the  degrees  to  the  Supreme 
Council,  33d  degree  A.  A.  S.  Rite,  Northern  Ma- 
sonic Grand  Jurisdiction,  U.  S.  A. 

In  June,  1874,  he  was  elected  prelate  of  the 
Apollo  Commandery  ;  also  for  a  second  term.  In 
December,  1875,  he  was  chosen  generalissimo, 
and  in  1876,  eminent  commander,  and,  save  for 
the  year  1881.  served  until  December.  1883. 
During  this  period  he  was  chairman  of  the  joint 
committee  of  management  (of  the  three  Chicago 
commanderies  and  the  Grand  Commandery  of 
the  State)  to  arrange  for  the  Twenty-first  Tri- 
ennial Conclave  of  the  Grand  Encampment  of 
Knights  Templar,  U.  S.  A.,  held  in  Chicago  in 
1880. 

In  1883,  the  Apollo  Commandery — or  one  hun- 
dred and  fort\-  Templars  and  some  twenty  ladies — 
visited  Europe,  the  largest  masonic  body  that 
ever  crossed  the  ocean.  Mr.  Gassette,  ofTicially, 
had  the  chief  responsibility  again.  Royal  hospi- 
tality was  e.xtended  to  the  pilgrims  in  London, 
Liverpool,  and  other  large  cities.  At  York  they 
were  given  a  great  banquet  by  Ancient  Ebor 
Freceptory  in  the  Guild  Hall,  presided  over  by 
the  Lord  Mayor  of  York.  With  unalloyed  pleas- 
ure, the  Commandery  returned  to  Chicago  Sep- 
tember 17,  1883. 

Subsequently,  .Mr.  Gassette  held  all  the  ofificcs 
in  the  Grand  Commandery,  of  Knights  Templar  of 
Illinois.  As  eminent  grand  commander,  he  took 
the  Templars  of  Illinois,  in  1889,  to  the  Triennial 
Conclave  at  Washington,  D.  C.  At  the  time  of 
his  decease,  Mr.  Gassette  was  president  of  the 
Masonic  Fraternity  Temple  A.ssociation,  and  was 
in  charge  of  its  great  enterprise — erecting  the 
Masonic  Temple  at  the  northeast  corner  of  State 
and  Randolph  streets.  Its  corner-stone  was  laid 
November  6,  1S90.  The  ground  is  170x114. 
Its  height  gives  eighteen  stories.  Solid  and  sym- 
metrical, it  rivals  "even  cathedral  spires  or  monu- 
mental shafts  in  its  towering  altitude."  Its  in- 
terior will  be,  substantially,  a  palace  of  marble. 
Its  character,  when  finished,  within  as  without, 
will  be  symbolical,  as  well  as  monumental,  of  its 


chief  builder.  An  official  report  states  that 
"  most  particularly  the  incomparable  ability  of 
Ill.-.Hro.  Norman  T.  Gassette  to  handle  the  finan- 
cial details  of  the  project,  has  rendered  possible 
the  realization  "  of  this  wonderful  work. 

The  same  enthusiastic  labors  have  greatly  aided 
other  large  enterprises  and  grand  institutions  with 
which  he  was  long  identified.  The  Grand  Army 
of  the  Republic  found  him  always  a  loyal  and 
valuable  friend.  Death  called  him  while  he  was 
commander  of  Columbia  Post,  No.  706,  Dept. 
of  Illinois.  This  post  is  thoroughly  equipped, 
uniformed  and  drilled.  Its  members  are  of  the 
highest  social  standing.  His  character  and  ad- 
ministrative ability  were  highly  appreciated  and 
utilized  in  the  Immanuel  Baptist  Church.  Dr.  G. 
C.  Lorimer,  his  late  pastor,  found  in  him  a  wise 
and  devoted  counsellor,  and  a  brother  beloved, 
and  compared  their  friendship  to  the  love  of 
David  and  Jonathan.  Mr.  Gassette  was  chairman 
of  the  building  committee,  under  whose  direction 
their  fine  house  of  worship  was  erected  some  ten 
years  since.  Also,  he  was  chairman  of  the 
finance  committee  which  piloted  the  church 
through  the  shoals  of  debt  to  its  present  sound 
financial  condition. 

His  legal  attainments  were  the  foundation  of 
his  substantial  prosperit)-.  They  were  in  active 
exercise  in  his  official  and  political  career.  They 
furnished  the  .special  qualifications  for  the  large 
transactions,  involving  millions,  entrusted  to  his 
wisdom.  The  complex  questions  of  title  were  ex- 
amined and  adjusted  by  him  with  marked  success. 
He  was  thus  well  equipped  for  his  last  business 
of  mortgage  banker  and  real  estate  in  all  its 
branches. 

Mr.  Gassette  was  an  entirely  self-made  man, 
and  none  but  those  who  knew  his  early  struggles 
can  award  to  him  the  meed  of  credit  justly  due 
him.  Few  men,  not  purely  professional,  had  a 
broader  culture  or  readier  use  of  his  mental  furni- 
ture than  he. 

He  was  a  man  of  letters.  His  library  is  one  of 
the  be.st  in  this  city.  He  bought  books  to  read— 
hi.story,  science,  literature  and  poetry.  He  had  a 
marvelous  faculty  and  facility  for  reading  rapidly 
and  making  his  own  what  he  read.  If  he  had  any 
choice  of  subject  for  study,  it  was  in  the  line  of 
oriental  literature  and  religious  beliefs.  He  was 
especially     interested    in    their    symbolism    and 


212 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AND  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


mystic  elements.  "  Worship  was  to  him  a  sub- 
ject of  deep  interest  and  study."  He  was  thor- 
oughly acquainted,  not  only  with  the  forms,  but 
the  symbolical  meaning  underlying  those  forms 
of  both  ancient  and  modern  worship.  He  was  a 
constant,  intelligent  and  discriminating  buyer  of 
books.  They  were  his  daily  companions,  giving 
relief  from  business  cares  and  recreation  to  his 
tired  brain.  Usually  three  to  four  hours  of  his 
evenings  were  devoted  to  reading  and  composi- 
tion. He  was  a  prolific  writer  of  verse  as  well  as 
prose,  beginning  at  an  early  age.  Ballads,  hymns 
and  prose  miscellany,  over  his  own  signature,  and 
various  noms  de  plume,  through  leading  dailies  and 
magazines,  have  had   nearly  a  world-wide  circula- 


tion. Among  his  writings  are  the  history  of 
Apollo  Commandery,  sketches  in  the  history  of 
the  Grand  Commandery  of  Illinois,  and  burial 
ritual  in  blank  verse,  used  by  Scottish  Rite  Ma- 
sons. Of  his  many  hymns,  the  following  has  re- 
ceived special  favor: 

"  Lord  above,  to  thee  we  kneel. 
To  thy  cross  we  cling." 

As  a  speaker,  Mr.  Cassette  was  happy,  and  a 
favorite  for  impromptu  addresses.  Also  as  an  ora- 
tor for  special  occasions,  his  popularity  made  fre- 
quent requisitions  upon  him. 

His  wife,  nee  Amelia  L.  Boggs,  and  two  chil- 
dren survive  him — a  son  and  a  daughter,  Wirt  K. 
and  Grace.     Both  have  reached  maturity. 


REV.  FRANK    M.  BRISTOL, 


CHICAGO,  ILL. 


REV.  FRANK  MILTON  BRISTOL,  D.D.. 
pastor  of  Trinity  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church,  Chicago,  was  born  in  Orleans  county, 
N.  Y.,  January  4,  1851.  His  father,  Leverett  A., 
was  born  in  1821.  In  1848,  he  married  Miss 
Angeline  Butterfield,  daughter  of  Dr.  Alex.  But- 
terfield,  of  Olcott,  N.  Y.  He  became  a  merchant 
of  Niagara  county,  N.  Y.,  and  later  of  Kankakee, 
111.  In  1 861,  he  was  one  of  the  proprietors  of  the 
Galena  Courier. 

Both  lines  of  Rev.  Mr.  Bristol's  ancestry  were 
Scotch  and  English,  and  for  some  generations, 
Methodists.  His  father  died  in  1863.  Having  suf- 
fered long  from  ill  health,  the  family  was  left  in  cir- 
cumstances which  required  Frank  to  work  for  sev- 
eral years  at  whatever  would  aid  in  the  needed  sup- 
port. The  year  1864  he  spent  at  Rockford,  111., 
with  his  uncle,  the  Rev.  W.  B.  Slaughter,  D.D., 
attending  the  public  school  a  portion  of  the  time. 
The  next  six  years  witnessed  various  labors  and 
struggles  with  his  environments,  culminating  in 
the  providential  opening  for  the  education  he 
sought.  In  1870,  he  entered  the  North-Western 
University,  at  Evanston,  111.,  with  the  view  to 
prepare  for  the  ministry.  He  graduated  in  1877, 
with  the  degree  of  Bachelor  of  Philosophy.  Since 
then,  his  alma  mater  has  conferred  upon  him  the 
honorary  degrees  of  Master  of  Arts  and  Doctor  of 
Divinity.     By  travel  and  study  abroad  he  has  de- 


veloped a  taste  for  art  and  early  English  litera- 
ture, giving  special  attention  to  the  study  of 
Shakespeare.  He  has  made  quite  an  extensive 
collection  of  rare  books  and  fine  art,  but  only  as 
supplementary  to  his  broader  ministerial  work. 
He  has  twice  been  honored  as  a  delegate  of  the 
Rock  River  Conference  to  the  General  Confer- 
ence of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  and  in 
1890,  was  appointed  the  fraternal  delegate  of  the 
General  Conference  to  the  General  Conference  of 
the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  South.  Mr. 
Bristol's  pastoral  work  has  been  in  Blue  Island, 
Morgan  Park,  Joliet,  Englewood  and  Chicago. 
He  was  appointed  to  the  Wabash  Avenue  Church 
for  1879,  ^n*^  *^o  1882,  thence  to  Trinity  to  1885, 
to  Grace  to  1890,  thence  to  Trinity  again. 

May  9,  1878,  Mr.  Bristol  married  Miss  Nellie 
Frisbie,  of  Morgan  Park.  They  have  three  chil- 
dren, Leverett  Dale,  Raymond  Wolcott  and  Har- 
low Butterfield. 

Mr.  Bristol  early  gained  high  rank  as  a  lecturer, 
writer  and  publicist.  In  the  pulpit  he  is  earnest, 
logical  and  eloquent,  having  attained  an  enviable 
reputation  which  places  him  in  the  forefront  of 
noted  clergymen.  His  devoted  pastoral  labors 
and  winsome  personal  traits  have  made  him  a 
popular  favorite,  and  greatly  endeared  him  to  his 
congregations.  A  testimonial,  as  marked  as  it  is 
unusual,  is  his  return,  as  soon  as  conference  rules 


^% 


ZWl^,^^ 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


would  permit,  to  the  pastorate  of  Trinity  Church, 
having  the  finest  edifice,  and  most  wealthy  and 
cultured  congregation  among  Chicago  Methodists. 
In  1 89 1,  Dr.  Bristol  was  elected  president  of  the 
Chicago  Preachers"  Meeting. 

At  this  writing,  1892,  he  is  in  the  prime  of  life, 
at  the  zenith  of  his  powers  for  usefulness,  loved 
by  his  people,  in  demand  for. great  public  occa- 
sions, of  high  reputation  for  generous,  lovable, 
catholic  Christianity,  and  in  honor  among  his 
brethren  in  the  great  church  of  his  fathers. 

Trinity  Church  had  its  beginning  in  1855,  as 
Clark  Street  Mission,  organized  in  the  Orphan 
Asylum  on  Michigan  avenue,  near  Twenty-second 
street.  In  August,  1856.  re-organized  as  St.  Paul's 
M.  E.  Sabbath  School,  in  a  schoolhouse  on  In- 
diana avenue,  near  Twenty-second  street.  John 
Haywood  was  superintendent  and  Frank  Carley 
secretary.  In  1863,  a  church  building,  erected 
on  Indiana  avenue  and  Twenty-first  street,  was 
dedicated  April  10,  1864,  by  Rev.  T.  M.  Eddy, 
D.D.     That  year  the  Rev.  C.  H.  Fowler  had  the 


official  oversight.  In  the  fall  of  1864,  Rev.  John 
H.  Vincent  was  appointed  pastor;  and  in  1865,  Rev. 
\Vm.  A.  Smith  ;  in  1866,  Rev.  S.  A.  VV.  Jewett ;  in 
1868,  Rev.  T.  M.  Eddy,  D.D.;  in  March,  1869, 
Rev.  E.  B.  Snyder,  who  was  succeeded  in  autumn 
by  Rev.  J.  H.  Bayliss.  The  corner-stone  of  the 
fine  house  on  Indiana  avenue,  near  Twenty-fourth 
street,  was  laid  October  5,  1870,  by  Bishop  Janes, 
of  New  York.  The  fire  of  1871  crippled  tjie  re- 
sources of  the  congregation,  but  the  lecture  room 
was  dedicated  January,  1872.  After  the  fire  of 
1 87 1,  the  Wabash  Avenue  Church  united  with  the 
Trinity.  In  1872,  Rev.  S.  M.  McChesney  became 
pastor;  Rev.  O.  H.  Tiffany,  1874-77;  Rev.  W.  F. 
Crafts,  1877-79;  Rev.  R.  B.  Pope,  1879-82;  Rev. 
F.  M.  Bristol,  1882-85  ;  Rev.  J.  Alabaster,  1885-87  ; 
Rev.  R.  Pooley,  1887-88.  The  latter  year  Rev. 
Dr.  Bristol  was  returned  for  the  second  pastorate, 
which  he  so  eminently  fills — the  worthy  successor 
of  a  list  of  noble  men  who  have  adorned  high  ed- 
ucational and  editorial,  as  well  as  ecclesiastical, 
positions. 


JOHN   J.    P.   ODELL, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


JOHN  J.  P.  ODELL,  one  of  the  most  promi- 
nent financiers  of  Chicago,  and  president  of 
the  Union  National  Bank,  was  born  in  Eastport, 
Me.,  in  1847. 

He  was  reared  and  educated  in  the  city  of  his 
birth,  finishing  his  education  in  the  high-school 
of  that  place.  During  the  summers  of  his  six- 
teenth and  seventeenth  years  he  accompanied 
the  expeditions  of  the  coast  survey  along  the 
Atlantic  seaboard,  and  studied  the  science  of 
surveying. 

Upon  finishing  his  school  course  in  1865,  the 
Western  fever  having  possessed  him  for  some 
time,  he  followed  his  inclination  and  removed  to 
Chicago. 

His  first  experience  in  business  life  in  this  cit)', 
which  served  as  his  introduction  to  the  banking 
business,  in  which  he  has  since  become  promi- 
nent, was  in  a  minor  position  in  the  North- 
western National  Bank. 

In  July,  1866,  he  accepted  a  position  as  book- 
keeper in  the  Union   National   Bank,  and  he  has 


devoted  his  entire  time  since  then  to  the  interests 
of  that  financial  institution,  and  the  honorable  and 
courteous  way  that  Mr.  Odell  has  for  transacting 
business  has  assisted  materially  in  adding  to  the 
success  of  the  bank's  career. 

His  connection  with  the  bank  covers  a  con- 
tinuous term  of  twenty-five  years,  during  which 
time  he  has  advanced  through  all  positions,  from 
that  of  book-keeper  until  he  is  now  its  president. 
From  January,  1880.  to  January,  1884,  he  acted  as 
ca.shier.  In  1884  he  became  vice-president,  and 
in  1890  was  elected  to  the  position  which  he  now 
holds. 

During  the  twenty-five  years  that  Mr.  Odell  has 
been  connected  with  the  Union  National  Bank 
his  record  is  unsullied  and  is  clean,  and  his  success 
is  another  instance  of  what  integrity  and  honor, 
combined  with  natural  ability  and  a  firm  character, 
can  accomplish. 

In  private  life  he  is  quiet  and  domestic  in  his 
habits.  He  was  married  in  1868  to  Miss  Mary  L. 
Brown,  and  has  one  daughter,  Mabel,  living. 


2l6 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


In  1873  Mr.  Odell  was  married  to  Miss  Emma 
A.  Talbot,  of  Providence,  R.  I.  They  have  two 
children  ;  their  names,  in  order  of  birth,  are  George 
and  Irving. 

Such  is  his  biography.  It  is  the  sketch  of  a  life 
that  has  been  both  active  and  honorable.  John 
J.  P.  Odell,  starting  in  life  with  a  capital  consisting 
of  nothing  but  a  high-school  education,  a  strong 
character  and  an  ambitious  nature,  has  passed 
through  many  stages  in  business  life,  until  now 
(1892),  at  the  age  of  forty-four,  he  is  the  presiding 


officer  and  the  controlling  spirit  of  one  of  the  lead- 
ing financial  institutions  in  this  country ;  and  it 
is  acknowledged  by  those  acquainted  with  the 
banking  business,  that  as  a  financier  he  is  the 
peer  of  any  one  connected  with  any  financial 
house  in  the  city. 

Upon  the  organization  of  the  Board  of  Direc- 
tors for  the  World's  Columbian  Exposition,  Mr. 
Odell  was  one  of  the  forty-five  gentlemen  who, 
owing  to  their  high  position  in  the  community, 
were  chosen  to  compose  this  important  body. 


JOHN   J.    HERRICK, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


SUCCESS  in  any  calling  is  an  indication  of 
close  application,  industry,  and  faithfulness. 
There  are  few  professions  more  honorable,  and 
few  which  offer  better  opportunities  than  does 
that  of  the  law,  for  the  display  of  character,  ster- 
ling worth  and  ability.  To  the  lawyer  are  neces- 
sarily entrusted  matters  of  confidence,  involving 
property,  reputation,  and  at  times,  even  life  itself, 
and  upon  his  skill,  loyalty,  and  ability,  the  rich 
and  poor,  strong  and  helpless  often  depend. 

Success  in  life  is  something  to  be  proud  of, 
and  the  world  is  better  for  the  life  of  every  suc- 
cessful man.  It  is  a  stimulus  to  others  less  for- 
tunate in  the  fray,  and  an  example  for  them  to 
emulate ;  and  the  greatest  reward  of  the  success- 
ful man  is  his  consciousness  of  having  acted  well 
his  part  and  contributed  something  toward  the 
betterment  of  his  fellow-men.  The  subject  of 
this  sketch  lays  claim  to  no  particular  honor  for 
having  fulfilled  the  obligations  of  his  profession, 
and  for  having  become  a  successful  lawyer  and  a 
prominent  citizen. 

John  J.  Herrick  was  born  at  Hillsboro,  Illinois, 
May  25th,  1845.  Being  the  son  of  Dr.  William 
B.  and  Martha  J.  (Seward)  Herrick. 

The  Massachusetts  family  of  Herrick  are  a 
branch  of  the  ancient  English  family  of  Herrick, 
of  Leicestershire,  a  family  prominent  in  this 
county  to-day,  and  one  which  in  the  past  had 
many  illustrious  members.  After  the  war  of  the 
Revolution,  the  great-grandfather  of  our  subject, 
Jacob  Herrick,  who  was  a  lieutenant  in  that 
struggle,  settled   in    Durham,    Maine,    and    there 


became  a  Congregational  minister.  His  son, 
Jacob,  was  born  in  and  resided  in  Durham,  and 
here  his  son,  our  subject's  father,  William  B., 
was  also  born.  The  Sewards  are  old  residents  of 
Illinois.  John  B.  Seward,  our  subject's  maternal 
grandfather,  was  a  native  of  New  Jersey,  and  set- 
tled in  Montgomery'  county,  Illinois,  at  an  early 
day. 

William  B.  Herrick,  our  subject's  father,  ar- 
rived in  Chicago  in  1844.  He  was  Surgeon  of  a 
regiment  of  Illinois  Volunteers  during  the  Mexi- 
can war,  and  on  his  return  was  one  of  the  first 
Professors  of  Rush  Medical  College  ;  he  was  also 
the  first  President  of  the  Illinois  State  Medical 
Society.  He  was  prominent,  not  only  in  medical 
and  scientific  circles,  but  also  in  civil  affairs  and 
social  life.  But  the  toil  and  hardships  and  ex- 
posures of  campaign  life  had  left  their  effects 
upon  his  system,  and  his  health  failing,  he,  in 
1857,  was  compelled  to  have  recourse  to  his 
native  air,  and  returned  to  Maine. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  received  his  prelim- 
inary education  in  the  public  and  private  schools 
of  Chicago,  and  after  the  return  of  his  father  to 
the  State  of  Maine,  in  1857,  he  attended  the 
Lewiston  Falls  Academy,  and  there  was  prepared 
for  Bowdoin  College,  which  he  entered  in  1862, 
and  from  which  he  was  graduated  in  1866.  Re- 
turning to  Illinois,  he  spent  the  winter  of  1 866-7 
in  teaching  school  in  Hyde  Park,  then  a  suburb 
of  Chicago.  Deciding  upon  the  law  as  a  voca- 
tion, he,  in  1867,  became  a  student  in  the  offices 
of  Higgins,  Swett   and    Quigg.     Entering  at  the 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


219 


same  time  the  Union  College  of  Law,  at  Chicago, 
he  was  graduated  with  the  class  of  1868,  and 
selected  to  deliver  the  class  valedicton,'.  Three 
years  later  Mr.  Herrick  commenced  the  active 
practice  of  his  profession — having  in  the  mean- 
time remained  with  Messrs.  Higgins.  Swett  and 
Ouigg,  as  clerk  and  student,  gaining  thereby 
much  additional  legal  knowledge  and  valuable 
experience  of  a  practical  nature.  As  in  business, 
so  in  professional  life:  much  depends  upon  the 
manner  in  which  one's  career  is  opened.  From 
the  very  outset,  that  of  John  J.  Herrick  has  been 
a  marked  success,  while  he  soon  acquired  consid- 
erable reputation  from  his  connection  with  sev- 
eral important  cases ;  among  others,  the  suits 
growing  out  of  the  alleged  fraudulent  election  of 
Michael  Evans  and  others  to  the  South  Town 
offices,  and  their  ouster  from  ofifice  in  1876.  And 
those  growing  out  of  the  failure  of  the  firm  of 
John  B.  Lyon  and  Company,  in  1872,  and  their 
suspension  from  the  Board  of  Trade.  In  1878, 
Mr.  Herrick  became  associated  with  the  late  Mr. 
Wirt  Dexter,  and  in  1880,  Mr.  Charles  L.Allen 
was  admitted  to  the  partnership,  the  firm  name 
becoming,  De.xter,  Herrick  and  Allen,  and  thus 
the  firm  continued  until  the  death  of  Mr.  Dexter, 
in  May,  iSqo;  since  which  time  our  subject  has 
been  associated  with  Mr.  Allen,  under  the  style 
of  Herrick  and  Allen. 

Among  the  many  other  important  and  noted 
cases  with  which  Mr.  Herrick  has  been  con- 
nected was  the  case  of  Devine  vs.  People,  and 
out  of  which  arose  the  question  of  the  consti- 
tutionality of  the  law  authorizing  the  County 
Commissioners  of  Cook  county  to  issue  bonds 
without  a  vote  of  the  people.  The  case  of 
Barrow  vs.  Bumside,  argued  before  the  Su- 
preme Court  of  Iowa,  and  the  Supreme  Court 
of  the  United  States,  involving  the  validity  of 
the  Iowa  Statute  as  to  corporations  of  other 
States,  known  as  tlie  "  Domestication  Law." 
The  cases  of  Stevens  vs.  I'ratt,  and  Kingsbury 
vs.  Sperry,  before  the  Supreme  Court  of  Illi- 
nois, and  of  Gross  vs.  United  States  Mortgage 
Company,  and  United  States  Mortgage  Company 
vs.  Kingsbury,  before  the  Supreme  Court  of  the 
United  States,  involving  important  questions  as 
to  the  rights  of  foreign  corporations  in  Illinois, 
and  the  construction  of  the  Illinois  Statutes  as  to 
guardians.     The  case  of  the  Chicago  and   North- 


W'estTrn  Railroad  Compaii)-  vs.  Dcy.  and  other 
cases  before  the  United  States  Courts  in  Iowa 
and  Illinois.  And  of  the  State  vs.  Chicago,  Bur- 
lington and  Ouincy  Railroad  Company  before 
tlie  Supreme  Court  of  Nebraska,  involving  ques- 
tions of  constitutional  law,  and  important  as 
defining  the  rights  of  railroad  corporations.  The 
case  of  Spalding  vs.  Preston,  involving  new  and 
important  (jucstions  as  to  the  construction  of  the 
Illinois  Assignment  Law.  Also  the  Taylor  and 
Storey  will  cases.  Space  alone  forbids  an  enu- 
meration of  the  many  other  and  important  cases 
with  which  Mr.  Herrick  has  been  connected.  At 
present  (1892),  representing  large  corporate  and 
private  interests,  the  firm  of  Herrick  and  Allen 
have  a  fine  record,  and  a  reputation  second  to 
none. 

Mr.  Herrick  has  held,  at  various  times,  numer- 
ous offices  in  the  Chicago  Law  Institute,  the 
Chicago  Bar  Association  and  the  Citizens'  Asso- 
ciation. He  is  also  a  member  of  the  Chicago 
Literary  Society,  and  the  University  Club.  He 
is  a  regular  attendant  at  the  Central  Church 
in  Central  Music  Hall,  under  the  charge  of 
Professor  David  Swing,  of  whom  he  is  a  great 
admirer. 

In  politics,  Mr.  Herrick,  until  1884,  was  a  Na- 
tional Republican.  But,  in  1884  and  1888,  he 
voted  for  Grover  Cleveland,  and  is  now  an  advo- 
cate for  the  reduction  of  tariff  on  the  line  of  free 
trade  and  civil  service  reform.  In  municipal  and 
local  affairs  he  is  non-partisan,  believing  in  meas- 
ures and  men  rather  than  in  mere  political  wire 
pulling.  He  was  married  to  Miss  Julie  A.  Dulon 
in  1882.     They  have  three  children. 

Mr.  Herrick  is,  in  the  truest  sense,  a  high- 
minded  gentlemen.  He  is  a  man  of  scholarly 
attainments;  and  in  his  professional,  as  in  all  his 
varied  relations,  .seeks  something  higher  and 
better  than  mere  personal  gain.  With  broad 
views  of  life,  he  rises  above  his  calling  or  his 
environments,  using  them  all  as  but  means  for 
the  accomplishment  of  noble  end.s.  Conscious  of 
his  own  powers,  he  is  yet  modest  and  unassum- 
ing in  manner,  and  never  courts  notoriety;  and 
while  firm  in  his  convictions,  is  tolerant  of  tho.se 
whose  opinions  difTer  from  his. 

As  an  advocate,  he  is  even  eloquent  at  times. 
His  style  is  clear  and  conci.se,  and  his  arguments 
are  sound  and   thoroughly  logical,  and   rarely  fail 


2  20  BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIO.XARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 

to  convince  Mr.  Herrick  is.  witlial,  a  courteous  leading  lawyers,  and  has  the  confidence  and  re- 
gentleman  and  affable,  and  possesses  the  happy  spect  of  all  who  know  him.  And  none  more 
("acuity  of  making  and  retaining  friends,  of  whom  richly  deserves  to  be  ranked  among  that  city  s 
he  has  a  host.     He  is  counted  among  Chicago's  representative  men. 


EPHRAIM    BANNING. 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


OF  the  many  able  lawyers  whose  specialty 
is  patent  law  and  patent  cases,  Mr.  Banning 
stands  second  to  none.  Endowed  by  nature 
with  a  comprehensive  mind  and  considerable 
mechanical  ingenuity,  he  has  attained  great  pro- 
ficiency in  the  methods  and  sciences  especially 
applicable  to  that  branch  of  the  profession  to 
which  he  has  given  particular  attention. 

Ephraim  Banning  was  born  near  Bushnell, 
McDonough  county,  Illinois,  July  21,  1849,  his 
father  being  from  Virginia  and  his  mother  from 
Kentucky.  His  father,  after  whom  he  was 
named,  was  a  plain,  sturdy  farmer,  with  but  little 
education  except  that  acquired  in  the  school  of 
life,  but  with  an  energetic  spirit,  full  of  hope  and 
courage.  When  our  subject  was  quite  young,  the 
family  moved  to  Kansas.  The  father  was  a  pro- 
nounced abolitionist,  and  the  committee  of  the 
convention,  which  made  Kansas  "  a  free  State," 
held  their  meetings  in  his  house. 

Mr.  Banning's  mother,  who  was  a  sister  of  the 
late  Judge  Pinkney  H.  Walker,  of  the  Supreme 
Court  of  Illinois,  was  a  woman  of  much  character, 
distinguished  among  her  acquaintances  for  quiet, 
common  sense  and  a  most  amiable  disposition. 
On  his  mother's  side  were  a  number  of  well- 
known  men,  among  others  his  grandfather,  Gil- 
mer Walker,  an  able  and  honored  lawyer,  and  his 
great  uncle,  Cyrus  Walker,  said  to  have  been  one 
of  the  most  distinguished  lawyers  in  Kentucky, 
and  afterward  one  of  the  ablest  in  Illinois. 

When  he  was  but  ten  years  old,  the  family  re- 
moved to  Missouri,  and  at  the  breaking  out  of 
the  war,  his  two  older  brothers  enlisted  in  the 
Union  army  and  left  him,  being  the  next  oldest, 
to  assist  his  father  in  the  care  of  the  farm.  His 
father's  circumstances,  as  a  pioneer  farmer,  were 
such  that  from  his  earliest  childhood  young  Ban- 
ning was  necessarily  deprived  of  many  of  the  op- 
portunities and    privileges   generally    considered 


indispensable  to  the  proper  development  of  boy- 
hood life.  This  was  particularly  so  in  the  matter 
of  education,  for  in  this  respect  he  was  always  re- 
quired to  contend  against  adverse  circumstances. 
But  being  an  apt  scholar,  quick  and  anxious  to 
learn,  he  acquired  knowledge  rapidly,  and  on 
more  than  one  occasion,  in  his  boyhood  and 
youth,  took  the  prize  in  his  school.  After  finish- 
ing the  elementary  branches,  he,  at  the  age  of 
seventeen,  entered  an  academy  at  Brookfield, 
Missouri,  where  he  studied  the  languages  and 
higher  branches  of  learning,  under  the  preceptor- 
ship  of  the  Rev.  J.  P.  Finley,  D.D. 

After  leaving  the  academy,  Mr.  Banning  taught 
school  a  few  months,  and  during  this  period  be- 
gan the  study  of  the  law.  He  continued  his 
legal  studies  in  the  office  of  Hon.  Samuel  P.  Hus- 
ton, of  Brookfield,  and  then,  in  the  spring  of 
1 87 1,  removed  to  Chicago  and  entered  the  ofifice 
of  Messrs.  Rosenthal  and  Pence,  as  a  clerk  and 
student.  In  June,  1872,  he  was  admitted  to  the 
bar  by  the  Supreme  Court  of  Illinois,  and  in  Octo- 
ber of  the  same  year  he  opened  an  office  and  be- 
gan practicing  for  himself. 

The  building  up  of  a  practice  by  a  young  law- 
yer is  generally  slow,  and  especially  so  in  a  great 
city  like  Chicago,  where  attorneys  are  numbered 
by  thousands,  and  in  this  respect  Mr.  Banning 
had  the  usual  experience.  But  merit  usually 
brings  its  reward,  and  so,  in  the  course  of  a  few 
years  he  came  to  be  recognized  in  the  courts  and 
at  the  bar  as  a  lawyer  in  fair  general  practice. 
About  this  time  several  cases  came  to  him.  in- 
volving questions  of  patent  law.  The  intricate 
and  scientific  points  of  this  branch  of  jurispru- 
dence, caused  him  to  form  a  special  liking  for  it. 
and  his  first  argument  in  a  patent  cause  was  early 
in  1877,  before  Judge  Blodgett,  and  from  about 
this  time,  or  a  little  later,  may  be  dated  his  with- 
drawal from  general  practice  and   to  devote  him- 


^.., 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARr  AXD  PORTRAIT  uALLERV. 


self  exclusively  to  patent  law.  Before  this,  how- 
ever, and  for  some  years  afterwards,  while  work- 
ing into  patent  law.  he  had  a  large  and  varied 
experience  in  general  practice — in  commercial, 
real  estate,  corporation  and  criminal  law — and 
undoubtedly  this  general  experience  had  much 
to  do  with  subsequent  work  and  success  in  his 
chosen  specialty. 

He  entered  into  a  partnership  with  his  brother, 
Thomas  A.  Banning,  in  1877,  and  in  due  time 
the  firm  of  Banning  &  Banning  became  widely 
known  as  successful  patent  attorneys.  They 
have  argued  a  great  number  of  patent  and  trade- 
mark cases,  and  now  have  a  large  practice  in  the 
Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States,  and  in  the 
lower  federal  courts  in  Chicago  and  elsewhere. 

The  firm  still  continues  as  first  organized,  ex- 
cept that  Mr.  George  S.  Payson  was  admitted  as 
a  member  in  i8S8.  Mr.  Banning  was  married  in 
October,  1878,  to  Miss  Lucretia  T.  Lindsley,  who 


died  in  1887,  leaving  three  boys,  all  of  whom  are 
still  living.  In  1889,  he  was  married  to  Miss 
Emilie  B.  Jenne,  daughter  of  the  late  O.  B.  Jenne, 
of  Elgin,  Illinois.  Mr.  Banning  is  an  elder  in  the 
Presbyterian  Church,  and  a  man  of  strong  reli;^- 
ious  and  moral  character.  He  is  a  Republican  in 
politics,  but  has  never  held  any  office  nor  been  a 
candidate  for  one.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Union 
League  Club,  and  connected  with  several  organ- 
izations interested  in  the  moral  and  material 
progress  of  Chicago. 

During  1888  he  made  an  extensive  tour  of 
Europe.  He  is  in  the  prime  of  life,  physically, 
but  scarcely  yet  in  the  maturity  of  his  intellectual 
powers,  which  will  constantly  strengthen  with  ex- 
ercise for  many  years  to  come. 

With  a  mind  strong  and  logical,  a  noble  ambi- 
tion, there  is  every  reason  to  expect  that  he  will 
not  only  maintain  his  present  position,  but  make 
it  a  stepping  stone  to  other  successes. 


JAMES   S.   KIRK, 


CHICAGO.    ILL. 


BV  the  death  of  James  S.  Kirk,  the  City  of 
Chicago  lost  one  of  its  most  respected  citi- 
zens, its  business  community  one  of  its  brightest 
lights,  and  the  cause  of  education  one  of  its 
strongest  champions. 

His  father  was  a  ship  builder  and  civil  engineer 
of  prominence,  in  Glasgow,  Scotland,  where  our 
subject  was  born,  in  1818.  When  he  was  a  child, 
six  months  old,  the  family  moved  to  Montreal, 
where  his  childhood  and  earlier  manhood  days 
were  passed.  After  receiving  a  thorough  aca- 
demic education  (graduating  from  the  Montreal 
Academic  Institute),  he  entered  the  lumber  busi- 
ness, and  personally  superintended  the  camp  in 
the  woods  and  the  drive  down  the  Ottawa  River. 

When  scarcely  twenty-one  years  of  age,  he  mar- 
ried Miss  Nancy  Ann  Dunning,  at  Ottawa  (then 
known  as  Bytown\  and  removed  to  the  United 
States,  making  Utica,  N.  V.,  his  home.  He  im- 
mediately began  the  manufacture  of  soap  and 
perfumes,  and  thus,  in  1839.  founded  the  house 
of  James  S.  Kirk  &  Co.,  which  has  become  the 
largest  establishment  of  its  kind,  not  only  in  the 
United  States,  but  in  the  world. 


In  1859,  Janies  S.  Kirk  and  his  family  removed 
to  Chicago,  and  continued  in  the  soap  manufac- 
turing business.  With  the  e.xception  of  the  dis- 
astrous effects  of  the  fire  of  1871,  the  prosperity 
of  the  house  has  been  uninterrupted. 

For  fifty  years  the  stern  old  churchman  (for 
all  his  life  he  was  an  earnest  and  consistent 
Christian)  had  striven  to  perfect  the  business 
scheme  of  his  life.  Success  crowned  his  efforts, 
and  he  was  enabled  to  pass  his  declining  years  in 
well-earned  retirement  in  a  luxurious  home  in 
South  Evanston. 

The  ground  that  the  manufacturing  plant  of 
Jas.  S.  Kirk  &  Co.  covers  is  the  historical  site  of 
the  first  house  ever  erected  in  Chicago.  Less  than 
a  century  has  passed  since  then,  and  no  more  fit- 
ting comparison  can  be  drawn  than  the  statement 
that  the  spot  where  a  solitary  hermit  made  his 
abode  ninety  odd  years  ago  is  now  covered  by  a 
manufacturing  plant  that  has  an  output  greater 
than  any  of  its  kind  in  the  entire  world. 

The  business  is  still  continued  under  the  same 
name  under  which  it  was  organized,  an  uninter- 
rupted period  of  fifty-two  years,  and  although  it 


224 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


is  now  one  of  the  verj'  few  establishments  (if  not 
the  only  one)  in  the  United  States  that  have 
passed  through  a  half  century  of  existence  with- 
out change  of  name.  The  pride  which  the  family 
take  in  the  record  of  Jas.  S.  Kirk  will  undoubt- 
edly cause  it  to  be  unchanged  for  many  decades. 
The  Northwestern  University,  located  in  Evans- 
ton,  that  most  beautiful  of  Chicago's  suburbs,  al- 
ways found  in  Jas.  S.  Kirk  a  warm  champion  and 
firm  friend.  His  family  still  follow  his  desires  in 
regard  to  assisting  this  worthy  educational  insti- 
tution, and  take  great  and  honest  pride  in  assist- 
ing both  financially  and  personally  any  deserving 
and  needy  cause  that  will  advance  the  people  to 
a  higher  degree  of  education.  Mr.  Kirk  was  es- 
teemed as  a  scholarly  gentleman  ;  he  was  very 
highly  educated,  and  took  great  interest  in  every- 
thing pertaining  towards  higher  cultivation. 


In  summing  up  the  events  of  his  life,  it  can 
most  truly  be  stated  that  there  never  was  a  resi- 
dent of  Chicago  who  was  more  highly  respected 
and  esteemed  than  he  was.  During  the  years  of 
his  life  he  was  looked  upon  as  a  model  of  honor 
and  an  example  of  the  truly  honest  business  man. 
He  ever  endeavored  to  instill  into  the  minds  of 
his  sons  the  honorable  principles  that  placed  him 
on  such  an  elevated  pedestal.  That  his  descend- 
ants have  treasured  his  desires  and  his  good  pre- 
cepts, is  proven  by  the  universal  respect  and  es- 
teem in  which  all  members  of  his  family  are 
held. 

On  the  fifteenth  day  of  June,  1886,  in  the 
bosom  of  his  family,  he  passed  peacefully  and 
quietly  away  from  this  earth,  like  one  fulh-  con- 
scious of  meeting  in  a  more  sanctified  place  those 
nearest  and  dearest  to  him. 


CHARLES   CARROLL   BONNEY, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


CHARLES  CARROLL  BONNEY,  president 
of  the  World's  Congress  Auxiliary  of  the 
World's  Columbian  Exposition,  president  of  the 
International  Law  and  Order  League,  ex-presi- 
dent of  the  Illinois  State  Bar  Association,  coun- 
sellor of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States, 
etc.,  etc.,  has  long  been  prominently  before  the 
American  people  in  various  honorable  positions. 
The  following  facts  relating  to  his  career  as 
teacher,  lawyer,  orator,  author  and  reformer,  have 
been  collected  and  condensed  from  numerous 
notices,  biographical  sketches  and  other  publica- 
tions. He  is  a  native  of  the  State  of  New  York, 
was  born  at  Hamilton  in  1831,  was  named  for 
Charles  Carroll,  of  Carrollton,  the  last  surviving 
signer  of  the  Declaration  of  Independence,  and 
is  a  farmer's  son.  He  was  educated  in  public 
schools,  Hamilton  Academy,  and  chiefly  by  pri- 
vate study,  with  many  advantages  from  Madison 
University,  though  engaged  in  teaching  instead  of 
pursuing  the  regular  course  of  instruction.  He  was 
a  teacher  in  the  public  schools,  or  the  Hamilton 
Academy,  from  the  age  of  seventeen  till  he  moved 
to  Peoria,  Illinois,  at  the  age  of  nineteen.  He 
there  taught  an  academic  school  for  two  years; 
was  public  lecturer  on  education  for  Peoria  county 


in  1852-3;  vice-president  of  a  State  Teachers' 
Institute,  and  took  a  leading  part  in  establishing 
the  present  educational  system  of  Illinois,  con- 
ducting the  correspondence  which  resulted  in  the 
first  State  convention  for  educational  purposes, 
and  organizing  numerous  educational  societies. 

Mr.  Bonney  commenced  reading  law  when 
but  seventeen,  and  became  a  writer  for  the  public 
press  at  nineteen.  He  was  admitted  to  the  Illinois 
bar  in  1852,  and  to  that  of  the  United  States 
Supreme  Court  in  1866,  was  president  of  the 
Illinois  State  Bar  Association,  and  vice-president 
of  the  American  Bar  Association,  in  1882,  and 
has  taken  a  leading  part  in  the  proceedings  of 
both  associations.  He  removed  from  Peoria  to 
Chicago  in  i860,  where  he  has  since  resided.  His 
practice  has  embraced  all  departments  of  law.  and 
includes  reported  cases  in  Illinois,  Michigan,  Ohio, 
Nebraska,  New  York,  New  Jersey,  California  and 
the  United  States  Supreme  Court.  Public  press 
notices  of  many  States  describe  him  as  a  profound 
and  accomplished  lawyer,  one  of  the  most  eminent 
and  distinguished  members  of  the  Chicago  bar, 
and  a  writer  on  legal  and  political  subjects  of 
wide  reputation.  Immediately  after  the  suspen- 
sion of  the  habeas  corpus  during  the   rebellion,  he 


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1 


BIOCRAPHIC.M.  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  CALLLRY. 


227 


published  a  statement  of  the  jurisdiction  of  the 
Courts  under  the  suspension,  as  afterwards  ju- 
dicially held,  and  upon  the  enactment  of  the  in- 
ternal revenue  law,  he  made  the  first  argument  in 
Court,  and  which  was  widely  published,  showing 
the  unconstitutionality  of  the  tax  on  the  process 
of  the  State  Courts,  taking  the  positions  subse- 
quently sustained  by  the  judiciary.  In  1S87,  he 
was  strongly  recommended  by  leading  legal,  finan- 
cial and  other  journals,  for  appointment  as  one  of 
the  judges  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United 
States,  as  a  man  who  stands  in  the  very  front 
rank  of  Western  lawyers  and  jurists,  of  high  liter- 
ary culture,  of  judicial  temperament,  undoubtedly 
worthy  of  that  high  position,  and  who  would  be 
an  ornament  to  any  judicial  position. 

He  was  one  of  the  originators  of  the  Law  and 
Order  Movement  for  enforcing  the  existing  laws 
that  began  in  Illinois  in  1872,  and  took  its  present 
form  almost  simultaneously  in  that  State,  and  in 
New  York  and  Massachusetts  in  1877,  and  soon 
after  extended  to  Pennsylvania  and  other  States. 
It  attained  a  national  organization  under  the  name 
of  "The  Citizen's  Law  and  Order  League  of  the 
United  States,"  in  a  convention  of  which  he  was 
president,  held  at  Boston,  Massachusetts,  in  1883. 
That  organization  was  changed  at  Toronto,  Can- 
ada, in  1890,  to  "The  International  Law  and 
Order  League,"  to  include  the  societies  in  the 
provinces  of  the  Dominion.  He  was  elected 
president  of  the  League  at  New  York  in  1885,  at 
Cincinnati  in  1886,  at  Albany  in  1887,  at  Philadel- 
phia in  1888,  at  Hoston  in  1889,  at  Toronto  in 
1.S90,  and  has  since  been  re-elected  and  now  holds 
that  position.  As  such  president,  he  has  deliv- 
ered in  the  above  and  in  other  leading  cities  of  the 
United  States  and  Canada,  elaborate  addresses  in 
favor  of  law  enforcement,  and  setting  forth  the 
scope  and  purposes  of  the  Law  and  Order  Move- 
ment. 

In  politics,  Mr.  Bonney  was  a  party  democrat 
before  the  rebellion  of  1861,  a  war  democrat 
while  it  continued,  and  has  since  been  independ- 
ent in  political  action.  He  entered  active  politics 
in  1852,  and  acquired  "a  brilliant  reputation  as  a 
political  orator"  in  1856,  supporting  Mr.  Douglas, 
whose  doctrine  of  squatter  sovereignty  he  after- 
wards opposed.  In  1857  he  took  a  leading  and 
successful  part  in  an  e.xciting  conte.st  to  preserve 
the  freedom  of  the  Illinois  river,  representing  the 


city  government  of  Peoria  as  a  special  commis- 
sioner to  the  city  of  St.  Louis. 

In  the  field  of  practical  reform,  Mr.  Bonney's 
efforts  have  been  important  and  largely  success- 
ful. Among  the  leading  reforms  advanced  bj" 
him  are  the  following,  with  the  dates  when  he 
began  to  write  and  speak  in  their  favor,  and,  if 
carried  into  effect,  the  time  of  their  adoption  : 
Uniformity  of  State  constitutions  and  general 
statutes,  proposed  in  1852;  constitutional  prohi- 
bition of  special  legislation,  proposed  in  1854,  and 
adopted  in  Illinois  in  1870 ;  a  national  banking 
system,  proposed  in  1858,  and  adopted  by  Con- 
gress in  1864;  railroad  supervision  by  State 
authority,  proposed  in  1861,  and  adopted  in 
Illinois  in  1871  :  a  national  ci\il  service  academy 
to  educate  selected  men  in  government  and 
diplomacy  as  the  Military  Academy  does  in  the 
art  of  war,  proposed  in  1876;  national  regulation 
of  Inter-State  Commerce,  proposed  in  1878,  and 
adopted  by  Congress  in  1887;  uniformity  of  com- 
mercial paper  in  Inter-State  transactions,  proposed 
in  1882,  and  since  pending  in  Congress;  a  system 
of  civil  service  pensions,  proposed  in  1884;  State 
boards  of  labor  and  capital,  with  plenary  executive 
powers  to  prevent  labor  strikes,  proposed  in  1886: 
the  appointment  of  regular  United  States  judges 
to  hold  the  foreign  Courts  now  held  by  consuls 
and  ministers,  proposed  in  1888,  and  the  estab- 
lishment of  a  permanent  International  Court  of 
Justice,  proposed  in  1889,  and  favored  by  eminent 
European  and  American  jurists  and  statesmen. 

Mr.  Bonney  was  president  of  the  Chicago 
Library  Association  in  1870,  edited  the  poetical 
works  of  Judge  Arrington,  and  is  the  author  of 
hand  books  of  Railway  Law,  and  the  Law  of  In- 
surance, and  of  numerous  addresses  and  essays  on 
important  subjects,  including  among  others,  "A 
Great  Lawyer,"  "Judicial  Sujiremacy,"  "The 
Administration  of  Justice,"  "The  Province  of 
Government,"  "  Law  Reform,"  "Government  Re- 
form," "The  Conflict  of  Capital  and  Labor," 
"  Naturalization  Laws  and  Their  Enforcement," 
"  Reform  of  the  Foreign  Service,"  "  International 
Justice"  and  "  International  Citizenship." 

Mr.  Bonney  is  also  the  author  of  the  scheme 
for  a  series  of  World's  Congresses  in  connection 
with  the  World's  Columbian  Exposition  of  1893, 
intended  to  set  forth,  on  what  has  been  declared 
"  a   scale  of    unexampled   majesty,"   the  achieve- 


228 


lilOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  A.\D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


merits  of  mankind  in  all  the  departments  of  civ- 
ilized life,  and  to  promote  future  progress  by  the 
fraternal  co-operation  of  the  enlightened  minds  of 
all  countries.  The  organization  and  direction  of 
this  enterprise  has  been  in  his  charge  from  the  be- 
ginning. He  was  chairman  of  the  preliminary 
committee,  to  which  the  subject  was  first  en- 
trusted, and  when,  to  meet  the  growing  necessi- 
ties of  the  work,  the  World's  Congress  Auxiliary 
was  organized,  Mr.  Bonney  was  made  president 
of  that  body,  and  its  chief  executive  and  manager. 
So  much  progress  has  been  made,  and  so  much 
distinguished  co-operation  has  been  secured,  that 
there  seems  to  be  no  reason  to  doubt  that  a  very 
great  success  will  crown  the  undertaking.  In  an- 
nouncing the  project,  Mr.  Bonney  said  : 

"To  make  the   Exposition   complete   and   the 
celebration  adequate,  the  wonderful  achievements 


of  the  new  age  in  science,  literature,  education, 
government,  jurisprudence,  morals,  charity,  relig- 
ion, and  other  departments  of  human  activity, 
should  also  be  conspicuously  displayed,  as  the 
most  effective  means  of  increasing  the  fraternity, 
progress,  prosperity  and  peace  of  mankind  :  and 
after  setting  forth  the  plan, that  'such  congresses, 
convened  under  circumstances  so  auspicious, 
would  doubtless  surpass  all  previous  efforts  to 
bring  about  a  real  fraternity  of  nations,  and  unite 
the  enlightened  people  of  the  whole  earth  in  a 
general  co-operation  for  the  attainment  of  the 
great  ends  for  which  human  society  is  organized.'  " 
As  organized  in  January,  1892,  when  this  sketch 
was  prepared,  the  World's  Congress  scheme  em- 
braced fifteen  great  departments,  and  more  than 
one  hundred  general  divisions  in  which  congresses 
are  to  be  held. 


REUBEN    LUDLAM,  M.D. 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


IT  is  much  to  achieve  success,  it  is  infinitely 
more  to  win  the  gratitude  of  the  suffering 
and  afflicted.  In  our  community  there  is,  per- 
haps, no  one  who  in  this  regard  has  greater  reason 
for  content  than  Dr.  Reuben  Ludlam. 

Nearly  forty  years  of  most  devoted  labor  have 
placed  him  among  the  few  who  may  be  said  to 
be  at  the  head  of  the  medical  profession  in  the 
Northwest,  and  such  has  been  the  cordial,  kindly, 
generous  manner  of  this  ministration,  that  in  the 
hearts  of  those  who  have  received  it,  there  is  a 
sense  of  grateful  recognition  that  words  cannot 
express. 

Reuben  Ludlam  was  born  in  Camden,  N.  J., 
Oct.  7,  1 83 1.  His  father  was  Dr.  Jacob  W.  Lud- 
lam, an  eminent  physician,  who  died  in  1858  at 
Evanston,  Illinois,  after  a  long  life  beneficently 
spent  in  the  practice  of  his  beloved  profession. 
His  widow,  now  in  her  eighty-third  year,  still  re- 
sides at  Evanston. 

While  still  a  child,  Reuben  Ludlam  was  accus- 
tomed to  accompany  his  father  on  his  daily  round 
of  visits,  even  then  taking  the  greatest  interest  in 
the  different  cases,  and,  no  doubt,  gathering  much 
of  use  in  after  life.  Naturally  studious,  he  made 
great  progress  in  school,  and  when   he   graduated 


from  the  old  academy  at  Bridgeton,  New  Jerse\-, 
it  was  with  the  highest  honors  of  his  class. 

At  sixteen,  under  the  supervision  of  his  father, 
he  commenced  a  systematic  course  in  medicine. 
Continuing  his  studies  at  the  University  of  Penn- 
sylvania, he  received  the  degree  of  M.  D.  in  that 
institution  in  1852,  whence  his  father  had  gradu- 
ated many  years  before,  having  spent  six  years  of 
most  earnest  effort  in  preparation  for  his  pro- 
fession. 

Soon  after  graduation  he  came  to  Chicago.  It 
was  at  this  time  that  the  doctrines  of  Hahnemann 
were  causing  such  universal  agitation  in  the 
breasts  of  disciples  of  the  old  school.  It  was  with 
Spartan  courage  that  the  young  physician,  having 
become  practically  convinced  of  the  truth  of  the 
new  theory,  by  bedside  experience,  cast  aside  the 
dogmas  so  long  cherished,  and  arrayed  himself 
under  the  banner  of  homoeopath)'.  With  the 
enthuf.iasm  of  youth,  he  was  a  hearty  and  im- 
petuous advocate  of  the  new  principle,  and,  in 
1859,  upon  the  organization  of  Hahnemann  Medi- 
cal College,  was  chosen  to  fill  the  chair  of  physi- 
ology, pathology  and  clinical  medicine  therein. 
After  four  years  he  was  transferred  to  the  chair  of 
obstetrics  and  diseases  of   women  and  children,  in 


C  X.     <:X_<_.«^-<S/^^t$^>:_^-^ 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


231 


which  department  lie  had  shown  a  very  higli  de- 
gree of  skill  and  talent.  A  few  years  later  he  was 
given  the  professorship  of  medical  and  surgical 
diseases  of  women,  and  was  made  Dean  of  the 
College  Faculty,  in  both  of  which  capacities  he 
has  rendered  inestimable  service  and  endeared 
himself  to  all  who  have  come  within  his  kindly 
influence.  Some  idea  of  the  relation  in  which  he 
stands  to  the  college  is  to  be  had  from  the  words 
of  a  writer  well  known  to  the  medical  world  :  "A 
watchful  guardian  of  its  interests,  and  a  liberal 
contributor  to  its  resources,  he  has  labored  con- 
stantly to  elevate  its  standard  to  the  highest 
available  plane,  and  to  increase  its  usefulness  to 
the  fullest  possible  extent." 

To  the  subject  of  gynaecology.  Dr.  Ludlam 
has  from  the  first  given  very  close  attention, 
availing  himself  not  only  of  all  the  resources  of 
this  country,  but  spending  some  years  of  pains- 
taking labor  and  stud\-  abroad  in  order  to  make 
himself  complete  master  of  the  subject.  His  suc- 
cess has  been  unbounded,  particularly  in  the  de- 
partment of  uterine  surgery,  his  services  in  diffi- 
cult operations  being  constant!)-  required  all  over 
the  Northwest,  and  his  authority  in  consultation 
acknowledged  throughout  the  countr\-. 

In  1869,  Dr.  Ludlam  was  chosen  president  of 
the  American  Institute  of  Homceopathy,  presided 
over  its  deliberations  at  Boston,  and  delivered  the 
annual  oration  entitled,  "The  Relation  of  Woman 
to  Homceopathy."  Among  other  honors  con- 
ferred upon  him  was  the  presidency  of  the  Chi- 
cago Academy  of  Medicine,  of  the  Illinois 
Homoeopathic  Medical  Society,  and  of  the  West- 
ern Institute  of  Homoeopathy.  In  1870,  he  was 
offered  the  position  of  physician-in  charge  to  the 
Home  Infirmary  of  New  York  City,  and  also  that 
of  professor  of  obstetrics  and  diseases  of  women 
and  children  in  the  New  York  Homoeopathic 
Medical  College,  both  of  which  honors  he  de- 
clined. In  1871,  he  became  a  member  of  the 
medical  department  of  the  Relief  and  Aid 
Society,  which  performed  such  gigantic  cleemos- 
ynarj'  work  after  the  great  Chicago  fire. 

Such  has  been  a  part  of  his  public  activity  in 
this  immediate  vicinity.  In  the  organization  of 
the  State  Hoard  of  Health  in  1877.  Dr.  Ludlam 
was  called  upon  by  Governor  Cullom  to  serve. 
He  has  served  ever  since,  and  is  the  only  homoeo- 
pathic  physician  on   the   Board,  having  been  re- 


appointed twice.  It  is  probable  that  Dr.  Ludlam 
is  best  known  to  the  world  at  large  as  a  writer. 
A  great  reader,  an  accomplished  linguist,  pos- 
sessed of  an  inexhaustible  fund  of  humor  and 
anecdote,  he  has  added  to  the  acknowledged 
scientific  worth  of  his  contributions  the  charm  of 
a  clear  and  graceful  style.  For  six  years,  begin- 
ning with  i860,  he  was  editorially  connected  with 
the  North  American  Journal  of  Hom(£opath}\'^\i\t- 
lished  in  New  York  City,  and  for  nine  years  with 
the  United  States  Medical  and  Surgical  Journal. 
published  in  Chicago.  Vor  many  years  he  has 
acted  as  editor  of  the  Clinique,  a  monthly  ab- 
stract of  the  work  of  the  Clinical  Society  of 
Hahnemann  Hospital.  One  of  the  most  impor- 
tant of  his  contributions  to  this  paper  was  that 
entiried  "Clinical  Observations  Based  on  Fi\c 
Hundred  Abdominal  Sections." 

Dr.  Ludlam's  great  work  "Clinical  and  Didactic 
Lectures  on  the  Diseases  of  Women,"  published 
in  1871,  is  now  in  its  seventh  edition.  It  is  an 
octavo  of  over  one  thousand  pages,  employed  as 
a  text-book  in  all  homceopathic  colleges,  and  is 
accepted  as  authority  by  homceopathic  physicians 
both  here  and  in  Europe.  In  return  for  the  com- 
pliment paid  him  by  the  French  in  the  translation 
of  this  work  into  their  language,  Dr.  Ludlam 
undertook,  and  most  successful!)-  performed  the 
task  of  rendering  in  English  a  \-ery  valuable  work 
entitled  "A  Volume  of  Lectures  on  Clinical  Medi- 
cines," by  Dr.  Jousset,  of  Paris.  In  1863  appeared 
a  volume  entitled  "A  Course  of  Clinical  Lectures 
on  Diphtheria,"  written  by  Dr.  Ludlam,  which 
was  the  first  strictly  medical  work  ever  published 
in  Chicago,  securing  to  its  author  an  enduring 
name  in  the  history  of  this  city. 

Dr.  Ludlam  is  very  much  absorbed  by  his  pro- 
fession, pursuing  it  with  all  the  enthusiasm  which 
an  artist  gives  to  art.  And,  indeed,  in  his  hands 
it  has  been  made  an  art.  A  wide  acquaintance 
with  literature,  a  love  for  music  and  sympathy 
with  all  that  elevates  and  .softens,  and  above  all 
a  very  comprehensive  knowledge  and  affection  for 
mankind,  have  given  to  his  professional  work  the 
inimitable  finish  of  culture,  and  made  of  it  in 
truest  .sense  the  art  of  healing. 

Dr.  Ludlam  has  been  twice  married,  his  first 
wife,  Anna  M.  Porter,  of  Greenwich,  New  Jersey, 
dying  three  years  after  marriage.  By  his  second 
wife,  whose  maiden  name  was  Harriet  G.  Par\in, 


2\2 


niOCjRAFIlICAL  DICTIOXARY  A.\D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


he  has  one  son.  Dr.  Reuben  Ludlam,  Jr.,  is  a 
young  physician  of  great  promise.  His  early 
education  was  obtained  in  the  best  schools  of  this 
city.  He  began  the  study  of  medicine  under  the 
preceptorship  of  his  father,  and  in  1886  gradu- 
ated with  honor  from  the  Hahnemann  Medical 
College  and  Hospital,  of  Chicago.  Going  abroad 
immediately  after  graduation,,  he  spent  a  very 
profitable  year  in  the  hospitals  of  London  and 
Paris.  Upon  his  return  he  entered  into  practice 
with  his  father  and  assumed  a  responsible  position 
in  the  Hahnemann  Hospital.  Peculiar  interest 
has  naturally  been  felt  in  the  advent  of  this 
young  physician,  and  it  is  high  praise  to  say  that 
he  has  fulfilled  all  that  had  been  expected  of  him. 
With  concentration  uncommon  in  one  of  his  age, 
he  has  disregarded  the  attractions  of  society  and 
the  many  distractions  of  youth  and  has  put  all 


his  energies  into  his  profession.  A  large  part  of 
the  father's  extensive  practice  has  been  trans- 
ferred to  the  younger  shoulders,  and  in  that  in 
which  the  elder  is  .so  eminent  the  assistance  of  the 
son  has  become  invaluable.  No  praise  is  too  high 
for  the  way  in  which  he  has  assisted  and  relieved 
his  father  in  the  ever  increasing  cares  of  his  busy 
life.  Dr.  Ludlam,  Jr.,  is  an  expert  operator,  his 
taste  inclining  to  the  specialty  with  which  his 
father  is  identified.  He  is  a  fine  French  scholar, 
owing  to  his  residence  abroad  as  well  as  to  previ- 
ous  study,  and  has  made  a  number  of  translations 
from  the  French  for  various  medical  journal.s. 
Finely  educated,  a  close  and  con.stant  student, 
devoted  with  all  the  intensity  of  natural  pre- 
dilection to  his  profession,  it  is  with  him  but  a 
question  of  years  until  he  shall  stand  in  the  fore- 
most ranks  of  Chicago's  medical  men. 


JOHN   CUDAHY, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


JOHN  CUDAHY,  a  member  of  the  well-known 
firm  of  Cudahy  Brothers,  is  one  of  the  most 
prominent  and  highly  respected  families  resident 
in  Chicago.  The  Cudahys,  through  their  con- 
nection with  the  packing  industry,  are  known  the 
world  over  as  self-made  men  and  founders  of 
their  own  fortunes.  It  would  be  difficult  to  men- 
tion the  name  of  any  one  who  would  better  serve 
to  illustrate,  as  an  example  of  what  perseverance, 
indomitable  energy,  and  a  determination  to  suc- 
ceed (oftentimes  in  thi:  face  of  seemingly  insuper- 
able difficulties)  can  do,  than  does  the  name  of 
Cudahy. 

Gradually  rising,  step  by  step,  each  position 
increasing  in  responsibility,  their  fortunes  becom- 
ing proportionately  advanced,  until  at  length  they 
are  numbered  among  the  millionaires  of  this  great 
city,  they  are  able  to  look  back  upon  their 
successful  careers  with  truly  natural  pride,  for 
theirs  is  a  record  the  emulation  of  which  would 
be  honorable,  and  its  results  beneficial  to  the  pub- 
lic at  large. 

He  was  born  at  Callan,  Count\-  Kilkenny,  Ire- 
land, November  2,  1843.  John  Cudahy  is  the  son 
of  Patrick  and  Elizabeth  (Shaw)  Cudahy.  llis 
father  was  a   native  of  Callan.  while  his  mother's 


people,  the  Shaws,  were  residents  of  Dublin,  after- 
ward removing  to  Callan,  where  they  established 
pottery  works.  Believing  this  country  to  offer 
the  better  advantages  for  the  bringing  up  and 
placing  in  position  of  a  young  family,  in  1849  o"'' 
subject's  parents  moved  hither,  and  after  a  short 
time  spent  in  the  East,  they  removed  to  Milwau- 
kee, Wis.,  in  the  public  schools  of  which  city, 
working  occasionally  between  times,  young  Cud- 
ahy received  his  education,  and  when  between 
fourteen  and  fifteen  years  of  age  entered  the  pack- 
ing house  of  Ed.  Roddis,  remaining  in  his  employ 
until  about  nineteen  years  of  age,  when  he  entered 
the  employ  of  John  Plankinton  (afterward  of 
Plankinton  &  Armour),  remaining  in  the  latter 
position  about  one  and  one-half  years. 

When  tw  enty-one  years  of  age,  he  became  en- 
gaged in  the  nursery  business  with  Mr.  Thomas 
Grynne,  of  Milwaukee,  dealing  in  fruit  and  orna- 
mental trees,  etc.,  occupying  the  position  of  fore- 
man for  three  sea.sons,  at  the  end  of  which  time 
he  made  a  proposition  of  purchase  to  the  proprie- 
tors, the  terms  of  which  and  their  acceptance  are 
ample  evidence  of  the  great  confidence  in  which 
he  was  held,  not  only  by  his  former  employers, 
but  bv  his  neighbors  in  general,  while  at  the  same 


BIOOK.U'UICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


235 


time  it  illustrates  complete  self-reliance  and  his 
confidence  of  success.  He  purchased  the  nursery, 
its  stock,  wagons,  horses,  etc.,  paying  but  a  small 
sum  down.  Continuing  this  business  three  years, 
iluring  which  time  he  cleared  every  vestige  of  the 
debt,  in  addition  to  inaking  no  small  sum,  this  was 
the  first  venture  in  which  he  made  money,  and 
from  this  date  his  success  continued,  though  in  a 
varying  degree. 

Returning  to  the  packing  inilustry,  he  was  em- 
ployed by  Layton  &  Co.,  packers,  for  the  three 
following  years.  During  this  period  ties  of 
friendship  were  formed  between  employer  and 
employe,  which  time  has  served  to  .strengthen 
rather  than  weaken,  and  Mr.  Cudahy  takes  pleas- 
ure in  expressing  his  appreciation  of  the  kindness 
shown  him  by  Mr.  Layton.  While  still  in  the 
employ  of  Layton  &  Co.  he  was  appointed  Board 
of  Trade  provision  inspector  for  the  city  of  Mil- 
waukee, afterward  being  foreman  and  Board  of 
Trade  inspector  for  V'^an  Kirk  &  McGeough,  oc- 
cupying these  joint  positions  for  some  two  years. 
In  the  spring  of  1875  he  purchased  an  interest  in 
John  I'lankinton's  packing  business,  but  he  soon 
afterward  decided  that  he  wanted  a  wider  field  of 
operation,  and  through  the  intercession  of  his 
brother  Michael,  between  whom  and  Mr.  Plankin- 
ton  there  has  always  existed  strong  ties  of  friend- 
•ihip,  he  was  released  from  the  contract,  and  in 
July  of  the  same  year  removed  to  Chicago,  form- 
ing a  co-partnership  with  E.  D.  Chapin,  under 
the  firm  name  of  Chapin  &  Co.,  packers,  and  so 
remained  for  two  years,  when  the  firm  name  was 
changed  to  Chapin  &  Cudahy,  this  partnership 
continuing  altogether  about  five  years,  when  Mr. 
Chapin  withdrew,  since  which  time  Mr.  Cudahy 
has  continued  the  business  alone,  being  also  in 
partnership  with  his  brother  Patrick  (Cudahy 
Bros.,  packers,  Milwaukee),  they  having  succeeded 
some  three  years  ago  to  the  business  of  John 
Plankinton,  who  retired  from  business. 

Prominent  in  social  affairs,  he  is  a  member  of 
the  Washington  Park  Club,  the  Union  League 
Club  and  the  Chicago  Club. 

Mr.  Cudahy  has  been  twice  married — Oct.  i, 
1873,  to  Miss  Mary  Nolan,  of  Bridgeport,  Conn., 
the  issue  of  this  marriage  being  four  girl.s,  two 
being  deceased,  while  the  remaining  two — Misses 
Bessie  and  Julia— are  at  present  being  educated 
at  Manhattanvilic,  N.  Y. 


Mr.  Cudahy  marrii^  again  (in  1882) — Miss  Mar- 
garet F.  O'Neill,  daughter  of  Mr.  John  O'Neill,  a 
prominent  citizen  and  one  of  Chicago's  oldest 
settlers,  and  who  died  some  three  years  ago.  Two 
children  have  been  the  issue  of  this  marriage,  onl\- 
one  of  whom — John  R. — is  living,  and  is  now 
nine  years  of  age. 

Possessing  a  host  of  friends  amongst  the  most 
prominent  of  Chicago's  citizens,  and  many  ad- 
mirers amongst  the  poorer  classes  (many  of  whom 
he  has  repeatedly  befriended),  we  cannot  perhaps 
do  better  than  state  what  has  been  said  concern- 
ing him  by  one  of  our  most  prominent  and  con- 
spicuous citizens  : 

"  Quick  and  shrewd  to  detect  a  fraud  or  sham, 
he  is  prompt  and  outspoken  in  his  condemnation  ; 
yet  he  is  genuine  and  sincere  and  thougiitfu!  of 
his  friends.  As  a  business  man  he  is  bright  and 
clear  in  judgment,  of  quick  perception,  prompt 
and  unhesitating  in  action.  The  fact  of  his  having 
accumulated  so  handsome,  if  not  so  vast,  a  fortune, 
and  while  yet  in  the  prime  of  life,  is  ample  evi- 
dence of  the  correctness  of  nis  general  business 
methods  and  characteristics.  At  his  home,  where 
the  furnishings  and  appointments  are  luxurious 
and  betoken  much  taste  and  mature  judgment, 
his  wife  presides  and  aids  her  husband  in  dis- 
pensing a  hospitality,  open-hearted  and  whole- 
souled  on  his  part  and  truly  graceful  and  gen- 
erous on  hers." 

He  is  a  large  contributor  to  all  public  enter- 
prises for  the  improvement  and  advancement  of 
the  city  and  the  community  at  large.  His  own 
and  his  wife's  list  of  charities  would  be  far  too 
large  to  enumerate  here,  for  probably  no  private 
individual  contributes  more  frequently  or  more 
generously  to  the  advancement  of  religion  and 
for  the  benefit  of  the  poor,  for  the  thousand  and 
one  charitable  orders  and  charitable  enterpri.ses 
which  are  fostered  by  the  church  to  which  he 
belongs ;  but  his  generosity  is  by  no  means  con- 
fined to  those  of  his  own  faith,  but  every  good 
and  commendable  effort  to  aid  those  who  need  it 
finds  in  him  a  generous  support  and  a  jiractical 
sympathizer. 

His  summer  home  on  Mackinac  Island  is  beau- 
tifully situated,  and,  like  his  home  in  the  city,  is 
a  centre  of  hospitality  for  all  friends  who  may 
happen  to  be  on  the  island  during  the  season. 

"  Personally,  the  Cudahy  brothers  are  all   mag- 


236 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AND  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


nificent   specimens  of    physical    manhood,  being  this  city  and  state,  and   a  useful  and  influential 

large,     well-proportioned,     handsome    men,    and  member  of  society ;  a  man  who  is  esteemed  and 

John  Cudahy  is  no  exception.     A  typical   Irish-  respected  not  only  by  a  large  circle  of  friends,  but 

man  of  the  better  class,  he  is  a  valuable  citizen  of  by  the  community  at  large." 


GEORGE   HENRY   WHEELER, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


THE  subject  of  our  present  sketch,  George 
Henr>-  Wheeler,  was  born  at  La  Porte.  Ind., 
August  I,  1841.  He  is  a  son  of  Hiram  Wheeler, 
who  was  born  in  New  Haven,  Vt.,  and  Julia 
Smith  Wheeler,  born  in  New  York  City.  Fore- 
seeing the  probabilities  and  opportunities  of  the 
great  West,  Mr.  Wheeler,  Sr.,  in  1832  removed  to 
the  new  and  remote  settlement  of  La  Porte,  Ind. 
Remaining  there  for  about  nine  years,  he  then  re- 
moved to  St.  Joseph,  Mich.,  where  he  was  located 
for  over  eight  years.  Chicago,  then  a  small  town 
at  the  head  of  Lake  Michigan,  began  to  attract 
attention  and  gave  every  indication,  even  at  this 
early  day,  of  becoming  in  the  near  future  a  city  of 
considerable  importance.  In  1849  Mr.  Wheeler 
determined  upon  removing  thither  with  his  family 
and  accordingly  did  so.  Our  subject  then  was 
ei"ht  years  of  age.  His  early  education  was  ac- 
quired in  the  public  school  of  this  city,  and  in  1856 
he  completed  a  business  course  at  Racine  College, 
Wis.  In  i860  he  entered  into  the  grain  elevator 
business  with  his  father  and  in  1867  he  was  ad- 
mitted into  the  partnership  of  Munger.  Wheeler 
&  Co.,  which  firm  possessed  an  enviable  reputa. 
tion  and  were  among  the  wealthiest  and  largest 


receivers  of  grain  in  Chicago.  Mr.  Wheeler  re- 
mained with  this  firm,  connected  with  the  active 
management  of  the  house,  up  to  1889,  at  which 
period  the  firm  sold  out  to  an  English  syndicate. 
At  the  annual  meeting  of  the  Chicago  City  Rail- 
way Company  in  Januarj',  1891,  he  was  elected 
president.  He  has  also  been  president  of  the 
Washington  Park  Club  for  the  past  three  years. 
He  is  a  member  of  the  Chicago  and  other  clubs, 
and  is  a  director  of  the  World's  Columbian  E.\- 
position  and  the  Continental  National  Bank  of 
Chicago.  By  faith  he  is  an  Episcopalian ;  in 
politics  he  is  a  Republican. 

Mr.  Wheeler  was  married  in  1864  to  Miss 
Alice  I.  Lord,  daughter  of  Gilderoy  Lord,  a 
prominent  citizen  of  Watertown.  New  York. 
They  have  two  children,  namely,  Henry  Lord 
and  Mabel. 

In  manner  Mr.  Wheeler  is  genial  and  generous, 
and  possesses  a  host  of  friends.  With  thousands 
of  men  under  his  supervision,  we  are  but  stating 
what  is  an  actual  fact  when  we  say  that  they  are 
satisfied  with  the  kind  treatment  received  at  his 
hands,  and  highly  regard  him  for  his  manly  quali- 
ties of  heart  and  mind. 


DANIEL  J.   AVERY, 


CHICAGO,  ILL. 


THE  subject  of  this  narrative  was  born  in 
Brandon,  Rutland  county,  Vermont,  on 
the  1st  day  of  December,  1836.  His  grand- 
father, Daniel  Avery,  came  to  Brandon  from  Nor- 
wich, Conn.,  about  the  year  1790.  He  belonged 
to  the  original  family  of  his  name  who  immi- 
grated from  England  and  took  up  their  abode 
near  New  London,  Connecticut.  They  are  the 
lineal  descendants  of    the    famous    Sir    William 


Avery,  who  was  knighted  for  courage  upon  the 
battle-field  by  William  the  Conqueror.  Mr. 
Avery,  through  his  paternal  grandmother,  is  a 
descendant,  in  the  seventh  generation,  of  John 
Alden  and  Priscilla  Mullins.  His  maternal 
grandmother  was  one  of  the  well-known  family 
of  Congdons,  of  Providence,  Rhode  Island. 
During  the  American  Revolution  the  Averys 
were  staunch  rebels,  as  will  be   evidenced   by  the 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


239 


inscription  on  the  monument  erected  by  the  State 
of  Connecticut  to  the  memory  of  those  patriots 
wlio  fell  in  the  massacre  at  F"ort  Griswold  on  tlie 
6th  of  September,  1781.  When  the  British,  un- 
der command  of  the  traitor,  Benedict  Arnold, 
burned  the  towns  of  New  London  and  Groten, 
spreading  desolation  and  woe  throughout  the 
region,  among  the  eighty-five  who  fell  in  the 
massacre  there  were  nine  Averys,  all  members  of 
the  same  family,  their  names  being  Daniel  Avery, 
Elijah  Avery,  Ebenezer  Avery,  Solomon  Avery. 
Jasper  Aver\',  Elisha  Aver)',  David  Avery,  Chris- 
topher Aver)-,  and  Thomas  Avery. 

The  father  of  Daniel  J.  Avery  removed  from 
Vermont  to  Lake  county,  Illinois,  in  1843,  when 
the  subject  of  this  sketch  was  in  his  seventh  year. 
Here  he  lived  until  he  went  to  VVaukegan,  where 
he  attended  the  academy  of  which  Judge  Fran- 
cis E.  Clark  was  the  principal.  In  school  he  was 
studious,  apt  and  eager  to  learn,  and  there  laid 
the  foundations  of  the  success  and  triumphs  of 
his  later  years.  After  leaving  the  Academy  he 
settled  in  Chicago  in  1S57,  and  entering  the  office 
of  Judge  James  B.  liradwell  began  the  study  of 
law,  living  in  the  famil\-  of  the  Judge  for  one 
year. 

He  was  a  close  and  diligent  student,  and  by 
constant  and  continued  hard  study  acquired  a 
superior  knowledge  of  the  law,  and  in  1859 
passed  a  most  satisfactory  examination  before  the 
Hon.  Ebenezer  Peck,  Judge  Corydon  Beckwith, 
and  the  Hon.  Norman  B.  Judd. 

He  was  recommended  by  them  to  the  Supreme 
Court,  and  then  and  there  regularly  admitted  to 
the  bar.  His  license  was  signed  by  Judge  John 
D.  Caton,  Sidney  Breeze,  and  P.  H.  Walker. 

From  1859  until  1862  Mr.  Avery  enjoyed  a 
large  share  of  professional  business.  When  the 
civil  war  broke  out  he  laid  down  the  pen,  and 
taking  up  the  sword  responded  to  the  call  of  patri- 
otism. He  enlisted  in  Company  G.One  Hundred 
and  Thirteenth  Regiment  Illinois  Volunteers  In- 
fantry, and  served  with  courage  and  distinction, 
being  in  the  battle  of  Chickasaw  Bluff,  under 
Sherman,  in  December,  1862.  and  Arkansas  Post, 
January,  1863,  where  from  continued  exposure 
and  deprivations  his  health  failed  and  he  was 
sent  to  Lawson  Hospital  at  St.  Louis,  Missouri, 
where,  on  account  of  .serious  illness,  he  was 
compelled    to    remain    until    October,    1863,    at 


which  time  he  received  an  honorable  discharge, 
upon  the  recommendation  of  Col.  George  D. 
Hodge,  commanding  his  regiment. 

Returning  to  Chicago,  he  resumed  the  practice 
of  law  and  formed  a  partnership  with  Mr.  Eben 
V.  Runyan  March  i,  1864.  The  extensive 
practice  of  the  firm  increasing  very  rapidly,  Mr. 
E.  F.  Comstock,  and  Mr.  M.  B.  Loomis  were  ad- 
mitted to  the  partnership  in  1868.  During  the 
succeeding  five  years  Mr.  Avery  conducted  the 
chancery  department  of  the  firm,  and  in  1880  was 
appointed  Master  in  Chancery  of  the  Superior 
Court  of  Cook  county,  which  position  he  re- 
tained by  reappointment  for  seven  years.  Mr. 
Avery's  career  at  the  bar  has  been  eminently  suc- 
cessful, and  he  is  ranked  among  the  distinguished 
men  of  Chicago.  In  politics  he  has  always  been 
a  staunch  and  zealous  Republican,  always  taking 
an  active  part  in  the  campaigns  and  promoting 
the  interests  of  his  party  by  word  and  example. 
He  was  for  five  years  a  member  of  the  Cook 
County  Republican  Central  Committee,  and  for 
one  year  its  chairman. 

He  is  one  of  the  prominent  Masons  of  the 
country.  He  was  initiated  in  Hesperian  Lodge, 
411,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  and  served  three  years  as  its 
Worshipful  Master,  and  has  been  District  Deputy 
Grand  Marshal  of  the  Grand  Lodge  for  the  sec- 
ond district  of  Illinois  for  fifteen  years.  He  is 
also  a  member  of  Washington  Chapter,  R.  A.  M., 
Appollo  Commandery,  No.  i,  of  Illinois  Oriental 
Consistory,  and  co-ordinate  bodies,  S.  P.  R.  S., 
and  Medina  Temple  of  the  Mystic  Shrine  of  the 
A.  A.  N.  M.  S.  In  1874  he  assisted  in  the  organ- 
ization of  the  Northwestern  Masonic  Aid  Associ- 
ation of  Chicago,  was  elected  to  the  office  of  Pres- 
ident the  same  year,  and  has  been  re-elected  each 
succeeding  year. 

Mr.  Avery  continued  in  the  practice  of  law  un- 
til 1887,  when  the  business  of  the  Association 
had  increased  to  such  proportions  that  the  board 
of  trustees  demanded  that  he  should  apply  his 
entire  time  to  its  business,  so  successful  had  he 
been  in  its  management.  Since  then  he  has  con- 
fined himself  to  this  work  and  has  met  with  phe- 
nomenal success. 

He  was  one  of  the  charter  members  of  the  La 
Salle  Club,  and  has  been  a  member  of  the  Illinois 
Club  for  the  past  ten  years. 

Mr.  Avery  has  traveled  extensively  throughout 


240 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


the  United  States,  having  visited  thirty-nine  of 
them  either  on  business  or  pleasure  during  his 
lifetime.  He  has  also  crossed  the  Atlantic  Ocean, 
spending  two  months  traveling  through  the  Brit- 
ish Islands  and  France. 

He  was  married  on  the  23rd  of  October,   1867, 
to  Miss  Mary  Comstock,  but  was  called  upon  to 


mourn  her  loss  five  years  later.     In  May,  1874,  he 
married  Miss  Kate  Ellis,  of  Colton,  New  York. 

Mr.  Avery's  life  has  been  one  untiring  struggle 
in  the  cause  of  humanity,  relieving  the  widows 
and  orphans  in  distress,  and  his  high  moral  tone 
and  sterling  integrity  have  won  for  him  the  love 
and  admiration  of  all  who  know  him. 


N.  W.  HARRIS, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


AMONG  the  numerous  banking  institutions 
of  Chicago,  that  of  N.  \V.  Harris  &  Co. 
stands  high  in  its  specialty,  viz.,  dealing  in  mu- 
nicipal bonds,  etc.  This  house  undoubtedly  does 
the  largest  business  of  any  house  in  the  West, 
and  probably  the  largest  of  any  in  the  United 
States.  Norman  W.  Harris  is  the  head  of  this 
house,  being  both  the  founder,  and,  since  its  or- 
ganization, the  controlling  spirit  in  same. 

He  was  born  in  Becket,  Massachusetts,  August 
15,  1846,  and  is  the  son  of  Nathan  Waite  and  C. 
Emeline  (Wadsworth)  Harris.  The  town  of 
Becket,  in  which  our  subject  was  born,  was  origi- 
nally ceded  to  four  or  six  individuals,  among 
whom  was  his  mother's  great-grandfather.  His 
paternal  great-grandfather  came  to  America  from 
France  and  served  in  the  Revolutionary  War,  and 
in  the  local  cemetery  are  buried  four  generations 
of  the  family.  Mr.  Harris'  parents  are  still  living 
at  an  advanced  age  in  Becket,  Massachusetts, 
and  he  has  also  two  brothers  and  a  sister  living. 
One  of  his  brothers,  Dwight  J.,  being  associated 
with  him  in  the  banking  business  in  Chicago. 
When  eighteen  years  of  age  he  held  a  position 
as  soliciting  agent  for  a  life  insurance  com- 
pany at  Cincinnati,  Ohio.  Two  years  later  he 
was  the  general  agent  of  the  Equitable  Life  As- 
surance Society,  at  Cincinnati.  In  that  year  he 
organized  the  Union  Central  Life  Insurance  Com- 
pany, and  became  its  secretary  and  general  man- 
ager, and  continued  such  for  thirteen  years,  when, 
on  account  of  threatened  ill-health,  he  resigned, 
disposed  of  his  interests  in  the  company  and  went 
to  Europe  for  rest  and  recreation.  At  the  time 
of  his  leaving  he  was  the  largest  individual  stock- 
holder in  his  company,  which  was  the  second 
largest  in  the  West,  and  now  has  assets  of  over 


S6,cxx),ooo.  Returning  from  Europe  in  1881,  he 
located  in  Chicago,  and  established  the  banking 
house  of  N.  W.  Harris  &  Co.,  which  has  branch 
houses  at  15  Wall  street.  New  York,  and  70  State 
street,  Boston.  This  house  and  its  branches  do  a 
business  covering  transactions  of  over  $20,000,000 
per  annum,  and  make  a  specialty  of  dealing  in 
state,  county  and  city  bonds,  their  business  ex- 
tending throughout  the  United  States. 

Mr.  Harris  is  a  member  of  the  Union  League 
Club.  He  is  one  of  the  trustees  of  the  North- 
western University,  and  is  a  prominent  member  of 
the  Methodist  Church,  while  he  is  also  connected 
with  many  societies  of  a  charitable  and  benevolent 
nature. 

Extremely  fond  of  traveling,  he  has  been 
through  Europe  twice,  and  has  also  traveled  ex- 
tensively in  this  country.  He  was  married  Janu- 
ary I,  1867,  to  Miss  Vallandingham,  of  Cincin- 
nati, Ohio,  who  died  in  1874.  In  1879  he  was 
married  to  Miss  Emma  S.  Gale,  daughter  of  Dr. 
J.  G.  Gale,  of  Newton,  New  Hampshire.  She  is  a 
great-granddaughter  of  Dr.  Josiah  Bartlett,  at  one 
time  Governor  of  that  state,  and  one  of  the  sign- 
ers of  the  Declaration  of  Independence.  They 
have  four  sons  and  one  daughter.  Mr.  Harris  has 
contributed  to  the  architecture  of  Chicago  by 
building  a  brown-stone  house  on  Drexel  boule- 
vard, where  the  family  now  reside. 

Mr.  Harris  is  a  man  of  robust  health,  strong 
constitution,  and  fine  physique,  being  tall  and 
well  proportioned.  Though  his  early  education 
was  somewhat  limited,  he  possesses  a  good  mind 
and  is  unusually  well  informed  upon  the  current 
literature  of  the  day,  and  with  matters  of  public 
interest  generally.  Of  a  quiet  disposition,  he 
possesses  exceedingly  strong  domestic  tastes,  and 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  A.\D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


243 


is  much  attached  to  his  home,  which  he  heartily 
enjoys.  He  is  a  shrewd,  active  and  energetic 
business  man,  well  informed  on  all  matters  of 
finance,  and  has  a  spotless   reputation.     Affable 


and  genial  in  manner,  he  has  a  large  circle  of 
friends  and  acquaintances,  and  may  justly  be 
called  one  of  Chicago's  representative  business 
men. 


HON.   E.   A.   OTIS, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


THE  circumstances  attendant  upon  the  birth 
of  an  individual,  and  the  manner  in  which 
he  is  reared,  do  not  always  shape  that  individual's 
future,  or  do  they  emphasise  it  to  the  extent  that 
natural  ability,  education  and  experience  invari- 
ably do.  To  form  an  estimate  of  his  success  it 
is  necessary  to  know  what  he  has  accomplished. 
The  subject  of  this  biography,  the  Hon.  E.  A. 
Otis,  was  born  at  Marengo,  Calhoun  county, 
Michigan,  August  2,  1835,  the  son  of  Hon."  Isaac 
and  Caroline  (Curtis)  Otis.  His  parents  were  of 
English  descent,  and  though  natives  of  New 
York,  and  members  of  the  Society  of  Friends, 
early  emigrated  to  Michigan,  and  were  among 
the  pioneers  of  that  western  country.  Reared  on 
the  family  homestead,  he  received  his  earlier 
education  at  Albion,  Michigan,  and  subsequently 
entered  Michigan  University.  On  leaving  there 
he  determined  upon  the  law  as  a  profession,  and 
entered  the  office  of  Hon.  Joseph  Miller,  of 
Kalamazoo.  Upon  the  completion  of  his  studies, 
and  after  passing  a  very  satisfactory  examination, 
he  was  admitted  to  the  bar  in  1858,  and  almost 
irnmcdiately  afterward  joined  his  brother,  Hon. 
George  L.  Otis,  one  of  the  leading  lawyers  of  the 
State  of  .Minnesota,  in  St.  Paul,  remaining  there 
until  the  outbreak  of  the  war.  Commissioned 
lieutenant  in  the  Second  Minnesota  Infantry 
Volunteers,  a  regiment  which  he  assisted  in 
organizing,  he  joined  the  army  of  the  Cumber- 
land in  October,  1861.  Detailed  on  the  staff  of 
General  R.  W.  Johnson,  he  served  under  that 
general's  immediate  command  until  after  the 
battle  of  Shiloh,  in  which  engagement  he  took  an 
active  part.  Subsequently,  Brigadier  General 
VanCleve,  the  old  colonel  of  the  Second  Minne- 
sota Regiment,  desired  that  Captain  Otis  be 
assigned  to  duty  on  his  own  staff,  and  procured 
his  appointment  as  assistant  adjutant  general. 
Occupying    this    position    until    the  close  of   the 


war,  he  was  actively  engaged  in  all  the  campaigns 
of  the  Army  of  the  Cumberland,  participating  in 
the  battles  of  Shiloh,  Murfrecsboro,  Perryville 
and  Chickamauga.  Satisfied  that  the  war  was 
over,  in  December,  1864,  he  retired  from  the 
army,  and,  believing  the  Southern  country  would 
be  open  to  Northern  emigration,  in  1865  he  com- 
menced the  practice  of  law  in  Nashville,  Tennes- 
see, and  subsequently  took  an  active  part  in  the 
reconstruction  of  that  state.  Commissioned 
chancellor  in  the  Nashville  chancery  district  of 
Tennessee,  in  1868,  he  occupied  this  position  for 
some  twelve  months,  being  the  youngest  man,  up 
to  that  time,  appointed  to  that  ofifice  in  Tennes- 
see. So  great  was  the  appreciation  of  his  ability 
and  thoroughness  in  the  occupancy  of  the  office, 
that,  upon  his  deciding  to  remove  to  Chicago, 
and  his  consequent  resignation  of  the  position, 
his  old  associates  of  the  Nashville  bar  met  and 
passed  resolutions  eulogizing  his  industry  and 
ability,  copies  of  which  were  inserted  in  the 
public  press  of  Nashville.  They  concluded  with 
the  request  "  that  the  Chancellor  be  moved  to 
enter  them  on  the  records  of  the  Chancery 
Court."  During  his  residence  in  this  state,  he 
became  acquainted  with  General  George  H. 
Thomas,  sustaining  warm  personal  relations  with 
that  distinguished  soldier  until  the  latter's  death, 
and  being  employed  by  him  in  several  suits  in 
which  the  General's  officers  had  been  sued  in 
connection  with  the  reconstruction  policy.  He 
was  also  employed  by  Governor  Brownlow  to 
defend  the  constitutionality  of  Tennessee  Fran- 
chise law,  whereby  confederate  soldiers  were 
e.xcluded  from  voting.  A  Republican  in  politics, 
then  as  now,  he  was  actively  identified  with  the 
organization  of  the  Republican  party  in  Tennes- 
see, being  one  of  the  few  Northern  men  who  were 
prominent  Republicans  in  the  South,  and  who 
left  there  retaining  the  friendship  of  ex-rebels. 


244 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Locating  in  Chicago,  June  loth,  1869,  the 
Judge  has  been  very  successful.  Along  with  an 
extensive  chancery  practice,  he  transacts  a  large 
amount  of  business  for  the  national  banks  of  this 
city.  A  thorough  lawyer,  his  knowledge  of  the 
law  is  not  confined  to  one  particular  branch. 
Fertile  and  original  ;n  ideas,  and  possessing  a 
copious  flow  of  language,  his  eminence  as  an 
advocate  is  admitted,  while  his  methods  of  pre- 
senting his  case,  his  general  management  of  same, 
and  the  skillful  manner  in  which  he  argues  the 
various  points  of  law  before  a  court,  are  such  as 
have  won  for  him  much  admiration. 

In  personal  appearance.  Judge  Otis  is  of 
medium  height  and  fair  complexion.  Much 
esteemed  for  his  general  urbanity,  he  is  one  who 
is  accessible  to  all  alike,  while  his  reputation  for 


those  virtues  possessed  only  by  the  true  gentle- 
man— honor,  integrity  and  truthfulness — is  well 
known  and  incontrovertible. 

A  prominent  member  of  the  Chicago  Historical 
Society  and  the  Chicago  Literary  Club,  he  is  one 
of  the  founders  of  the  Society  of  the  Army  of  the 
Cumberland,  and  a  member  of  the  Loyal  Legion 
and  of  the  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic. 

Belonging  to  a  family  of  lawyers,  he  is  one  of 
five  brothers  all  prominent  and  successful  in  the 
legal  profession.  An  esteemed  citizen  and  a 
prominent  lawyer.  Judge  Otis  has  aided  in  shed- 
ding a  luster  upon  the  bar  of  this  city.  It  is 
by  the  emulation  of  the  principles  and  methods 
of  such  men  as  he  that  the  younger  members  of 
the  profession  shall  not  only  seek  success,  but 
shall  find  it. 


WILLIAM    HOUSER   GRAY. 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


IN  studying  the  lives  and  characters  of  promi- 
nent men,  we  are  naturally  led  to  inquire  into 
the  secret  of  their  success,  and  the  motives  that 
prompted  their  action.  Success  is  more  often  a 
matter  of  experience  and  sound  judgment,  than 
it  is  of  genius,  however  bright.  For  when  we 
trace  the  career  of  those  whom  the  world 
acknowledges  as  being  successful,  and  of  those 
who  stand  highest  in  public  esteem,  we  find  almost 
in  every  case  that  they  are  those  who  have  risen 
gradually,  who  have  overcome  seemingly  insur- 
mountable difficulties,  and  who  have  by  energy, 
honesty  and  self-reliance,  attained  the  goal  to 
which  they  aspired,  and  won  for  themselves  that 
success  which  the  possession  of  these  character- 
istics almost  invariably  insures. 

The  subject  of  this  .sketch— William  Houser 
Gray — is  a  native  of  the  Buckeye  State,  having 
been  born  at  Piqua,  Ohio,  September  23,  1847. 
The  son  of  Jacob  C.  and  Catherine  (Houser)  Gray. 
His  father  was  a  contractor  and  builder,  a  native 
of  Ohio,  and  a  resident  of  the  same  neighborhood 
for  over  si.xty  years  (Piqua,  Ohio).  He  was  a  man 
who  stood  exceedingly  high  in  his  locality,  and 
was  a  deacon  of  the  Bajnist  Church  for  over  fifty- 
five  years,  being  familiarly  known  as  "  Deacon 
Gray,"  not  only  in  the  immediate  neighborhood, 


but  throughout  the  State.  A  great  believer  in, 
and  a  practical  supporter  of,  every  object  tending 
to  the  advancement  of  education  generally — 
though  the  advantages  he  himself  had  received 
were  few — he  gave  all  his  children  an  excellent 
education.  He  died  about  ten  years  ago,  aged  79, 
beloved  and  respected  by  all  who  knew  him. 

Our  subject's  mother  is  the  daughter  of  the  late 
Jacob  Houser,  of  Dayton,  Ohio.  She  is  still 
living,  though  at  an  advanced  age,  being  in  her 
70th  year,  and  is  happy  in  the  possession  of  all  her 
faculties.  Always  identified  with  the  work  of  the 
Baptist  Church,  she  is  a  much  esteemed  member 
thereof,  and  a  frequent  attendant  of  the  various 
meetings  held  in  connection  with  same.  She  has 
reared  a  family  of  six  children— two  boys  and  four 
girls— Mr.  J.  H.  Gray,  of  Cincinnati,  Ohio,  being 
one  of  the  sons,  and  it  is  perhaps  .somewhat 
interesting  to  know  that  no  member  of  this  family 
has  ever  used  tobacco  in  any  shape  or  form. 

Receiving  his  early  education  in,  and  graduating 
from,  the  Piqua  High  School,  Mr.  Gray  subse- 
quently entered  Denison  University,  where  he 
remained  three  years. 

His  education  being  at  length  completed,  he 
assi-stcd  his  father  in  his  building  operations  for  a 
time,  and   afterwards  entered   the  employ  of   the 


cyY^^Ci2.,^^^-.^c^'^^^--^''---'^'^<^ 


7?-7^^^.^ 


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I 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


247 


Lake  Erie  &  Western  Railroad  Company  as  civil 
engineer.  Upon  the  failure  of  this  company,  he 
entered  into  the  lumber  business  at  Piqua,  Ohio, 
and  continued  thus  engaged  until  after  the  great 
Chicago  fire.  Disposing  of  this  concern  in  1871, 
he  then  became  connected  with  a  life  insurance 
company.  His  headquarters  were  at  Indianapolis. 
Subsequently  Mr.  Gray  was  transferred  to  Ohio, 
and  in  1877  he  organized  the  Knight  Templars 
and  Masonic  Mutual  Aid  Association,  of  Cincin- 
nati, Ohio,  which,  under  his  management,  became 
the  leading  company  (of  this  class),  at  that  time, 
in  the  United  States.  In  1883  he  severed  his 
connection  with  this  company,  leaving  it  in  a 
highly  flourishing  condition,  the  result  of  his 
splendid  organization.  During  the  twelve  months 
following  he  engaged  in  private  business,  at  the 
end  of  which  period  he  came  to  this  city.  May 
4th,  1884,  he  organized  the  "Knight  Templars  & 
Masons  Life  Indemnity  Company,  of  Chicago, 
Illinois,"  and  with  this  corporation — as  its  general 
manager — he  has  been  identified  ever  since.  The 
success  with  which  this  company  has  met,  from 
the  time  of  its  organization  up  to  the  present 
date,  has  been  truly  phenomenal,  and  to-day  it  is 
the  guarantee  for  upwards  of  twenty-six  million 
dollars  of  insurance ! — a  result  which  is  mainly 
attributable  to  the  efficient  management  and  great 
administrative  abilities  of  William  Houser  Gray. 

One  of  those  who  have  aided  in  the  develop- 
ment of  the  natural  gas  fields  of  Indiana,  Mr. 
Gray  owns  the  principal  interest  in  that  at  Nobles- 
ville,  Ind.  He  is  an  extensive  owner  of  real 
estate;  he  possesses  12,800  acres  of  land  in  Texas, 
700  acres  in  Indiana,  near  Indianapolis,  and  1,000 
acres  in  this  State  (111.). 


The  originator  of  the  company  which  removed 
the  old  Libby  Prison  to  this  city,  he  was  at  one 
period  its  treasurer,  and,  in  fact,  was  the  original 
and  sole  purchaser  of  the  same.  Upon  its  being 
disposed  of  to  the  syndicate  who  now  own  it, 
he  resigned  the  position  of  treasurer  after  its 
removal  to  Chicago  and  completion. 

A  member  of  the  Union  League  and  Marquette 
Clubs,  he  is  also  a  member  of  St.  Bernard  Com- 
mandery  (K.  T.)  and  other  Masonic  bodies. 

One  who  has  traveled  extensively,  his  summer 
vacations  are  always  spent  on  the  coast  of  Maine, 
and  here,  together  with  his  family,  he  enjoys 
at  least  once  during  the  twelve  months  of  the 
year,  a  thorough  change  and  a  much  needed  rest. 

In  matters  of  religion  Mr.  Gray  is  a  Baptist, 
though  not  an  active  member  of  the  church. 

In  politics  a  republican,  though  in  no  sense  of 
the  word  a  politician. 

Married  February  17,  1 88 1,  to  Miss  Orpha  Ella 
Buckingham,  a  graduate  of  the  Mt.  Carroll  (111.) 
Seminary,  the  union  was  blessed  by  three  children, 
viz.:  Ina  B.,  aged  eight  years ;  Willie  B.,  aged  six 
years,  and  Ralph  B.,  aged  two  and  one-half  years. 

Was  chairman  of  the  "  Ticket  committee  "  of 
the  6th  Knight  Templars  Charity  Ball.  He  is  a 
practical  sympathiser  with  all  objects  of  a  ben- 
evolent nature,  and  is  generous  to  a  fault. 

In  personal  appearance,  of  medium  height,  dark 
hair  and  complexion.  In  manner  he  is  courteous 
and  refined. 

An  ardent  believer  in  the  value  of  insurance  to 
all,  he  himself  carries  upwards  of  one  hundred 
thousand  dollars.  Personally  and  socially  he 
possesses  rare  qualities,  and  as  a  public-spirited 
citizen,  enjoys  the  esteem  of  all  who  know  him. 


PERCIVAL   B.   PALMER, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


TI I E  gentleman  whose  name  heads  this  sketch 
is  one  of  the  most  efficient  and  enterpris- 
ing manufacturing  merchants  in  Chicago.  He  is 
a  native  of  Boston,  Mass.,  and  was  born  August 
2,  1 85 1,  the  son  of  Dudley  R.  Palmer,  a  native  of 
New  Hampshire,  who  removed  to  Boston  at  an 
early  day,  and  was  a  prominent  business  man  in 
that  city  fifty  years.     His  mother's  maiden  name 


was  Anna  Gibbs.  His  paternal  grandfather,  John 
Palmer,  was  a  soldier  in  the  war  of  the  Revolu- 
tion. 

Percival  attciuled  the  public  schools  of  Boston 
in  his  youth  and  graduated  from  the  English 
High  School  in  1868.  He  started  in  life  in  the 
employ  of  Messrs.  E.  Allen  &  Co.,  prominent 
jobbers  in   woolen   goods   in   that   city,   and   re- 


248 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


mained  with  them  two  years.  He  w-as  then  con- 
nected w'ith  Messrs.  Springer  Bros.,  wholesale 
cloak  manufacturers  of  Boston,  five  years.  In 
1879  li*^  removed  to  Chicago,  and  there  repre- 
sented Messrs.  C.  N.  Carter  &  Co.,  of  New  York, 
in  the  same  line  of  business, continuing  until  July, 
1877,  when  he  entered  the  employ  of  Messrs.  J. 
W.  Griswold  &  Co.  Upon  the  retirement  of  Mr. 
J.  W.  Griswold  from  the  firm,  in  1887,  he  formed 
a  partnership  with  Mr.  E.  P.  Griswold,  under  the 
firm  name  of  Griswold,  Palmer  &  Co.,  where  he 
has  continued  ever  since. 

Mr.  Palmer  is  now  in  the  prime  of  life,  and  he 
possesses  untiring  energy,   is  quick  of  perception, 


forms  his  plans  readily,  and  is  bold  in  their  exe- 
cution. He  is  pre-eminently  a  self-made  man, 
and  in  connection  with  his  partner,  by  their  own 
e.xertions,  have  placed  their  house  at  the  head  of 
the  business  of  manufacturing  ladies'  and  chil- 
dren's cloaks  in  Chicago. 

Mr.  Palmer  belongs  to  the  Union  League  and 
Hamilton  clubs,  of  Chicago.  He  was  married,  in 
1877,  to  Miss  Nellie  F.  Chapin.  of  Boston,  Mass., 
the  daughter  of  Nahum  Chapin,  a  prominent  man 
in  political  and  business  circles  in  that  city. 
They  have  four  sons  and  one  daughter — Dudley 
Chapin,  Percival  B.,  Jr.,  David  H.,  Nahum  Chapin 
and  Lucy  F. 


JOHN    B.    KIRK, 

CHICAGO,   ILL. 


THERE  is  no  business  man  of  Chicago  that 
stands  higher  amongst  the  mercantile 
community  than  John  B.  Kirk.  He  was  born  on 
November  8,  1842,  in  Utica,  New  York,  and  is 
the  second  son  of  James  S.  Kirk  and  Nancy  Ann 
(Dunning)  Kirk.  His  father  was  of  Scottish  ori- 
gin, a  son  of  a  celebrated  civil  engineer  of  Glas- 
gow, Scotland,  who  came  to  the  United  States 
whilst  very  young.  He  was  educated  in  Mon- 
treal (Canada)  Academy,  and  married  in  Ottawa 
in  1839.  In  the  year  of  his  marriage  he  located 
in  Utica,  New  York,  and  entered  into  business 
there. 

Our  subject  obtained  his  education  in  the  city 
of  his  birth,  and  upon  commencing  his  mercantile 
life,  entered  into  the  business  his  father  had 
founded  in  1839,  and  his  career  has  since  been 
identified  with  the  firm  of  James  S.  Kirk  &  Co. 

The  success  of  the  house  of  James  S.  Kirk  & 
Co.,  which  was  founded  in  Utica  in  1839,  and  has 
grown  from  a  toddling  infant  at  the  time  of  its 
foundation  until  it  is  now  a  manufacturing  giant, 
with  an  output  larger  than  any  plant  of  its  kind, 
not  only  in  this  country,  but  in  the  entire  world 
(its  product  amounting  to  70,000,000  of  pounds  of 
soap  annually,  beside  various  other  articles  manu- 
factured), is  unquestionably  due  to  the  firm  busi- 
ness policy  exercised  by  James  S.  Kirk  during  his 
life,  and  the  valuable  and  practical  assistance 
rendered  to  him    by  his  elder  sons,  in  whom  he 


early  in  life  engrafted  the  qualities  necessary  for 
a  worthy  business  career. 

In  1859  the  firm  removed  to  Chicago,  and  with 
the  exception  of  the  disastrous  effects  of  the 
fire  of  1 87 1,  which  entailed  a  loss  to  them  of  a 
quarter  of  a  million  dollars,  their  career  has  been 
one  of  continued  success. 

The  firm  reorganized  immediately  after  the 
fire,  and  through  the  hearty  co-operation  of  all 
the  members  of  the  Kirk  family,  the  business  was 
soon  on  a  substantial  footing,  and  it  has  con- 
tinued on  the  road  of  prosperity  ever  since. 

Through  the  ingenuity  of  John  B.  Kirk  and  his 
brothers,  the  process  of  manufacturing  soap  has 
been  revolutionized,  and  many  labor-saving  meth- 
ods have  been  devised. 

John  B.  Kirk's  acknowledged  ability  as  a 
financier  induced  the  directors  of  the  American 
E.xchange  National  Bank  to  choose  him  for  the 
position  of  vice-president,  and  afterward  president, 
which  positions  he  has  creditably  filled  since  1889. 

On  October  4,  1866,  our  subject  was  married 
to  Miss  Mac  Vean  of  this  city.  The  couple  are 
blessed  with  four  children.  Their  names  in  order 
of  birth  are :  James  M.,  Frederick  I.,  Josephine, 
and  the  baby  Susie,  a  child  of  eighteen  months. 

The  Northwestern  University,  located  at 
Evanston,  is  widely  known  as  one  of  the  leading 
educational  institutions  of  the  West,  and  its 
reputation  is  constantly   increasing.     This  worthy 


J[vx\/Q  (u-lIL 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXP  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


251 


enterprise  has  always  found  a  warm  sympathizer 
and  friend  in  Mr.  Kirk.  He  is  a  member  of  the 
executive  committee,  and  a  trustee  of  that  insti- 
tution, and  has  always  been  ready  to  assist  both 
financially  and  personally  any  movement  that  had 
the  good  of  the  university  for  its  object. 

Oratory  and  elocution  are  two  of  the  grandest 
of  man's  accomplishments,  and  to  stimulate  the.se 
grand  arts,  Mr.  Kirk  has  donated  an  annual  prize 
of  Sioo,  to  be  awarded  to  the  successful  competi- 
tor in  the  annual  oratorical  contest  held  by  the 
senior  students  of  the  university.  One  of  the  most 
interesting  and  longed-for  events  is  this  annual 
contest;  and  it  may  be  true  that  some  modern 
Demosthenes  will  owe  his  success  as  an  orator  to 
the  fact  that  his  natural  powers  were  stimulated 
by  a  strong  desire  to  be  victorious  in  the  annual 
oratorical  contest  for  the  "Kirk  Prize." 

Our  subject's  good  deeds  in  the  assistance  of 
efforts  to  advance  the  cause  of  education  have 
not  been  confined  to  helping  the  Northwestern 
University  ;  but  all  worthy  objects  that  have  the 
improvement  of  facilities  for  advancing  the  citi- 
zens of  this  country  in  education  find  in  him  a 
ready  and  willing  sympathizer  and  friend. 

Mr.  Kirk  has  a  particular  fondness  for  medical 
investigation  and  study,  and  it  is  probable  that 
had  he  not  been  influenced  by  his  father,  who  de- 
sired him  to  enter  the  business  that  was  his  pride, 
he  would  have  chosen  the  medical  profession 
rather  than  the  life  of  a  business  man ;  and  it 
being  true  that  ability  will  show  itself  and  make 
itself  known  no  matter  in  what   field   it  is  placed. 


this  worthy  profession  would  have  had  a  worthy 
member  of  its  body  in  John  B.  Kirk. 

Amongst  the  residents  of  Evanston,  Mr.  Kirk 
has  made,  through  his  upright  and  honorable  rec- 
ord, many  sincere  friends,  and  there  is  no  man  at 
present  residing  in  that  suburban  city  that  holds 
a  higher  position  amongst  its  residents,  nor  is 
more  highly  esteemed  than  he  is.  He  is  not  only 
admired  for  his  honorable  conduct  to  his  fellow 
men,  and  for  his  generous  hospitality,  but  he  is 
also  esteemed  for  his  many  acts  of  true  charity. 
One  of  his  neighbors  remarks,  "  that  no  deserving 
object  is  ever  refused  charity  by  John  B.  Kirk" 

In  recapitulating  the  events  of  his  life,  we  must 
not  overlook  Mrs.  Kirk,  who,  by  her  high  appre- 
ciation of  what  is  right,  and  by  her  assistance  and 
sympathy  for  all  that  is  good,  and  her  kindly  di- 
rection, has  vastly  assisted  Mr.  Kirk  to  reach  the 
high  position  he  now  holds.  She  is  esteemed 
fully  as  much  as  Mr.  Kirk,  and  no  lady  in  Evans- 
ton  is  more  truly  honored  and  admired. 

In  summing  up  the  events  of  the  life  of  John 
B.  Kirk,  it  can  be  stated  that  his  career  has  been 
such  as  to  warrant  the  trust  and  confidence  of 
the  business  world ;  that  he  has  always  tried  to 
transact  his  business  matters  in  the  same  honor- 
able manner  that  placed  his  father  before  him  in 
such  a  high  and  esteemed  position  in  the  business 
community.  With  a  record  unsullied  and  a  high 
degree  of  ability,  no  business  man  of  Chicago  is 
better  spoken  of  by  his  associates,  than  the  presi- 
dent of  the  American  Exchange  National  Bank, 
the  worthy  subject  of  this  sketch,  John  1^.  Kirk. 


COL.  JAMES   A.  SEXTON, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


THE  subject  of  this  sketch  is  essentially  a 
self-made  man.  Thrown  upon  his  own 
resources  at  the  early  age  of  nine  years,  he  com- 
menced the  battle  of  life,  and  at  seventeen,  upon 
the  breaking  out  of  the  late  civil  war,  he  enlisted 
as  a  three  months'  volunteer,  and  afterward  was  a 
volunteer  "  for  three  years  or  the  war."  He  was 
born  in  Chicago,  January  5th,  1S44,  his  parents  re- 
moving here  in  1834  from  Rochester,  New  York. 

After  the  expiration  of  his  three  months'  ser- 
vice he  re-enlisted  in  Company  I,  Fifty-first  Reg- 


iment Illinois  Volunteer  Infantry,  and  wa?  made 
sergeant.  In  June,  1862,  he  was  transferred  to 
Company  E,  Sixty-.seventh  Regiment  Illinois  In- 
fantry, and  promoted  to  a  lieutenancy,  and  in 
August  following,  a  company  was  recruited  under 
the  auspices  of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Asso- 
ciation of  Chicago,  and  he  was  elected  its  captain. 
This  was  known  as  Company  D,  Seventy-second 
Regiment  Illinois  Infantry.  He  commanded  the 
regiment  at  the  battles  of  Columbia,  Duck  River, 
Spring   Hill,  Franklin  and   Nashville,  Tenn.,  and 


252 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


through  the  Nashville  campaign.  In  1865  he  was 
assigned  to  duty  on  the  staff  of  General  A.  J. 
Smith,  Sixteenth  Army  Corps,  Acting  Provost 
Marshal,  and  served  till  the  close  of  the  war, 
making  for  himself  a  brilliant  record.  After  the 
close  of  the  war  he  was  commissioned  first- 
lieutenant  in  the  regular  army,  but  resigned,  and 
next  engaged  in  cotton  raising  in  Alabama.  Two 
years  later,  in  1867,  he  returned  to  Chicago,  leav- 
ing his  plantation  in  charge  of  an  overseer,  and 
there  associated  himself  with  Mr.  John  Jackson, 
under  the  firm  name  of  Jackson  &  Sexton,  in  a 
stove  foundry.  This  firm  was  succeeded  by  that 
of  Messrs.  J.  A.  &  T.  S.  Sexton,  and  was  con- 
ducting business  at  No.  176  Lake  street  at  the 
time  of  the  great  fire  of  October  8-9.  1871.  In 
1872  the  firm  was  changed  to  Cribben,  Sex- 
ton &  Co.,  and  the  increase  of  business  justi- 
fied the  erection  of  spacious  warerooms  at  Nos. 
75  and  "]"]  Lake  street,  and  then  followed  the 
purchase  of  the  McArthur  Iron  Works,  at  Nos. 
52  to  58  Erie  street,  where  they  began  the  man- 


ufacture of  stoves  and  grey  enamel  hollowware. 
The  firm  is  at  present  (1892)  composed  of  Henry 
Cribben,  James  A.  Sexton   and   Will   H.  Cribben. 

Colonel  Sexton  takes  an  active  interest  in 
Grand  Army  affairs,  and  is  the  Past  Department 
Commander  of  the  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic 
in  Illinois.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Loyal  Legion, 
the  Chicago  Union  Veteran  Club  and  the  Veteran 
Union  League,  and  is  a  Mason  of  high  degree. 

There  is  no  better  attest  of  Colonel  Sexton's 
popularity  and  worth,  and  the  universal  satisfac- 
tion with  which  his  candidacy  for  the  postmaster- 
ship  was  received,  than  in  the  fact  that  in  the 
great  city  of  Chicago,  where  presidents  may  be 
said  to  be  made,  and  the  party  of  which  he  is  a 
member  has  so  many  calls  upon  the  administra- 
tion for  political  favors,  he  found  no  one  willing 
to  be  his  earnest  competitor.  "  That  the  man 
deserved  the  office  and  that  the  office  deserves 
the  man,"  has  been  demonstrated  by  the  reforms 
that  have  been  inaugurated  in  all  departments  of 
the  office  and  the  perfect  discipline  that  prevails. 


ALEXANDER   L.   DEWAR, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


ALEXANDER  L.  DEWAR,  a  prominent 
banker  of  Chicago,  and  cashier  of  the 
American  Exchange  National  Bank,  was  born  at 
Glasgow,  Scotland,  on  August  6,  1852. 

His  father,  Plummer  Dewar,  was  a  native  of  the 
West  India  Islands  but  was  of  Scottish  parentage, 
being  able  to  trace  his  ancestry  back  for  several 
centuries.  His  mother  was  Eliza  Pew  Dewar,  a  lady 
of  English  extraction  but  a  resident  of  Jamaica, 
where  his  parents  were  married.  Shortly  after 
this  marriage  our  subject's  parents  removed  to 
Scotland,  locating  at  Edinburgh,  but  later  remov- 
ing to  Glasgow  where  Alexander  was  born.  In 
1855,  when  our  subject  had  reached  the  inter- 
esting age  of  three,  the  Dewar  family  moved  to 
Canada,  where  he  passed  his  boyhood  and  ob- 
tained his  school  education.  His  first  business 
experience  was  in  the  same  business  as  he  is  now 
in,  and  in  1868  he  became  a  clerk  in  the  British 
Bank  at  Hamilton,  Ont.  Even  at  that  time  Mr. 
Dewar  manifested  great  ability  and  fulfilled  his 
duties    so    faithfully    that    his    promotions    were 


rapidly  made,  and  in  a  short  time  he  stood 
so  well  with  the  directorate  of  the  institution 
that  he,  at  the  age  of  nineteen,  was  sent  to  New 
York  to  fill  the  position  of  teller  (a  very  high 
position)  in  the  branch  of  the  bank  in  that  city. 
He  continued  in  the  employment  of  the  British 
Bank  until  1875  when  he  returned  to  Canada  to 
accept  a  position  with  the  Bank  of  Commerce, 
located  at  Montreal,  with  branches  at  Toronto 
and  Woodstock;  he  occupied  a  prominent  posi- 
tion with  this  bank  in  Canada  for  some  years,  and 
in  1 88 1  was  delegated  to  manage  a  branch  of  the 
Bank  in  Chicago,  which  he  did  satisfactorily,  and 
continued  its  controlling  spirit  until  1886,  when 
the  bank  transferred  its  surplus  capital  to  New 
York  and  discontinued  the  Chicago  business. 

Then  Mr.  Dewar  organized  the  American  Ex- 
change National  Bank,  transferring  the  business  he 
controlled  whilst  with  the  old  concern  to  the  new 
organization.  Mr.  Dewar  has  always  been  the 
cashier  of  the  bank,  and  it  is  conceded  by  the 
banking    houses  to  be   largely  due   to   his    inde- 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  A.\D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


255 


fatigable  efforts  and  firm  policy  that  the  bank 
occupies  so  prominent  a  position  amongst  the 
leading  banking  houses  of  the  country  as  it  now 
does.  Mr.  Dewar  is  a  young  man  of  thirty-nine, 
and  his  success  stands  out  prominently  as  a  shin- 
ing example  of  what  honesty  and  integrity  com- 
bined with  foresight  and  firmness  have  accom- 
plished for  a  number  of  our  prominent  citizens. 

In  1875,  Mr.  Dewar  was  married  to  Miss  Grace 
M.  Mackenzie,  of  Hamilton,  Ont.;  his  wife  is  a 
descendant  of  an  old  Scotch  family.  The  couple 
are  blessed  with  seven  handsome  children,  four 
boys  and  three  girls ;  their  names  and  ages  are : 
Fred,  aged  si.xteen  ;  Harold,  aged  fourteen  ;  Elsie, 
aged  eleven  ;  Maud,  aged  nine  ;  John,  aged  seven, 
and  Nellie,  the  youngest  daughter,  a  sweet  child 
of  five,  and  Arthur,  the  baby. 

Mr.  Dewar's  political  creed  is  strongly  Repub- 
lican. He  believes  that  the  legislation  of  the  Re- 
publican party  has  always  been  such  as  to  im- 
prove the  condition  of  the  people,  and  ever  since 
he  has  become  a  citizen  of  this,  the  country  of 
his  adoption,  he  has  been  a  stalwart  follower  of 
the  doctrines  of  Garfield  and  Blaine.  In  religion 
Mr.  Dewar  is  a  Presbyterian. 

Mr.  Dewar  is  a  man  of  quiet  tastes  and  habits; 


he  has  been  tendered  positions  both  in  social 
clubs  and  in  public  institutions,  but  having  only 
a  limited  amount  of  time  to  spare  away  from  his 
business,  in  which  he  takes  a  personal  pleasure, 
and  having  no  desire  to  appear  conspicuous,  he 
has  always  refused,  knowing  the  place  for  a  man 
to  find  true  happiness  is  in  the  bosom  of  his 
family ;  he  deems  the  spot  where  a  man  can  most 
truly  find  pleasure  and  true  content  to  be  that 
place  sanctioned  by  God,  man's  heaven  on  earth, 
within  the  family  circle  of  his  home;  and  our 
subject  outside  of  his  business  affairs  has  one 
supreme  thought  and  that  is,  to  increase  the 
happiness  of  his  family,  if  it  be  possible  to  do  so. 
Such  is  his  biography.  He  is  a  man  who  is 
honored  and  respected  by  all  of  his  acquaint- 
ances, with  a  clear  record,  holding  a  high  position 
amongst  the  representative  business  men  of  Chi- 
cago, esteemed  for  his  business  ability,  and  re- 
spected for  his  integrity  by  all  that  know  him ; 
with  a  cheerful  home  and  a  happy  family,  he  is  a 
living  example  of  what  honesty  of  purpose  and 
attention  to  business,  combined  with  a  forcible 
character  and  a  high  sense  of  the  honorable,  can 
accomplish,  and  does  accomplish,  to  force  men 
to  a  high  position  in  the  business  community. 


WILLIAM    M.    DALE, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


OWING  to  the  conspicuous  place  attained  by 
the  subject  of  this  sketch  in  his  life-time, 
his  name  has  for  many  years  been  a  familar  one. 
He  was  born  in  Kilmarnock,  County  of  Ayr, 
Scotland,  on  February  10,  1842.  He  received  a 
good  English  education  at  the  academy  in  his 
native  town,  and  after  leaving  school  became  an 
apprenticed  druggist  there.  He  served  four 
years  in  that  capacity,  and  then  went  to  the  city 
of  Glasgow  and  spent  four  years  more  as  a  drug- 
gist's apprentice.  Having  now  acquired  a  thor- 
ough and  practical  knowledge  of  pharmacy,  he 
went  to  the  town  of  Kinross,  Scotland,  and  estab- 
lished himself  inbusineson  his  own  account,  meet- 
ing with  good  success  from  the  start.  However, 
his  enterprising  spirit,  energy  and  ambition  de- 
manded a  broader  field  of  action,  and  it  was  to 
gratify  this  that  he  closed  out  his  business  in  the 


year  1865,  and  left  Auld  Scotland  to  try  his  for- 
tune in  the  then  enterprising  and  thriving  young 
city  of  the  West.  Upon  his  arrival  in  Chicago, 
Mr.  Dale  was  for  a  short  time  in  the  employ  of 
Messrs.  Buck  &  Rayner,  pharmacists,  after  which 
he  established  the  firm  of  Dale  &  Heiland,  and 
located  in  business  at  No.  155  South  Clark  street, 
where  he  continued  until  the  great  fire  of  October 
8  and  9,  1 871.  During  the  following  year  the 
business  was  conducted  on  the  West  Side,  but 
upon  the  completion  of  a  new  building,  was  re- 
established at  the  old  stand  and  there  continued 
until  1879,  when  Mr.  Dale  established  his  cele- 
brated pharmacy,  so  widely  and  popularly  known, 
at  the  northeast  corner  of  Clark  and  Madison 
streets.  He  continued  to  conduct  this  with 
marked  success  until  his  decease,  which  occurred 
at  Charlevoix,  Michigan,  on  July  30,  1S87. 


256 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Mr.  Dale  was  a  man  of  marked  personal  traits, 
and  possessed  qualities  of  mind  and  heart  that 
greatly  endeared  him  to  a  very  wide  circle  of 
friends.  As  a  business  manager  he  was  prompt, 
enterprising,  far-sighted  and  judicious,  and  had  a 
firmness  and  decision  of  purpose  that  never  rested 
with  anything  short  of  honorable  success.  He 
was  a  man  of  generous  impulses,  charitable  and 
kind,  and  gave  liberally  to  worthy  objects.  In 
social  circles  he  was  a  prominent  character,  and 
was  especially  a  favorite  in  the  Scotch  society  of 


Chicago,  and  by  all  who  knew  him,   esteemed   an 
upright  and  honorable  citizen. 

Mr.  Dale  was  married  on  June  i,  1869,  to  Miss 
Mary  Walker,  of  Glasgow,  Scotland,  who,  with 
five  children — William  Wallace,  Christina,  Alice, 
Jessie  and  Margaret — survive  him.  Since  her 
husband's  decease,  Mrs.  Dale  has  continued  the 
business,  having  associated  with  herself,  as  part- 
ner, Mr. Sempill,  formerly  an  employe  of 

Mr.    Dale's,    under   the    firm    name   of    Dale   & 
Sempill. 


CHARLES  TRUAX, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


CHARLES  TRUAX  was  born  on  Septem- 
ber 24,  1852,  at  Milton,  Rock  county, 
Wisconsin.  The  first  of  this  gentleman's  family 
in  America  was  Mr.  Phillippe  De  Truex,  who 
settled  at  New  Amsterdam  (now  New  York),  in 
1633  (see  records  "  Dutch  Manuscripts"  at  Al- 
bany, N.  Y.,  vol.  2,  p.  27)  ;  and  his  son,  born  on 
April  21,  1642,  was  the  first  white  child  born  on. 
Manhattan  Island.  Several  members  of  this 
family  immigrated  to  America  in  1623  on  account 
of  the  persecutions  of  the  Huguenots  in  France. 

The  parents  of  the  subject  of  our  sketch — Dr. 
Galloway  Truax  and  Mary  (Stiles)  Truax — were 
pioneer  settlers  in  Jackson  county,  Iowa.  The 
former,  an  old  and  highly  respected  physician 
and  expert  chemist  of  Maquoketa,  la.,  now  re- 
sides at  Ravenswood,  a  suburb  of  Chicago.  The 
family  have  a  decided  predilection  for  medicine 
and  surgery.  A  brother.  Dr.  H.  E.  Truax,  prac- 
ticing at  Auburn  Park,  enjoys  a  good  practice. 
Two  sisters,  Mrs.  H.  L.  Heberling  and  Miss 
Fannie  Truax,  are  residents  of  Chicago. 

Mr.  Truax's  early  education  was  limited  to  what 
might  be  acquired  in  the  common  schools  of  the 
day.  At  the  age  of  sixteen  he  commenced  an 
apprenticeship  in  the  drug  business  with  his 
father,  but  failing  health  compelled  him  to  aban- 
don it  at  twenty,  and  going  West,  he  spent  two 
years  "roughing  it  ;"  and  during  that  time,  being 
of  a  scientific  turn  of  mind,  he  collected  many 
geological  specimens  and  other  materials  for  a 
private  museum  of  natural  history,  which  he  has 
in   his   cozv,  comfortable  home  at   Ravenswood. 


While  in  the  West  he  had  many  interesting  and 
thrilling  experiences  on  the  plains  as  a  cowboy. 
The  ambition  of  his  early  days,  to  job  goods,  re- 
turned with  his  health,  and  upon  returning  to 
Maquoketa  in  1875,  he  entered  into  partnership 
with  his  father,  and  commenced  a  brilliant  busi- 
ness career  as  junior  partner  of  G.  Truax  and 
Son,  dealers  in  physicians'  supplies.  In  1S80, 
finding  the  shipping  facilities  of  Maquoketa  in- 
adequate for  their  increasing  trade,  he  sold  out 
his  interest  in  the  business  and  removed  to  Cedar 
Rapids,  Iowa,  where  he  established  and  conducted 
a  business  in  his  own  name.  Two  years  later 
Mr.  C.  W.  Bassett,  of  Cedar  Rapids,  became  a 
partner  in  the  business,  which  was  thereafter  con- 
ducted under  the  firm  name  of  Charles  Truax  & 
Co.  In  1884,  their  trade  having  greatly  increased 
east  of  the  Mississippi,  the  firm  removed  to  Chi- 
cago for  the  same  reasons  that  induced  Mr.  Trua.x 
to  remove  to  Cedar  Rapids. 

In  1887,  Dr.  F.  C.  Greene,  an  ambitious  and 
highly  respectable  physician  of  Chicago,  and  a 
member  of  the  Chicago  Medical  Society,  was  ad- 
mitted into  the  firm  as  a  partner  and  the  business 
was  incorporated  without  change  of  name,  and 
since  that  time  they  have  enjoyed  as  before  a 
highly  prosperous  business. 

Mr.  Truax,  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  is  to-day 
at  the  head  of  the  largest  physicians'  supply  house 
in  the  world,  located  at  Nos.  75  and  ^J^  Wabash 
avenue,  Chicago,  and  employing  over  one  hun- 
dred and  forty  people.  Mr.  Truax  may  justly 
claim  the  honor  of   having   been   the  pioneer  in 


^^si^s^.;^i^^i^y^'  y-^yyy 


•:!•'  *^^:^V'^*JI 


.» —  #  /■^ 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


259 


successfully  developing  this  branch  of  business  in 
the  United  States.  In  the  summer  of  1888  he 
went  to  Europe  on  a  pleasure  and  business  trip, 
visiting  England,  Scotland,  Ireland,  F" ranee,  Ger- 
many and  Austria.  While  abroad  he  received  an 
invitation  to  address  the  British  Medical  Society, 
an  honor  which  no  other  tradesman  has  ever  been 
accorded  by  that  august  body.  He  has  traveled 
extensively  in  his  own  country,  and  made  several 
trips  to  the  Pacific  slope. 

Mr.  Truax  is  a  member  of  many  secret  socie- 
ties, but  takes  particular  pride  in  masonry.  He 
was  made  a  Master  Mason  in  Mt.  Herman 
Lodge,  No.  263,  Cedar  Rapids,  Iowa,  in  1881, 
and  was  honored  by  being  elected  Senior  Warden 
within  eight  months  after  his  initiation  ;  exalted 
to  the  Royal  Arch  degree  in  1882.  in  Trowell 
Chapter,  No.  49.  and  created  a  Knight  Templar  in 
1883  in  Apollo  Commanderj-,  No.  26,  Cedar 
Rapids,  Iowa.  He  is  at  present  a  member  of 
Evanston  Commander)-,  No.  49,  and  also  a  noble 
of  the  Mystic  Shrine.  As  founder  of  Ravens- 
wood  Lodge,  Chicago,  No.  TJ-j,  in  1886,  he  was 
W.  M.  for  three  years.  Mr.  Truax  is  also  a  mem- 
ber of  the  American  Pharmaceutical  Society. 
He  is  considerable  of  a  sportsman,  his  favorite 
sport  being  brook  trout  fishing.  He  has  made 
such  a  remarkable  record  during  the  past  three 
years  that  a  leading  railroad  corporation  has  had 
it  printed  in  circulars  for  distribution,  as  an  adver- 
tisement among  the  sportsmen  of  the  Northwest. 
He  attends  the  Universalist  church,  and  in  poli- 
tics has  always  been  a  Republican.  None  of  the 
family,  however,  have  had  political  aspirations. 


He  was  married  Februarj'  6,  1876,  to  Miss 
Mary  Wolff,  the  daughter  of  Mr.  P.  A.  Wolff,  of 
Maquoketa,  Iowa,  a  prominent  Democratic  politi- 
cian. He  has  been  unusually  happy  in  his 
domestic  life,  and  is  the  happy  father  of  three 
beautiful  children,  viz.:   Edith,  Ruth  and  Carl. 

Mr.  Truax  is  a  man  of  much  ingenuity,  having 
invented  many  valuable  improvements  in  surgical 
instruments.  He  has  delivered  addresses  before 
the  National  Association  of  Railway  Surgeons  at 
Kansas  City,  Missouri,  and  at  Buffalo,  New  York, 
and  also  before  the  Mississippi  Valley  Medical 
Society,  at  St.  Louis,  on  amputations  from  the 
standpoint  of  a  surgical  instrument  maker,  and 
kindred  topics. 

His  career  has  been  eminently  successful,  and 
he  has  the  proud  satisfaction  of  knowing  that  it 
is  attributable  to  his  own  energy,  industry,  per- 
severance and  honorable  dealing.  He  is  the 
architect  and  builder  of  his  own  fortune.  Com- 
mencing in  business  for  himself  in  a  small  way, 
he  has  grown  with  it,  and  been  from  the  start 
the  inspiring,  directing  and  controlling  spirit  at 
the  helm.  While  he  cannot  be  said  to  be  exactly 
a  self-made  man,  since  his  father  is  an  educated 
physician,  chemist  and  pharmacist,  and  the  son 
had  the  advantage  of  parental  tuition,  yet  he 
owes  what  he  is  to  himself  essentially,  and  is  an 
example  of  manly  independence  and  self-reliance. 

Notwithstanding  his  success,  while  yet  young, 
he  has  none  of  the  pretense  of  a  vain  man  and 
none  of  the  hesitancy  of  a  weak  one,  but  moves 
about  his  business  with  the  fullest  consciousness 
of  his  ability  to  manage  and  conduct  it  in  detail. 


FRANK   CATLIN   GREENE,  M.D. 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


THE  subject  of  our  sketch  was  born  at  Mans- 
field, Ohio,  in  the  year  1857.  He  is  de- 
scended from  Britons,  who  immigrated  to  this 
country  a  century  ago,  and  settled  in  New  Bed- 
ford, Massachusetts.  Dr.  Greene's  father,  Mr.  H. 
N.  Greene,  removed  to  Mansfield,  Ohio,  where  he 
was  for  several  years  engaged  in  the  jewelry  busi- 
ness. In  I S70  he  removed  to  Philadelphia,  where 
better  facilities  for  business  were  offered,  and  was 
here  engaged   in  banking  until    1883,  when  he  re- 


tired from  business  and  traveled  for  several  years 
until  he  located  in  Chicago*  in  1886.  Mr.  Greene 
was  a  prominent  man  in  Mansfield,  especially  in 
religious  circles.  He  was  of  the  Episcopalian  per- 
suasion, and  was  an  earnest  and  zealous  worker 
in  the  cause,  holding  high  official  positions  in  the 
church  ;  he  was  also  deeply  interested  in  Sunday- 
school  work,  being  at  one  time  superintendent  of 
a  school  in  Philadelphia. 

Mrs.    Emma   (Catlin)   Greene,  mother  of    Dr. 


26o 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Greene,  comes  of  very  sturdy  and  rugged  stock, 
tracing  her  ancestry  to  the  early  settlers  of  New 
York  city.  Mrs.  Greene  was  a  very  literary 
woman,  spending  much  time  in  study  and  re- 
search, but  was  withal  a  model  housewife  and 
very  much  devoted  to  husband  and  children. 

Dr.  Greene  has  one  brother — David  Russell 
Greene — a  resident  of  Chicago,  and  a  member  of 
the  Chicago  Stock  Exchange.  He  has  also  one 
sister — Marie  Pauline  Greene  —  a  brilliant  and 
charming  young  society  lady.  She  is  quite  young, 
having  made  her  debut  only  last  season.  Miss 
Greene  has  strong  literary  tastes,  is  an  art  con- 
noisseur and  a  devotee  of  Delsarte,  the  study  of 
his  "  poetry  of  motion"  contributing  in  no  small 
degree  to  her  graceful  and  charming  manner. 
She  formerly  studied  under  Boucicault  and  De- 
Mille. 

Dr.  Greene  acquired  his  early  education  in  the 
public  schools  of  Mansfield,  and  later  took  a  three 
years'  course  in  Peddie  Institute,  Hightstown, 
New  Jersey,  finishing  in  1877,  and,  having  to  some 
degree  pursued  the  study  of  medicine  previously, 
he  then  entered  the  Jefferson  Medical  College, 
from  which  he  graduated  in  1880  with  high 
honors,  and  received  the  degree  of  M.  D.  at  the 
age  of  twenty-one.  For  eighteen  months  there- 
after he  prosecuted  his  studies  and  practiced  in 
the  Charity  Hospital,  New  YorkCity.  Not  being 
satisfied  with  his  store  of  medical  information, 
and  desiring  further  study,  he  crossed  the  Atlantic 
and  matriculated  in  Heidelberg  University,  re- 
maining three  years,  at  the  end  of  which  time, 
1884,  he  received  a  certificate  from  that  institution. 
Upoo  returning  to  the  United  States  he  located 
in  Chicago,  intending  to  practice  medicine  for 
which  he  was  so  well  prepared  ;  but  this  life  was 
not  to  his  taste,  and,  in  1886,  he  entered  the  firm 


of  Charles  Truax  and  Company,  physicians'  sup- 
plies, with  which  firm  he  is  still  connected,  the 
firm  name  being  changed  in  1891  to  Charles 
Truax,  Greene  and  Company.  This  house  is  the 
largest  of  its  kind  in  the  world,  and  ships  goods 
to  all  parts  of  America  and  Europe,  handling 
specialties  which  can  be  obtained  nowhere  else 
on  the  globe. 

Dr.  Greene  has  traveled  quite  extensively  both 
in  Europe  and  the  Orient,  as  well  as  in  his  own 
country.  He  spent  four  years  in  Europe,  the 
greater  part  of  the  time,  however,  being  consumed 
in  study  and  research.  He  has  always  had  a 
fondness  for  athletic  sports  of  all  kinds,  his  rugged 
constitution  and  fine  physique  bearing  testimony 
to  the  beneficial  results  of  such  exercise.  He  is 
especially  fond  of  hunting  and  yachting,  at  which 
sports  he  spends  much  of  his  leisure  time. 

Religiously,  Dr.  Greene  has  always  coincided 
in  his  father's  views,  adhering  to  the  Episcopalian 
church.  In  politics,  following  in  the  footsteps  of 
his  worthy  oarent,  he  casts  his  ballot  for  the  Re- 
publican party.  Dr.  Greene  holds  membership  in 
many  of  the  leading  aristocratic  clubs,  such  as  the 
University  Club,  Sunset  Club  and  Twentieth 
Century  Club.  In  1882  he  was  made  a  Mason  in 
Continental   Lodge,  No.  297,  in  New  York  City. 

Dr.  Greene  is  one  of  the  few  examples  we  have 
of  professional  men  who  have  made  successful 
business  men.  He  is  a  typical,  ambitious,  pro- 
gressive, enterprising  young  Chicagoan  of  which 
our  city  is  so  justly  proud.  He  has  been  emi- 
nently successful  in  his  business  career,  and  his 
prospects  from  a  financial  standpoint  are  excep- 
tionally bright.  Dr.  Greene  is  quite  a  society 
leader,  being  of  a  genial  disposition,  generous  im- 
pulses, hospitable  and  very  popular  among  those 
with  whom  he  is  best  known. 


MALCOLM    MCNEIL, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 

MALCOLM   McNEIL  is  prominent   among  mother,  whose  maiden  name  was  Jane  Crichton, 

the  self-made  men   of   Chicago.     He  was  was    a   shrewd    business  woman,   and,   foreseeing 

born    on    September  12,    1832,  in    Ardrie,   Scot-  better  prospects  in  America  for  her  children,  Mal- 

land,  where  his  father,  Daniel  McNeil,  had  been  colm  and  John,  and  their  sister,  Anna,  she  caused 

engaged  in  business  as  a  merchant  and  operator  the  business  in    Scotland  to  be  wound  up,  and  in 

of    coal    mines    located    in    that    vicinity.     His  1848  the  family  embarked  for  the  United  States. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


261 


After  an  ocean  voyage  of  six  weeks,  and  a  ten 
days  journey  west  from  New  York,  they  reached 
their  destination,  the  village  of  Dundee,  in  Illinois. 
Our  subject  spent  his  early  manhood  in  assist- 
ing his  parents  on  the  farm,  near  Dundee.  He 
managed  this,  his  first  enterprise,  with  care  and 
skill,  and  thus  early  in  life  displayed  the  ability 
for  conducting  business  affairs  that  has  since 
made  him  conspicuous  among  Chicago's  successful 
merchants. 

Tiring  of  the  monotony  and  routine  of  farm 
life,  and  desiring  a  broader  field  for  the  employ- 
ment of  his  abilities,  he  in  1858  turned  his  atten- 
tion to  mercantile  pursuits.  He  first  opened  a 
grocery  store  at  Elgin,  111.,  but  later  enlarged  his 
business  and  became  a  dealer  in  general  merchan- 
dise, dealing  in  everj-thing  usually  handled  by  a 
merchant  in  a  small  town,  such  as  groceries,  hard- 
ware, dry  goods,  clothing,  boots  and  shoes,  hats 
and  caps,  and  millinery  goods. 

Good  judgment  and  careful  attention  to  busi- 
ness, which  have  been  characteristic  of  him 
throughout  his  career,  made  his  business  in  Elgin 
a  wonderful  success,  so  that  he  controlled  the 
largest  trade  in  that  city. 

In  1871,  the  destruction  of  Chicago  by  fire 
drew  the  attention  of  the  mercantile  world  to  the 
advantages  of  that  city  as  the  future  great  dis- 
tributing center  of  the  United  States.  Among 
those  who  with  foresight  and  grit  determined  to 
cast  their  future  with  this  great  undeveloped  mar- 
ket, was  Malcolm  McNeil.  He  pictured  to  him- 
self the  advantages  to  be  found  there,  and  dis- 
posed of  his  business  interests  at  Elgin,  but  still 
retained  possession  of  his  two  farms,  which  he 
still  holds,  deeming  them  good  financial  invest- 
ments. 

In  the  year  1872,  he  organized  the  wholesale 
grocery  house  of  McNeil  &  Higgins,  composed  of 
Malcolm  McNeil,  J.  McNeil  and  Charles  Higgins, 
which  for  twenty  years  has  continued  upon  its 
prosperous  course.  During  all  this  time,  Malcolm 
McNeil,  with  a  steady  hand,  hopeful  heart  and 
clear  brain,  has  directed  its  affairs,  and  been  its 
controlling  spirit  through  all  the  financial  troubles 
that  have  swept  over  our  country,  until  now, 
when  it  has  reached  its  present  mammoth  propor- 
tions, he  can  look  over  his  business  career  of 
nearly  a  quarter  of  a  century,  and  feel  the  satis- 
faction of  knowing  that   his  record  is  above  re- 


proach. Naturally,  this  firm  entering  a  field 
where  houses  with  an  already  established  reputa- 
tion virtually  controlled  the  business  tributary  to 
Chicago,  found  no  little  difficulty  in  obtaining  a 
foothold.  Mr.  McNeil  was  always  ready  to  adapt 
himself  to  circumstances,  and  at  the  outset  of  his 
career  as  a  Chicago  jobber,  personally  carried  a 
line  of  samples,  and  solicited  trade  among  the 
merchants  of  Illinois,  and  can  tell  the  trials  of  a 
traveling  man  representing  an  unknown  house. 

At  the  present  time  (1892),  the  McNeil  and 
Higgins  Company  (an  incorporated  institution 
since  18S8),  with  a  paid-up  capital  of  $500,000,  is 
as  widely  and  favorably  known  as  any  wholesale 
grocery  house  in  the  West,  and  its  army  of  travel- 
ing salesmen,  more  than  fifty  in  number,  dispose 
of  a  great  bulk  of  goods  in  a  territory  reaching 
over  the  entire  West  and  Northwest.  The  house 
has  always  appreciated  faithful  ser\'ice,  and,  upon 
its  incorporation  under  the  laws  of  the  State,  re- 
warded four  deserving  young  men  by  presenting 
them  with  fifty  thousand  dollars'  worth  of  stock 
therein.  Since  its  incorporation  our  subject  has 
been  the  presiding  officer  of  the  company. 

To  a  nature  as  active  and  ambitious  as  Mr. 
McNeil's,  the  advantages  of  ■  investments  in  re- 
sponsible financial  institutions  became  apparent. 
He  is  a  large  stockholder  and  a  director  in  the 
Chemical  Trust  and  Savings  Bank,  whose  direc- 
tors, appreciating  his  ability  as  a  financier,  and 
knowing  that  he  held  the  esteem  and  confidence 
of  the  community,  elected  him  president  of  that 
institution,  an  office  which  he  filled  until  the 
stress  of  his  other  business  affairs  compelled  him, 
much  to  his  regret,  to  decline  a  re-election.  He 
was  one  of  the  organizers  of  the  Columbia  Nation- 
al Bank,  and  became  one  of  its  directors  upon  its 
organization.  Mr.  McNeil  has  been  twice  mar- 
ried. First,  in  1859,  to  Miss  Catherine  Dempster, 
who  was  the  first  white  child  born  in  Dundee, 
Illinois.  She  was  a  daughther  of  A.  R.  Dempster, 
Esq.,  and  a  niece  of  William  Dempster,  well  known 
as  a  musical  composer,  being  the  author  of  "  The 
May  Queen,"  "  Irish  Emigrant's  Lament,''  and 
more  than  fifty  other  compositions.  Mrs.  Mc- 
Neil inherited  musical  tastes,  and  was  in  all  re- 
spects a  true  helpmate.  She  died  after  eleven 
years  of  happy  married  life,  her  only  child,  named 
Daniel,  dying  at  the  age  of  four  years. 

In  1870,  Mr.  McNeil  was  married  to  Miss  Orel 


262 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AND  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Martin,  daughter  of  Charles  Martin,  of  Wayne, 
Illinois.  Of  seven  children  who  have  been  born 
to  them,  six  are  now  living,  viz:  Nora,  Ella,  Gor- 
don, Marvin,  Charles  and  Jeanie.  Mr.  McNeil  is 
a  member  of  the  Baptist  denomination,  and  a 
zealous  worker  in  the  cause  of  religion,  ever  ready 
both  with  purse  and  heart  to  assist  any  enter- 
prise tending  to  better  his  fellow  men. 

Mrs.  McNeil,  who  is  in  entire  sympathy  with 
her  husband  in  all  his  worthy  deeds,  is  an  active 
worker  in  the  church,  and  a  leader  in  benevolent 


enterprises.  She  is  charitably  disposed,  and  com- 
bines all  of  those  graces  that  are  commendable 
in  a  happy  wife  and  mother,  and  is  loved  by  all 
that  know  her. 

In  politics  Mr.  McNeil  has  always  been  a  strong 
Republican,  but  at  present  belongs  to  that  great 
body  of  business  men  who  are  known  as  Tariff 
Reform  Republicans.  Mr.  McNeil's  life  has  been 
a  success,  and  amply  illustrates  what  may  be  ac- 
complished by  one  who  has  ambition,  foresight 
and  grit,  combined  with  an  honest  purpose. 


JOHN    H.   S.   QUICK, 


CHICAGO,  ILL. 


THE  subject  of  this  sketch  is  a  well  known  and 
justly  eminent  member  of  the  Chicago  bar. 
He  is  not  one  of  the  many  who  have  risen  from 
obscurity  into  the  blaze  of  ephemeral  prosperity, 
but  he  has  risen  to  a  high  position  as  a  lawyer 
and  a  citizen  by  a  gradual  and  constant  advance, 
every  succcessive  step  having  been  wisely  and 
happily  chosen  ;  a  career  no  less  honorable  to 
himself  than  useful-toothers. 

Mr.  Quick  is  a  native  of  New  Jersey,  and  was 
born  on  13th  day  of  January,  1837.  His  father 
was  John  S.  Quick,  formerly  an  enterprising  and 
prosperous  merchant  of  New  York  City,  and  his 
mother  was  Mary  («<V  Roberts),  a  lady  of  many 
womanly  virtues. 

Mr.  Quick  received  the  rudiments  of  his  educa- 
tion in  the  grammar  school  of  Columbia  College, 
New  York,  and  later  attended  the  Episcopal 
Academy  at  Cheshire,  Conn.  He  entered  Trinity 
College,  Hartford,  Conn.,  and  there  pursued  his 
higher  studies  in  literature  and  the  languages, 
graduating  with  honor  in  the  class  of  1858,  and  is 
the  president  of  the  alumni  association  of  that 
college. 

Full  of  a  desire  for  learning,  and  the  highest 
branches  of  culture  and  education,  he  went  to 
Europe  and  attended  lectures  at  the  university  in 
Leipsic,  Germany,  an  institution  of  world-wide 
renown.  Returning  to  New  York,  he  read  law 
with  the  firm  of  Messrs  Scudder  and  Carter,  com- 
posed of  Henry  J.  Scudder  and  James  C.  Carter. 
He  finished  his  course  in  jurisprudence  and  was 
admitted  to  the  bar  in  New  York  City  in  1862. 


He  practiced  law  there  with  success  for  some 
time  and  then  removed  to  Chicago,  where  he 
practiced  alone  until  1871,  when  he  entered  into 
partnership  with  Mr.  George  Herbert,  an  able  and 
well-known  lawyer.  These  gentlemen  collected  a 
magnificent  law  library,  but  this,  together  with  the 
well-chosen  and  extensive  private  library  of  Mr. 
Quick,  was  consumed  in  the  great  fire  of  1871. 
This  partnership  continued  doing  a  very  large  and 
lucrative  general  law  business  until  1876,  when 
Mr.  John  S.  Miller  was  admitted,  the  firm  name 
becoming  Herbert,  Quick  and  Miller,  and  so  con- 
tinuing until  the  demise  of  Mr.  Herbert.  The 
firm  continued  under  the  title  of  Quick  and  Mil- 
ler until  within  a  few  years;  since  then  Mr.  Quick 
has  practiced  by  himself.  He  is  a  well  and  wide- 
ly read  lawyer,  who  is  patient  in  research  of  au- 
thorities, possessed  of  an  analytical  mind  and 
sound  reasoning,  logical  in  discourse,  and  with  a 
profound  knowledge  of  the  details  and  intricacies 
of  his  profession. 

In  the  Chicago  Lazv  Times  of  July,  188S,  Judge 
C.  V.  Waite  writes  of  him  as  follows : 

"  Though  Mr.  Quick  has  always  avoided  an  ac- 
tive participation  in  public  affairs,  yet  without  soli- 
citation on  his  part  he  has  been  much  talked  of  in 
his  own  party  as  an  eligible  candidate  for  Con- 
gress, owing  to  his  high  standing  in  his  profession 
as  a  lawyer  of  commanding  ability,  as  a  prominent 
member  of  the  Iroquois  Club  and  of  the  county 
Democracy,  as  one  of  the  pillars  in  Grace  Church, 
a  power  in  social  and  business  circles,  and  an  active 
and  enersjctic  man." 


^^^^^^yht/fc^:^^^^ 


BIOuRAPinCAL  DICTIOXAKY  A.\D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


265 


Mr.  Quick  has  passed  to  tlie  Knight  Templar's 
degree  in  Masonry,  and  is  a  much  respected  mem- 
ber of  that  august  organization,  and  is  a  Past  Emi- 
nent Commander  of  Montjoie  Commandery  of 
Chicago.  In  social  life  he  is  polished  and  refined, 
yet  plain  and  unostentatious  in  his  manner,  a  great 
favorite  with  the  members  of  the  bar,  and  indeed 
with  all  classes. 

His  great  erudition,  his  pure  professional  and 
social  ethics  and  his  conversational  powers  render 
him  a  welcome  and  interesting  guest  in  every  cir- 
cle. Mr.  Quick  has  a  fine  presence,  is  of  medium 
size  and  height,  with  high,  broad  forehead,  blue 
eyes,  and  a  lu.xuriant  growth  of  auburn  hair  tinged 
by  the  hand  of  time  with  silver.  He  was  married 
to  Miss  Henrietta  B.  Carter,  the  esteemed  and  ac- 
complished daughter  of  the  late  H.  Kendall  Car- 
ter, of  Hartford,  Conn.,  and  they  have  an  inter- 


esting   family,  consisting     of   one    daughter   and 
three  sons. 

As  before  stated,  the  fine  private  library  of  Mr. 
Quick  was  largely  destroyed  by  fire,  but  he  imme- 
diately set  to  work  gathering  together  a  new  one, 
and  to-day  there  are  probably  few  in  Chicago  who 
possess  such  an  extensive  and  varied  collection  of 
choice,  rare,  antique  and  modern  works  as  he. 
The  collection  is  the  work  of  years,  and  it  contains 
some  rare  books  of  immense  value,  and  Mr.  Quick 
is  naturally  proud  of  his  collection.  Being  also  a 
lo\er  of  art,  he  has  managed  to  secure  a  fine  col- 
lection of  beautiful  paintings  of  both  the  old  and 
modern  school,  which  adorn  his  home ;  and  it 
might  be  truly  stated  that  outside  of  his  profes- 
sional life,  it  is  in  the  quietude  of  his  home  and 
library  that  he  takes  the  keenest  delight  and  en- 
joyment. 


CORNELIUS    K.   G.   BILLINGS, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


THE  subject  of  this  sketch,  Cornelius  K.  G. 
Billings,  was  born  at  Saratoga  Springs,  N. 
Y.,  September  17,  1862,  the  son  of  Albert  M.  and 
Augusta  S.  (Farnsworth)  Billings.  His  parents 
were  both  natives  of  Vermont,  whence  they 
removed  to  New  York,  and  after  a  residence 
there  of  two  years,  in  1864  removed  to  Chicago. 
The  father  of  our  subject  was  president  of  the 
People's  Gas  Light  and  Coke  Company  prior  to 
1S87,  in  which  year  he  was  succeeded  in  that  office 
by  his  son,  our  subject.  Cornelius  received  his  early 
education  in  the  public  schools  of  Chicago,  and 
in  1873  entered  the  grammar  department  of 
Racine  College,  Racine,  Wis.  He  spent  the 
following  six  years  in  passing  through  the  various 
courses  of  study  in  that  institution,  and  was 
graduated  with  the  class  of  1879.  Returning  to 
Chicago,  he  entered  the  business  of  which  his 
father  was  president,  his  first  position  being  that 
of  errand  boy.  and  successively  passed  through 
the  various  stages  and  departments,  until,  upon 
the  retirement  of  his  father  from  the  office,  he 
was  elected  his  successor.  By  thus  commencing 
at  the  lowest  rung  of  the  ladder  and  working  up 
through  the  various  grades,  young  Billings  gained 
a  thoroughly  practical  and  intimate  knowledge  of 


all  the  details  of  this  great  corporation's  affairs,  a 
knowledge  that  must  prove  of  inestimable  value 
to  him  in  his  responsible  position.  And  it  may 
be  safely  asserted  that  his  knowledge  of  gas,  its 
properties  and  manufacture,  is  unsurpassed  by 
that  of  any  man  in  Chicago.  He  is  a  director  of 
the  Home  National  Bank,  and  also  the  Home 
Savings  Bank,  and  in  1889  was  one  of  the  West 
Chicago  park  commissioners.  He  is  also  a 
director  of  the  World's  Columbian  Exposition, 
having  been  elected  to  this  office  by  the  stock- 
holders at  their  meeting  in  April,  1890.  He  has 
been  a  trustee  of  the  Illinois  Club  five  years.  He 
is  a  member  of  the  Chicago,  the  Union  League, 
the  La  Salle,  the  Washington  Park  Driving  and 
of  numerous  other  prominent  clubs  of  Chicago. 
He  is  not  identified  with  any  church  organization, 
but  holds,  however.  Congregational  views  in 
matters  of  religious  belief. 

In  politics  he  is  a  staunch  Republican,  and 
takes  an  active  interest  in  political  affairs,  both 
local  and  State,  and  by  his  party  was  appointed 
West  Park  commissioner — already  referred  to. 
He  was  married  in  1885  to  Miss  Blanche  Mac- 
Leish,  daughter  of  Andrew  MacLeish,  of  Chicago, 
of   the   dry-goods   firm    of   Chas.  Gossage  &  Co. 


266 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


They  have  one  child,  a  daughter,  now  six  }-ears  withal    open-hearted    and     generous,    and     con- 

of  age.  tributes  liberally  to  all  worthy  objects.     He  is  a 

Mr.   Billings   is  a   man    of   medium  height,  of  thorough    business  man  and  has  great  capability 

robust  build  and  light  complexion,  and  generally  for  work,  and  as  President  of  the  People's  Gas- 

of  fine  appearance  and    pleasing  address.     He  is  light.   Heat    and    Coke    Company  is   well  known 

genial   and  sociable,   courteous  and  affable,  and  and  highly  respected. 


COL.  WILLIAM    HALE  THOMPSON, 


CHICAGO,  ILL. 


WILLIAM  HALE  THOMPSON  was  born 
in  Durham,  New  Hampshire,  May  9, 
1838.  Throughout  his  distinguished  career  he 
was  highly  successful  in  all  his  undertakings.  He 
was  a  patriotic  citizen,  a  brave  soldier,  a  wise 
legislator.  He  was  a  man  of  fine  intellect,  and  a 
gentleman  under  all  circumstances.  No  man  was 
more  respectful  to  others.  No  man  carried  him- 
self with  greater  decorum  or  dignity.  There  was 
a  charm  in  his  conversation  not  often  found.  He 
also  had  a  keen  sense  of  humor,  which  made  him 
an  entertaining  companion.  He  had  unspotted 
integrity,  and  honor  unimpeached.  His  bearing 
and  address  were  characterized  by  simplicity  and 
modesty.  Though  his  environments  from  his 
youth  were  all  that  could  have  been  desired, 
yet  he  was  a  born  leader,  and  would  have  suc- 
ceeded no  matter  what  his  condition  in  life  might 
have  been. 

His  ancestors  were  of  sturdy  New  England 
stock.  Hon.  Ebenzer  Thompson,  his  great- 
grandfather, was  one  of  the  most  distinguished 
men  of  his  day,  being  Counselor  of  the  State  of 
New  Hampshire  under  the  temporary  constitu- 
tion, and  again,  under  the  State  constitution, 
member  of  the  Committee  of  Safety,  and  for 
many  years  Judge  of  the  Court  of  Common  Pleas, 
and  Ju.stice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  Judicature. 
Captain  Ebenezer  Thompson,  grandson  of  Judge 
Ebenezer,  and  father  of  our  subject,  was  an 
extensive  vessel  owner,  and  widely  known  in  his 
day.  William's  early  education  was  received  at 
the  Merrimac  Institute,  Reed's  Ferry,  New 
Hampshire,  and  later  at  Phillip  Exeter  Academy. 
At  the  age  of  fourteen  years  he  was  called  upon 
to  mourn  the  death  of  his  parents ;  shortly  after- 
ward he  went  to  Portsmouth  to  reside  with  his 
uncle,  Capt.  Jacob  W.  Thompson,  his  guardian. 


His  aptitude  for  the  life  of  a  sailor  induced  him 
to  follow  the  sea,  and  in  1854  he  shipped  as  a 
common  sailor  (though  he  had  inherited  a  hand- 
some fortune).  He  was  soon  made  an  officer, 
and  discharged  his  duties  in  so  efficient  a  manner 
that  he  would  undoubtedly  have  shortly  been  in 
command  of  his  ship,  had  not  an  accident 
occurred  to  him  while  in  port  at  San  Francisco 
in  1856.  He  fell  into  the  hold  of  his  vessel, 
crushing  his  left  arm  to  such  a  degree  that  ampu- 
tation was  thought  necessary.  To  this  he  stren- 
uously objected,  preferring  death  to  the  loss  of  an 
arm.  His  arm  was  saved,  though  he  was  unable 
to  use  it  for  a  long  time,  and  was,  of  course, 
obliged  to  retire  from  the  service.  He  then 
entered  the  counting  house  of  Cummings  and 
Lee,  East  India  commission  merchants,  one  of 
the  largest  mercantile  houses  of  Boston,  Massa- 
chusetts, and  remained  there  until  the  opening  of 
the  late  civil  war.  During  this  time  he  showed 
an  inclination  for  military  affairs,  and  in  1857  he 
joined  the  famous  company  of  "  Boston  Tigers," 
at  that  time  under  command  of  Captain  Charles 
O.  Rogers,  and  had  for  associates  such  men  as 
Gen.  Thomas  Stevenson. 

At  the  opening  of  the  civil  war  he  was  offered 
the  choice  of  three  positions — that  of  quarter- 
master in  the  Regular  Army,  a  captaincy  in  the 
Ninth  Infantry,  or  paymaster  in  the  United  States 
Navy.  Acting  on  the  advice  of  Hon.  John  P. 
Hale,  at  that  time  chairman  of  the  United  States 
Naval  Committee,  he  accepted  the  appointment  in 
the  navy  August  21,  1861.  He  was  examined  by 
the  United  States  Naval  Board,  and,  out  of  thirty- 
six  appointments,  obtained  the  second  place. 
August  23,  he  received  his  commission  as  assist- 
ant paymaster  United  States  Navy,  with  the  rank 
of  lieutenant,  and  was  ordered,  October  2,  1861,  to 


"=^^^7^^^^ 


I 


niOGRAPHlCAL  DICTIONARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


269 


the  sloop  of  war  "  Mohican,"  belonging  to 
Admiral  Dupont's  squadron,  which  sailed 
from  New  York  October  20,  1861,  and  which 
took  part  in  the  battle  of  Port  Royal,  Smith 
Carolina,  November  7,  1861,  in  the  capture 
of  F"ernandina,  Florida,  and  the  taking  of 
other  seaports  on  the  South  Atlantic  coast;  also 
in  many  engagements  at  Fort  Sumter.  July 
22,  1862,  he  was  promoted  to  the  office  of  pay- 
master, with  the  rank  of  lieutenant  commander, 
with  orders  to  report  to  Admiral  David  G.  Far- 
ragut  for  duty  on  board  the  United  States 
frigate  "  Susquehanna,"  the  flagship  of  the  West- 
ern Division,  commanded  by  Commodore  Hitch- 
cock. He  remained  in  his  squadron  till  May, 
1863,  participating  in  all  of  Admiral  Farragut's 
naval  engagements  during  that  period.  Many  of 
the  vessels  were  separated  months  at  a  time,  and 
were  occasionally  at  least  a  hundred  miles  apart. 
Parenthetically,  we  may  state  his  returns  to  the 
United  States  Treasury  Department  show  that 
his  responsibilities  were  greater  than  those  of  any 
other  disbursing  officer  in  the  United  States  Navy. 
His  accounts  were  settled  so  entirely  to  the  .satis- 
faction of  the  United  States  Treasurer  that  he 
r«ceived  the  following  letter  : 

Treasi'rv  Department, 
Fourth  Auditor's  Office,  March  29, 1867. 
VVm.  H.  Tho.mpson, 

Latf  Paymaster  United  States  Navy. 
Sir:  I  take  pleasure  in  testifying  to  the  general  correct- 
ness and  fidelity  with  which  you  have  kept  and  rendered 
your  account  as  late  paymaster  in  the  United  States  Navy. 
Your  last  account,  which  is  now  being  closed  up  in  this 
office,  is  one  of  the  most  voluminous  which  has  been  settled 
here,  having  under  your  charge  the  vessels  comprising  the 
fleet  of  the  Lower  Potomac  and  James  River,  and  numbering 
in  all  some  forty-six,  and  considering  the  amount  of  work 
devolved  upon  you,  and  the  difficulties  under  which  it  was 
performed,  by  the  separation  of  the  vessels,  often  by  long 
distances  from  each  other,  it  is  but  just  to  say  that  the  result 
of  the  settlement  shows  that  you  exercised  more  than 
ordinary  vigilance  in  the  line  of  your  duty,  and  without 
which  many  serious  errors  and  mistakes  must  have  occurred. 
Your  obedient  serN-ant, 

S.  J.  W.  Tabor,  /luditor. 

March  10,  1866,  Col.  Thompson  was  appointed 
naval  storekeeper  at  St.  Paul  dc  Loanda,  on  the 
coast  of  Africa,  where  our  government  vessels  get 
supplies.  Family  influence,  however,  was  brought 
to  bear,  as  he  had  lately  been  inarried  to  Miss 
Mcdora  Gale,  daughter  of  Stephen  F.  Gale,  one 
of  the  earliest  and    most    prominent   citizens  of 


Chicago,  and  he  was  induced  to  resign  this  office 
March  30  following. 

Col.  Thompson  settled  in  Chicago  in  April, 
1868,  and  engaged  in  real  estate  business.  He 
purchased  several  large  tracts  of  land  and  erected 
a  number  of  fine  buildings,  among  others  the 
Thompson  Block,  on  West  Madison  street,  with  a 
frontage  of  two  hundred  and  fifty-two  feet;  this, 
by  the  way,  was  the  best  building  left  standing  in 
Chicago  after  the  great  fire.  Young  as  he  was, 
his  keen  foresight  enabled  him  at  this  time  to  see 
the  immense  possibilities  that  awaited  the  city  of 
Chicago,  and  accordingly  he  invested  largely  in 
real  estate  in  various  parts  of  the  city.  The  won- 
derful increase  in  values  has  since  proven  the 
soundness  of  his  judgment. 

Col.  Thompson  was  twice  chosen  by  the 
Republican  party  to  represent  his  district  in  the 
Illinois  Legislature,  serving  in  the  thirtieth  and 
thirty-first  general  assemblies.  He  received  the 
handsome  plurality  of  sixty-two  hundred  and 
fifty-one  votes.  His  record  in  the  Legislature 
was  one  of  the  most  distinguished  in  its  history. 
His  rare  knowledge  of  parliamentary  rules  and 
his  abilities  as  an  orator  made  him  the  leader  on 
the  floor.  Like  his  grandfather,  Col.  Thomp- 
son, of  Portsmouth.  New  Hampshire,  whom  he 
resembled  so  strongly  in  character,  when  he 
spoke  to  an  audience  his  whole  mind  and  body 
were  concentrated  on  the  subject,  while  his 
earnestness  and  eloquence  never  failed  to  carry 
weight  and  conviction  to  his  hearers.  He  pro- 
cured the  passage  of  some  of  the  most  important 
bills  in  the  history  of  the  State,  among  others 
the  Back-tax  bill,  which  enabled  the  city  of  Chi- 
cago to  secure  three  million  dollars  of  back  taxes 
from  delinquents.  He  was  also  deeply  interested 
in  the  famous  bill  for  the  prevention  of  cruelty 
to  animals,  the  first  bill  of  the  kind  introduced 
in  the  Legislature.  The  difficulties  encountered 
by  Col.  Thompson  in  the  passage  of  this  bill, 
and  the  manner  in  which  he  overcame  them,  are 
interesting  and  worthy  of  record.  A  few  da\'s 
prior  to  adjournment  he  arose  and  addressed  the 
speaker,  who  refused  to  recognize  him,  on  the 
ground  that  there  were  other  bills  before  the 
house  of  greater  importance.  When  the  last  day 
arrived  he  again  addressed  the  speaker,  but  met 
with  the  same  objection  as  on  the  previous 
occasion.      He    was,    however,    not    to    be    again 


270 


BIOGRAFHICAL  DICTIONARY  A.\D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


thwarted ;  launching  forth   with   all  his   vigor  of 
manhood,    he    proceeded    in   language    eminently 
befitting  the  occasion.     Other  members  who  were 
anxious  to   speak    on   bills    of  their  own,  began 
throwing  books,  etc.,  but  the  Colonel,  undaunted, 
kept  on.     The  just  cause  he  represented,  together 
with    his    dignity    and    eloquent    language,    soon 
commanded  the  attention  of  the  house,  and  he 
succeeded    in    securing   the    passage  of   the    bill. 
Perhaps  no  bill  was  ever   passed   in  the  Illinois 
Legislature   that   attracted  wider  attention    than 
the  Military  bill.     His  celebrated  speech  on  this 
bill   was   a   piece    of   splendid    composition   and 
magnificently   delivered.     The   advocates  of  the 
military  code  crowded  about  him  listening  with 
the  closest  attention,  and  frequently  interrupted 
his    remarks    with     applause.      Col.     Thompson 
leading  the  fight  for  the  bill,   spoke  of  the  tend- 
ency of  the  people  in  time  of  peace  to  drop  all 
military  organization,  while  he  maintained  that  it 
was  the  militia  of  the  large  cities  that  saved  the 
capital    and    nation.     The    bill    resulted    in    the 
establishment  of  the  Illinois   National    Guard,  a 
body  who  did  so  much  in   1877  to  quell  the  riots 
which    threatened    the   destruction    of    Chicago. 
While   in    the  house.  Col.  Thompson  served   as 
chairman   of  Committee   on  State  and  Municipal 
Indebtedness,  and    was   a    member  of   the  Com- 
mittee on  Railroads  and   Revenue.     He  was  also 
a  prominent   candidate   for  the  speakership,  and 
received    a    handsome   compHmentary   vote.     He 
would  have  been  elected  to  this  ofifice  had  it  not 
been  that  Cook  county  had  the  presiding  officer 
in    the    Senate.     As   an    orator,    he    undoubtedly 
stood  first  in  the  House  of  Representatives.     Sep- 
tember   30,    1879,    ^^''^s    held    at    St.    Louis     the 
National    Military    Convention    of    the    United 
States,  composed  of  delegates  from  all  the  States, 
for  the  purpose  of  seeing  if  the  Federal  Govern- 
ment could  not  be  induced  to  make  an  appropria- 
tion of  three  million  dollars   toward  establishing 
a  national  militia.      It  was  an  adjourned  session 
of  a  meeting  held  at  New  York  the  year  before. 
In    the    course    of    proceedings     the   militia   of 
Illinois     called    upon    Col.    Thompson,    of    the 
Si.xth  Illinois  National  Guard,  to  respond.       One 
of  the  ex-rebel  brigadiers  was  bitter  in  his  denun- 
ciation   of    Northern    soldiers,    and    in    that    vast 
throng  there   was   but    one    man   who    had   the 
courage    to  stand    up    for    the    Northern    soldier. 


That  man  was  Colonel  Thompson.  In  spite  of 
hisses  and  yelling  from  the  opposite  side,  he  con- 
tinued to  speak  in  bold  and  patriotic  language, 
and  came  out  triumphant  and  victorious,  to  the 
intense  satisfaction  of  his  Northern  friends.  If 
there  ever  had  been  any  doubt  as  to  his  ability  as 
a  speaker  and  a  brave  citizen,  it  was  now  forever 
dispelled. 

In  1 87 1  Col.  Thompson  seconded  the  nomina- 
tion of  Gen.  John  A.  Logan  for  the  United 
States  Senate.  July  2,  1874,  Gov.  Cullom,  in 
recognition  of  his  services  for  the  militia,  ap- 
pointed him  one  of  his  aides-de-camp,  with  the 
rank  of  colonel.  May  10,  1879,  he  was  chosen 
lieutenant  colonel  of  the  Sixth  Battalion  of  the 
Illinois  National  Guard.  He  spent  much  time, 
money  and  energy  in  trying  to  improve  his  com- 
mand, and  receiving  permission  from  the  Gov- 
ernor to  increase  the  battalion  to  a  regiment,  he 
was  elected  colonel  of  the  Sixth  April  i,  1881. 

On  the  consolidation  of  the  Second  and  Sixth 
regiments.  Col.  Thompson  was  re-elected  to  the 
command  of  the  new  Second  in  May,  18S2. 
In  consequence  of  the  pressure  of  private  busi- 
ness, he  resigned  this  office  May  24,  1884,  much 
to  the  regret  of  the  State  and  his  regiment.  In 
1887  Col.  Thompson  was  chosen  president  of  the 
West  Chicago  Protective  League,  formed  for  the 
purpose  of  opposing  elevated  railroads  in  Chi- 
cago. At  a  meeting  of  the  League  held  Novem- 
ber 22  of  the  same  year,  he  delivered  an  ex- 
haustive address  in  opposition  to  elevated  roads. 
He  opposed  the  elevated  roads'  taking  possession 
of  valuable  business  streets,  thereby  seriously 
damaging  all  surrounding  property,  which  he  was 
prepared  to  prove  after  having  carefully  investi- 
gated the  rapid-transit  systems  in  the  East.  The 
speech  was  magnificently  delivered  and  had  a 
great  effect. 

In  appearance  Col.  Thompson  was  tall,  of 
commanding  presence,  and  possessed  a  decidedly 
military  bearing,  and,  like  every  true  soldier,  he 
was  the  perfect  gentleman.  After  a  brief  illness 
from  pneumonia,  from  which  he  was  convales- 
cing, and  with  the  brightest  hopes  for  recovery,  he 
was  suddenly  stricken  with  heart  trouble.  All 
efforts  by  his  physicians  to  save  his  life  were 
unavailing.  His  death  occurred  in  Chicago 
Tuesday,  November  17,  1891,  at  his  residence, 
25  Delaware  place.     As  in  his  life,  so  in  his  death. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


271 


he  was  brave  and  fearless  to  the  last  ;  he  knew 
his  hour  had  come,  and  in  his  own  words,  "  he 
was  not  afraid  to  die."  The  news  of  his  death 
was  received  with  profound  sorrow  on  every 
hand.  After  a  short  service  at  the  family  resi- 
dence, the  funeral  was  held  at  Unity  Church, 
and  was  the  largest  which  has  taken  place  in 
Chicago  for  many  years.  Eloquent  eulogies  and 
tributes  to  his  character  were  delivered,  and  the 
ceremonies  throughout  were  most  impressive. 
The  active  pall-bearers  were  as  follows :  From 
the  Farragut  Naval  Association,  Commander 
J.  J.  Sullivan  and  Horace  L.  Wait;  from  U.  S. 
Grant  Post,  No.  28.  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic, 

Commander  Chas.  G.  Dibble  and R.  Watson  ; 

from  the  \'eteran  Union  League,  President  D. 
Harn,-  Hammer  and  D.  VV.  Clark ;  from  the 
Chicago  Union  Veteran  Club.  First  Vice-Presi- 
dent A.  J.  Minsch  and  Major  W.  A.  McCourtney; 
from  Hesperia  Lodge,  A.  F.  and  A.  ^L,  Daniel 
J.  Avery  and  Daniel  A.  Arnold  ;  from  St.  Bernard 
Commander}-.  Knights  Templar,  H.  G.  Purington 
and  Thomas  E.  Miller.  The  honorary  pall- 
bearers were  Ferd.  VV.  Peck,  H.  H.  Kohlsaat, 
Col.  Legrande,  W.  Perce,  George  A.  Seaverns, 
A.  O.  Slaughter,  Capt.  J.  R.  Richardson,  Walter 
L.  Peck  and  W.  F.  Meserve. 

Rev.  Dr.  Thomas  delivered  the  funeral  oration. 
It  was  a  notable  address,  and  paid  a  handsome 
tribute  to  the  memory  of  Col.  Thompson  as  a 
soldier,  a  statesman,  a  man  and  a  citizen.  His 
peroration  was  brief  and  beautiful.  The  bereft 
widow  and  family  received  words  of  condolence 
from  every  quarter,  and  the  following  were 
among  the  touching  and  tender  tributes  to  his 
memor>'  that  were  received  by  the  widow  : 

Farr.agut  Naval  Association, 
Chicago,  III..  November  19,  1891. 
At  a  regular  meeting  of  this  association  held  at  the  Union 
League  Club  on  November  19.  1891,  the  accompanying 
report  of  a  committee  appointed  to  prepare  a  tribute  of 
respect  to  the  mcmorj'  of  our  late  fellow  member,  William 
Hale  Thompson,  was  read  and  adopted. 

Wl.VFlELD  8.   Kaufman,  Secrttary. 

We  arc  again  called  upon  to  mourn  the  loss  of  one  of  our 
members  who  rendered  distinguished  and  efficient  service 
durmg  the  War  of  the  Rebellion,  who,  since  his  resignation 
from  the  navy  at  the  close  of  that  great  struggle,  has  shown 
his  devotion  to  the  State  as  the  organizer  and  commander  of 
the  Second  Regiment  of  Illinois  National  Guard,  and  at  a 
later  period  as  the  presiding  officer  of  the  Union  X'eteran 
Club  of  Chicago. 


William  Hale  Thompson  was  .1  native  of  the  State  of 
New  Hampshire,  and  descended  from  sturdy  New  England 
ancestry,  who  rendered  efficient  services  during  the  War  of 
the  Revolution.  His  aptitude  for  the  life  of  a  sailor  caused 
him  to  follow  the  sea  at  an  early  age.  At  the  outbreak  of  the 
War  of  the  Rebellion  he  received  a  commission  as  an  officer 
in  the  United  States  Navy;  he  served  in  the  West  Gulf 
Squadron  under  Admiral  F'arragut,  and  later  in  the  North 
Atlantic  Squadron.  He  was  distinguished  for  the  efficiency 
and  zeal  with  which  he  performed  all  his  official  duties,  and 
proved  himself  a  reliable  and  highly  trusted  officer.  At  the 
close  of  the  Rebellion  he  resigned  from  the  United  States 
Navy  and  made  his  home  in  Chicago,  where  his  zeal  for  the 
public  service  soon  made  him  the  colonel  of  the  Second 
Regiment  of  the  Illinois  National  Guard,  and  later  the  pre- 
siding officer  of  the  Union  Veteran  Club,  as  he  always  took  a 
most  active  interest  in  the  welfare  and  in  the  organization  of 
the  veterans  of  the  War  of  the  Rebellion. 

He  was  one  of  the  earliest  members  of  our  own  society, 
and  at  our  last  monthly  meeting  he  was  one  of  the  most 
animated  and  cheerful  of  the  happy  company  seated  around 
our  table,  and  recounted  the  incidents  and  reminiscences  of 
the  naval  service  during  the  war.  He  was  one  of  those  who 
fully  appreciated  the  important  character  of  the  services 
rendered  by  the  men  of  the  navy  during  our  fearful  struggle 
for  national  existence,  and  was  ever  ready  to  uphold  the 
honor  of  the  Union  Jack,  preserve  the  memories  of  those  who 
fell  while  fighting  for  the  flag  of  the  Union.  We  shall  long 
miss  the  merry  twinkle  of  his  bright  eyes,  and  the  hearty 
good  will  of  his  sturdy  salutations.  Let  us  hope  that  his 
spirit  has  found  welcome  companionship  in  the  realm  of  the 
departed  brave  ones  above. 

Resplz'id,  That  the  foregoing  report  be  approved  and  spread 
upon  the  records  and  that  copies  thereof  be  presented  to  the 
widow  and  family  of  our  departed  friend. 

Horatio  Loo.mis  Wait, 
WiNFiELD  S.  Kaufman. 

William  Hale  Thompson,  president  of  the  Chicago  Union 
\'eteran  Club,  died  at  his  residence  in  this  city  on  the  17th 
day  of  November  last.  For  the  first  time  in  our  history  a 
vacancy  in  the  honored  office  of  our  presidency  has,  by  the 
power  that  in  the  progress  of  time  will  call  us  all  hence,  been 
created.  The  chief  thus  fallen  was  an  old  and  honored  resi- 
dent of  this  city,  prominent  in  its  social,  its  business  and 
political  circles.  Genial  in  manner,  generous  in  nature, 
strong  in  his  personal  views,  frank  and  outspoken  in  their 
expression,  he  was  a  loyal  citizen  and  a  gallant  defender  of 
the  Union  when  its  existence  was  placed  in  peril  by  a  strug- 
gle devised  and  precipitated  by  human  slavery.  Sening  his 
country  bravely  on  the  tield  of  battle,  he  scn'cd  his  adopted 
State  in  Us  legislative  councils  with  conspicuous  ability. 
Largely  through  his  efforts  the  present  militia  laws  were 
enacted,  thus  establishing  a  system  and  providing  a  school 
through  and  in  which  the  fundamental  knowledge  of  military 
training  and  discipline  may  be  acquired,  to  meet  contin- 
gencies in  municipal,  state  and  national  affairs,  with  which 
the  arm  of  the  civil  law  has  at  times  been  powerless  to  cope. 
His  public  spirit  induced  him  to  take  upon  himself  in  its 
formative  periods  the  command  of  one  of  the  regiments  of 
infantry  thus  organized— a  task  requiring  the  exercise  of  skill, 
tact,  patience,  personal  influence,  and  personal    generosity 


272 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


and  self-sacrifice.  His  humanity  invoked  his  aid  in  the  pas- 
sage of  a  law  for  the  protection  of  domestic  animals,  a 
thoughtful  and  noble  service  for  the  eradication  of  a  conspic- 
uous and  inhuman  species  of  cruelty.  In  political  Ufe  he 
was  a  Stalwart  Republican.  He  manifested  an  intense  inter- 
est in  this  organization,  as  one  of  the  aids  to  the  success  of 
the  party  in  the  interest  and  for  the  success  of  which  he  has 
for  many  years  heroically  labored. 

His  merits  as  husband  and  father  rest  with  his  memory 
sacredly  in  the  keeping  of  the  hearts  of  his  household.  Of 
his  kindly  counsels  and  personal  aid,  his  vigorous  and  manly 
bearing  among  us,  his  comrades  and  fellow  citizens,  we  desire 
to  record  our  appreciation,  and  to  incorporate  into  the  min- 
utes of  our  organization  the  keen  grief  we  experience  at  his 
sudden  and  untimely  death. 

His  history  as  a  soldier  is  written  upon  and  will  be  pre- 
served in  the  records  of  his  countr>'.  His  example  as  a  citi- 
zen in  all  of  his  relations  of  life  will  be  preserved  through 
such  memorials  as  this  inscribed  upon  the  minutes  of  the 
various  societies  of  which  he  was  a  conspicuous  and  influen- 
tial member. 

Resolved,  That  the  foregoing  testimonial  to  the  memory  of 
our  deceased  president  be  entered  upon  our  minutes,  and 
that  a  copy  thereof,  properly  engraved  and  subscribed  by  the 
officers  of  this  club,  be  transmitted  to  the  family  of  the 
deceased.  J-  1^-  Ad.\ir, 

Chairman  of  Committee. 
J.  A.  McOrtnev, 
John  C. Barker. 

In  Memoriam. 

U.  S.  Grant  Post,  No.  28, 
Department  of  Illinois,  G.  A.  R. 
Tuesday  Evening,  December  22,  1891. 

At  a  regular  meeting  of  the  U.  S.  Grant  Post  the  follow- 
ing memorial  was  unanimously  adopted  by  a  rising  vote: 

As  the  years  roll  on  we  are  called  together  to  pay  our  last 
tribute  of  respect  to  our  comrade  of  the  war.  At  each  suc- 
ceeding roll-call  some  familiar  name  is  recorded  as  trans- 
ferred to  a  higher  command,  there  to  receive  the  commenda- 
tion of  the  Supreme  Commander  for  duties  here  well  per- 
formed and  faithful  adherence  to  the  right. 

In  the  death  of  William  Hale  Thompson  the  Grand  Army 
of  the  Republic  has  lost  an  earnest  adherent,  the  Department 
of  Illinois  a  faithful  worker,  and  U.  S.  Grant  Post  a  devoted, 
true-hearted  comrade,  who  was  prompted  by  the  noblest 
desires  for  the  good  of  the  order,  and  whose  hand  was  alwa>-s 
ready  to  do  what  his  heart  prompted— a  comrade  whose 
memorj-  will  ever  be  cherished  lovingly  by  his  co-laborers  in 
the  cause  of  freedom  and  good  government,  with  whom  it 
was  ever  his  pride  and  boast  to  be  ranked. 

Born  amid  the  rugged  hills  in  New  Hampshire,  he  breathed 
the  air  of  liberty  from  his  very  birth,  and  though  still  young 
when  traitors  raised  their  impious  hands  against  the  flag,  he 
offered  his  services  and  did  good  work  in  the  U.  S.  Navy, 
first  serving  in  the  West  Gulf  Squadron  under  the  command 
of  Admiral  Farragut,  from  which  he  was  transferred  to  the 
North  Atlantic  Squadron,  where  he  remained  until  the  close 
of  the  war,  rendering  most  efficient  service  in  defense  of  the 
flag.  At  the  close  of  the  war  he  resigned  his  commission  in 
the  navy,  as  his  temperament   required  duties  of  greater 


activity,  and  he  came  to  Chicago,  then  young,  and  soon  made 
his  energy  and  abilities  felt  in  moulding  the  future  of  the 
city.  His  love  of  military  life  and  discipline  was  such  that 
he  ere  long  was  chosen  as  the  colonel  of  the  Second  Regi- 
ment Illinois  National  Guard,  which  he  made  the  equal  ol 
the  best  and  gave  the  regiment  a  name  and  reputation 
surpassed  by  none. 

At  his  death  he  was  president  of  the  Chicago  Union  Vet- 
eran Club,  a  political  organization  of  veteran  soldiers  of  the 
war,  and  his  efficiency  was  manifest  in  the  good  work  of  that 
organization  in  the  cause  which  gave  it  birth.  He  was  one 
of  the  earliest  members  of  Post  28,  having  joined  its  ranks  on 
the  loth  of  Februarj-,  1876,  being  No.  42  on  the  roster,  and 
while  his  business  duties  were  such  as  prevented  him  from 
being  a  very  active  member,  he  was  ever  ready  with  hand 
and  purse  to  advance  the  interest  of  the  Post  and  of  the 
order.  To  him  who  worthily  wore  the  blue  and  carried  the 
badge  of  honor  worn  by  all  members  of  the  G.  A.  R.,  he  was 
a  friend,  and  never  turned  a  deaf  ear  to  their  needs  or  the 
widows  and  orphans  of  those  who  died  that  the  nation  might 
live. 

Ri-sohed,  That  this  memorial  be  spread  upon  the  records 
of  the  Post,  and  presented.suitably  engrossed,  to  his  bereaved 
family. 

Charles  A.  Dibble,  Gilbert  B.  Tucker, 

Commander.  A.  P.  Connolly, 

E.  J.  Burkett,  Chas.  E.  Sinclair, 

Adjutant.  Committee. 

Headquarters  Veteran  Union  League, 
204  Dearborn  Street, 

Chicago,  November  17,  1891, 
Whereas,  The  Supreme  Commander  in  his  wise  dispen- 
sation   of    providence    has    summoned    our    comrade.  Col. 
William  Hale  Thompson,  to  meet  the  Grand  Army  above ; 
therefore, 

Resolved,  That  in  the  death  of  our  comrade  we  feel  that 
we  have  lost  a  good  citizen,  a  kind  and  generous  friend,  and 
a  brave  soldier. 

Resolved,  That  the  sympath)-  of  the  comrades  of  the  Vet- 
eran Union  League  be  extended  to  the  family  of  our  deceased 
associate  in  the  hour  of  deep  bereavement  and  affliction. 

Resolved,  That  the  members  of  the  \'eteran  Union  League 
attend  the  funeral  of  Col.  Thompson  in  a  body,  and  that  a 
copy  of  these  resolutions  be  sent  to  the  family  of  the  de- 
ceased, and  also  be  spread  upon  the  records  of  this  League. 
D,  Harry  Hammer,  Piesideni. 

From  the  Real  Estate  Board  came  the  follow- 
ing tribute : 

In  Memoriam. 
william  hale  thompson. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  Chicago  Real  Estate  Board  held 
Thursday,  November  19,  1891,  the  following  resolutions 
were  unanimously  adopted  : 

Resolved,  That  in  the  death  of  Col.  William  Hale 
Thompson  the  Real  Estate  Board  recognizes  the  loss  of  a 
valuable  member  and  a  most  estimable  fellow  citizen.  While 
not  fully  identified  with  us  in  the  active  prosecution  of  busi- 
ness, he  showed  his  appreciation  of  the  necessity  and  value  of 
our  organization  by  becoming  one  of  its  earliest  members.  As 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARV  A.\D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


273 


an  ardent  believer  in  the  great  future  of  Chicago,  as  a 
patriotic  and  public-spirited  citizen,  as  a  conser>-ative  and 
wise  legislator,  and  as  one  from  the  rapidly-thinning  ranks  of 
those  who  served  the  nation  in  its  hour  of  greatest  need,  we 
most  heartily  mourn  his  loss  and  most  earnestly  sympathize 
with  his  family  and  friends. 

JosiAH  L.  LoMH.A.Rr),  Pns..        WiLLis  G.  Jackson, 
Robert  P.  Walker,  &r'y,        W.m.  D.  Kerfoot. 

In  Masonry  Col.  Thompson  was  deservedly 
popular.  He  was  a  member  of  Hesperia  Lodge, 
No.  411,  A.  F.  and  A.  M.;  York  Chapter,  No.  141, 
R.  A.  M.  and  St.  Bernard  Commandery,  No.  35, 
Knights  Templar,  Chicago. 

In  fact,  in  every  position  to  which  he  was  called 
he  was  successful  in  the  highest  sense.  As  a  busi- 
ness man,  upright,  reliable  and  honorable ;  as  a 
public  official,  attentive  and  obliging  in  the  dis- 
charge of  his  duties.  With  those  finer  traits  of 
character  which  combine  to  form  what  we  term 
friendship,  which  endear  and  attach  man  to  man  in 


bonds  which  nothing  but  the  stain  of  dishonor  can 
sever,  which  triumph  over  disaster  and  misfortune, 
and  shine  brightest  in  the  hours  of  adversity — with 
these  qualities  he  was  royally  endowed.  He  was 
ever  ready  to  promote  the  best  interest  of 
humanity.  Though  he  was  a  man  of  strong 
determination  and  great  force  of  character,  yet 
he  possessed  one  of  the  most  sympathetic  and 
tenderest  of  natures.  At  no  time  was  he  happier 
than  when  in  the  midst  of  his  family.  His  dis- 
position was  at  all  limes  sincere  and  affectionate. 
He  was  very  charitably  disposed,  and  believed  in 
supplying  the  wants  of  the  individual  actually  in 
need.  For  those  who  applied  to  him  for  work, 
if  he  had  no  place  himself,  he  would  invariably 
find  positions;  nor  would  he  stop  at  merely 
promising,  but  he  would  personally  see  that  they 
were  provided  for,  and  as  such  he  was  a  philan- 
thropist in  the  best  and  truest  sense  of  the  word. 


WILLIAiM    J.   CHALMERS, 


CHICAGO.    ILL. 


THE  subject  of  this  sketch  is  a  characteristic 
Chicago  man,  and  justly  ranked  with  that 
younger  class  whose  progressive  ideas  and  intense 
business  enterprise  and  activity  have  contributed 
so  largely  to  her  material  prosperity-  and  growth. 

He  was  bom  at  Chicago,  July  10,  1852,  the  son 
of  Thomas  and  Janet  (Telfer)  Chalmers.  His 
parents  are  both  natives  of  Scotland.  The  father 
was  born  at  Dronley,  near  Dundee,  in  1815,  and 
is  treasurer  of  Fraser  &  Chalmers  (Incorporated), 
hereinafter  mentioned.  The  mother  was  born  in 
18 18,  in  Edinburgh.  Both  are  living,  as  are  also 
the  two  sons  and  three  daughters  that  have  been 
born  to  them. 

William  J.  received  his  education  in  the  public 
and  high  schools  of  Chicago,  and  after  closing 
his  studies  in  school,  went  to  work  to  learn  a 
mechanical  trade  in  the  shops  of  the  Eagle 
Works  Manufacturing  Company,  of  which  his 
father  was  at  that  time  general  superintendent. 
In  1872,  being  then  twenty  years  of  age,  young 
Chalmers  became  associated  with  his  father  in  the 
then  firm  of  Fraser  &  Chalmers,  just  starting, 
employing  a  working  force  of  si.xty  men.  From 
that     beginning     the     business     has    gradually 


developed  and  been  extended,  until  now.  in  the 
eighteenth  year  of  its  existence,  it  employs  one 
thousand  and  fifty  men,  with  a  weekly  pay-roll  of 
fourteen  thousand  dollars,  and  the  name  of  Fraser 
&  Chalmers,  m.anufacturers  of  mining  machinery-, 
has  a  world-wide  reputation,  and  the  products  of 
their  immense  establishment,  the  largest  of  its 
character  in  the  world,  are  shipped  to  every 
quarter  of  the  civilized  globe.  Besides  its  main 
plant  and  office,  located  at  the  corner  of  Union 
and  Fulton  streets  Chicago,  (new  shops  covering 
about  ten  acres  of  ground,  fronting  on  Twelfth 
and  Rockwell  streets,  have  just  been  completed), 
the  company  has  recently  established  itself  at 
Erith  on  the  Thames,  near  London,  England, 
where  a  plant  that  will  employ  five  hundred  men 
will  soon  be  in  operation.  From  the  commence- 
ment of  the  business  Mr.  Chalmers  (our  subject) 
has  had  entire  control  of  the  business  manage- 
ment and  finances  of  the  company.  And  when 
in  1889  the  business  was  changed  from  a  partner- 
ship to  a  corporation,  he  became  its  vice-presi- 
dent and  treasurer,  and  in  January,  1891,  was 
elected  its  president.  In  recognition  of  his 
superior  qualities  as  an  organizer  and  successful 


274 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


financier,  Mr.  Chalmers  has  been  called  to  posi- 
tions of  responsibility  and  trust,  and  has 
uniformly  acquitted  himself  in  a  way  that 
evidenced  his  eminent  fitness  for  the  places.  He 
is  one  of  the  directors  of  the  Chicago  Athenaeum, 
also  a  director  of  the  Woman  and  Children's 
Hospital,  and  upon  the  decision  by  the  United 
States  Conijress  to  hold  the  World's  Columbian 
Exposition  of  1892  at  Chicago,  he  was  chosen  by 
the  stockholders  as  one  of  the  directors  of  that 
mammoth  undertaking,  and  was  re-elected  as 
director  in  April,  1891.  He  is  a  man  of  superior 
social  qualities,  genial,  generous  and  hospitable, 
and  is  prominently  connected  with  numerous 
organizations,  being  president  of  the  Illinois 
Club,  member  of  the  Chicago,  Union  League, 
Washington  Driving  Park,   Electric  and  Athletic 


clubs,  all  of  Chicago,  and  the  Engineers'  Club,  of 
New  York.  He  was  recently  appointed  a 
director  of  the  School  Board  by  Mayor  Wash- 
burn for  a  three-year  term.  He  is  a  Republican 
in  politics  and  a  Presbyterian  in  religious  faith, 
and  a  member  of  the  Third  Presbyterian  Church. 
Mr.  Chalmers  was  married  in  1877  to  Miss  Joan 
Pinkerton,  only  daughter  of  Allan  Pinkerton, 
Esq.,  now  deceased.  Mrs.  Chalmers  is  a  lady  of 
womanly  qualities  and  attainments  of  a  high 
order,  a  devoted  wife  and  mother,  and  a  most 
charming  hostess. 

They  have  two  children — Joan  Pinkerton, 
eleven,  and  Thomas  Stuart,  nine  years  of  age ; 
and  their  beautiful  home  at  No.  234  South  Ash- 
land boulevard  is  the  center  of  a  large  circle  of 
warm  friends. 


HON.  LYSANDER    HILL, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


IN  studying  the  lives  and  characters  of  promi- 
nent men,  we  are  naturally  led  to  inquire  into 
the  secret  of  their  success  and  the  motives  that 
prompted  their  action.  Success  is  not  a  question 
of  genius,  as  held  by  many,  but  rather  a  matter  of 
experience  and  sound  judgment.  For  when  we 
trace  the  career  of  those  who  stand  highest  in 
public  esteem,  we  find  in  nearly  every  case  that 
they  are  those  who  have  risen  gradually,  fighting 
their  way  in  the  face  of  opposition.  Self-reliance, 
conscientiousness,  energy,  honesty  —  these  are  the 
traits  of  character  that  insure  the  highest  emolu- 
ments and  greatest  success.  To  these  may  we 
attribute  the  success  that  has  crowned  the  efforts 
of  Judge  Lysander  Hill. 

He  was  born  in  Union,  Lincoln  county,  Maine, 
July  4,  1834.  The  son  of  Isaac  and  Eliza  M.  (Hall) 
Hill,  tracing  his  ancestry  both  paternal  and  mater- 
nal to  the  old  Puritan  families  who  were  among 
the  earliest  settlers  of  Massachusetts.  After  pass- 
ing through  the  usual  common-school  education, 
he  studied  at  W'arren  Academy  and  entered 
Bowdoin  College  in  1854  and  graduated  therefrom 
in  1858.  Choosing  the  law  as  his  profession,  he 
entered  the  law  office  of  A.  P.  Gould,  at  Thom- 
aston,  Mc.,  and  was  admitted  to  the  bar  in  i860. 
He  began  practicing  at  once  in  Thomaston,  form- 


ing a  partnership  with  J.  B.  Cilley  under  the  firm 
name  of  Cilley  &  Hill.  This  partnership  was 
dissolved  in  1862,  when  Mr.  Hill  entered  the 
federal  army  as  captain  in  the  Twentieth  IMaine 
Infantry. 

In  1863,  on  account  of  physical  disability.  Mr. 
Hill  received  his  discharge  from  the  army.  He 
resumed  the  practice  of  law,  settling  at  Alexandria, 
Va.,  and  also  occupied  an  office  at  Washington, 
D.  C.  He  formed  a  partnership  at  the  former 
place  with  George  Tucker  under  the  style  of  Hill 
&  Tucker. 

In  1874  Mr.  Hill  moved  to  Washington,  D.  C, 
and  formed  a  partnership  with  Mr.  E.  A.  Ells- 
worth, under  the  firm  name  of  Hill  &  Ellsworth, 
and  this  association  continued  until  1878.  For  the 
next  few  years  Mr.  Hill  practiced  his  profession 
alone,  devoting  his  attention  largely  to  the  practice 
of  patent  litigation,  which  he  had  made  a  spe- 
cialty; but  in  May,  i88r,  he  formed  a  connection 
with  Mr.  T.  S.  E.  Dixon,  of  Chicago,  which  lasted 
until  1890. 

Mr.  Hill  was  married  in  Februar}-,  1864,  to 
Adelaide  R.  Cole,  of  Roxbury,  Mass.  This  union 
has  been  blessed  with  three  children. 

Mr.  Hill  was  Register  in  Bankruptcy  of  the 
Eighth  Judicial  District  of  Virginia  from   1867  to 


CU^^  «2^  «:-  c  ^-^ 


BIOuKAI'lIlCAI.  IIICTIOXARV  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


277 


1869  when  ho  was  appointed  Judge  of  said  district 
to  fill  an  unexpired  term. 

In  politics  Mr.  Hill  is  and  ever  has  been  an 
earnest  and  sincere  Republican.  He  was  dele- 
gate to  the  National  Convention  which  nominated 
Grant  in  1868,  and  was  a  member  of  the  Commit- 
tee on  Platform.     He  was  also  Chairman  of  the 


Republican  Stale  Central  Committee  of  Virginia 
for  two  years,  but  since  1S69  he  has  taken  little 
interest  in  politics,  devoting  his  time  and  energies 
to  the  practice  of  his  profession,  which  has  been 
yearly  increasing  and  which  now  takes  him  all  over 
the  United  States.  Without  doubt  Judge  Hill 
takes  rank  as  one  of  the  ablest  patent  attorneys. 


ELWYN    B.  GOULD, 


CHICAGO,  ILL. 


THE  life-historj-  of  him  whose  name  heads 
this  sketch  is  worthy  of  record  among 
those  of  Chicago's  representative  business  men. 
While  there  are  few  phases  in  the  lives  of  self- 
made  men,  of  an  emotional  or  sensational  charac- 
ter, there  is  yet  a  motive  power  of  energy,  enter- 
prise, continuit}'  and  determination  worthy  of 
study  ;  and  often,  if  we  shall  look  for  the  secret  of 
men's  success,  we  find  it  only  in  their  continuity 
in  following  out  a  well-defined  purpose.  This  is 
eminently  true  of  Elwyn  B.  Gould.  A  native  of 
Keesville,  New  York,  he  was  born  April  loth, 
1854,  and  is  the  son  of  H.  W.  and  Elizabeth 
(Libby)  Gould,  who  were  natives  of  Maine,  but 
who  removed  at  an  early  day  (1855)  to  Minne- 
sota. At  the  conclusion  of  the  War  of  the  Rebel- 
lion his  father  settled  in  Boston,  and  there  young 
Gould  attended  the  public  schools.  In  1879  'i"^ 
started  for  California,  and  en  route  stopped  in 
ChiQago,  whither  his  brother  had  preceded  him 
and  was  in  business  on  his  own  account.  Liking 
the  appearance  of  the  city,  our  subject  decided  to 
remain  and  subsequently  joined  his  brother  in 
business,  under  the  firm  name  of  I.  L.  Gould  & 
Co.  Their  business  was  importing  and  jobbing 
laces,  handkerchiefs  and  lace  novelties,  etc. 
Together  they  have  built  up  a  fine  busines.s, 
which  extends  all  over  the  South,  North  and 
Northwest.  He  is  a  prominent  Mason,  and  there 
are  probably  few  men  better  known  in  Masonic 
circles  than  he.  He  was  made  a  member  of 
Covenant  Lodge,  No.  526,  September  25,  1885, 
and  is  a  Past  Master  of  this  lodge.  He  is  a  mem- 
ber of  Corinthian  Chapter,  No.  69,  R.  &  A.  M.; 
St.  Bernard  Commandery,  No.  35,  K.  T.;  Oriental 
Consistorj-  S.  P.  R.  S.,  and  is  at  present  (1892) 
High    Priest   of   Corinthian    Chapter,  and    Grand 


S.  W.  of  Chicago  Council,   Princes  of  Jerusalem, 
etc. 

In  politics  he  is  a  Republican,  and  although 
taking  an  active  interest  in  all  that  concerns  his 
party,  he  has  never  held  an  elective  position  ex- 
cept as  a  member  of  the  Special  Assessment  Com- 
mittee (appointed  by  Mayor  Washburne),  and 
also  of  the  State  Senatorial  Committee  for  the 
Sixth  Senatorial  District.  It  is  perhaps  as  the 
genial  president  of  the  well-known  Marquette  Club 
that  Mr.  Gould  is  best  known.  Elected  a  mem- 
ber of  this  club  during  the  first  year  of  its  exist- 
ence (1886),  he  was  subsequently  appointed  to 
serve  on  its  committee,  and  re-elected  the  follow- 
ing year.  Two  years  later  (1888)  he  was  unani- 
mously chosen  as  its  secretary,  and  during  his 
term  of  office  gave  such  satisfaction  as  to  warrant 
his  being  reappointed  at  its  close,  and  again  the 
year  following.  In  March,  1890,  he  was  elected 
president,  an  office  which  he  now  holds  with 
credit  to  himself  and  satisfaction  to  the  club. 
Quick  to  grasp  a  situation,  he  is  always  prepared 
for  an  argument  and  seldom  fails  to  gain  his 
point.  Strict  in  his  rulings  and  firm  in  his 
decisions,  he  is  a  born  leader,  and  as  such  com- 
mands both  the  respect  and  esteem  of  his  asso- 
ciates. Of  the  Marquette  Club  itself,  little  need 
be  said,  for  it  is  known  all  over  the  country.  It 
possesses  an  elegant  club  house,  and  its  annual 
banquets  are  of  wide  repute,  for  the  important 
issues  of  the  day  are  freely  discussed,  and 
amongst  the  invited  guests  are  usually  found 
some  of  our  most  prominent  men,  and  those  of 
national  fame.  Having  a  roll  of  some  four  hun- 
dred members,  it  is  in  a  flourishing  condition, 
and  is  undoubtedlj-  one  of  the  leading  political 
clubs  of   this   countrj'.     In    its    building   up  and 


ayS 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


development  there  are  few  who  have  taken  a 
more  prominent  or  active  part  than  has  the  sub- 
ject of  our  sketch,  and  he  is  one  of  the  most 
popular  and  efificient  club  presidents  in  the  city 
of  Chicago. 

In  personal  appearance  Mr.  Gould  is  tall  and 
of  good  proportions,  and  has  a  commanding 
address.     Genial  and  courteous  in  manner,  he  is 


of  unquestionable  integrity  and  of  keen  percep- 
tion, and  possesses  friends  and  acquaintances 
innumerable. 

He  was  married  in  1S83  to  Miss  Jenny  Gesel 
bracht,  of  Chicago.  They  have  three  children, 
viz  :  Grace,  aged  seven  years;  Elwyn  Blaine,  Jr., 
aged  five  years,  and  Herman  Leslie,  aged  three 
years. 


HON.  JOHN    P.  ALTGELD, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


JOHN  P.  ALTGELD  was  born  in  Germany, 
December  30,  1847;  was  brought  to  this 
country  by  his  parents  when  only  a  child  and 
reared  on  a  farm  in  Richland  county,  Ohio. 
His  elementary  education,  in  his  early  days,  was 
very  limited.  In  1864,  when  sixteen  years  of 
age,  he  joined  the  Union  army  and  participated 
in  the  James  River  campaign.  Subsequently 
he  taught  school  for  a  time,  and  in  1869  went 
west.  At  this  time  young  Altgeld  met  and  over- 
came the  great  struggle  of  his  life.  With  a  scant 
supply  of  money,  he  traveled  on  foot  across 
Southern  Illinois  and  when,  after  many  privations, 
he  reached  the  Mississippi  River,  opposite  St. 
Louis,  he  had  only  fifteen  cents  left.  With  this 
he  paid  five  cents  ferry-boat  fare,  and  a  like  sum 
for  a  still  more  unfortunate  fellow  traveler,  and 
then  balanced  and  closed  his  account  by  buying 
writing  paper  and  a  postage  stamp  with  the 
remainder.  He  worked  for  some  time  in  St. 
Louis  and  then  went  to  Southern  Kansas,  where 
he  was  taken  sick  and  had  a  severe  struggle. 
After  his  recovery  he  went  to  Northwestern  Mis- 
souri, where  he  taught  school  and  studied  law. 

He  was  admitted  to  the  bar  in  1872.  He  was 
soon  after  appointed  City  Attorney  of  Savannah 
and  afterwards  elected  State's  Attorney  of 
Andrew  county.  His  success  in  these  public 
positions  and  his  ability  as  a  lawyer  made  him 
one  of  the  best  known  men  in  that  section  of  the 
State.  In  1875,  desiring  a  larger  field  for  his 
labors,  he  removed  to  Chicago.  When  he  arrived 
in  this  city  he  was  an  entire  stranger.  He  soon 
built  up  a  large  and  lucrative  practice,  and  was 
engaged  in  some  of  the  most  notable  cases  that 
came  before  the  Cook  county  bench.     In  1884  he 


ran  for  Congress  in  the  fourth  district,  and  reduced 
the  republican  majority  by  several  thousand,  but 
was  defeated ;  he,  however,  made  a  great  reputa- 
tion as  a  campaigner. 

In  1886  Mr.  Altgeld  was  nominated  for  Judge 
of  the  Superior  Court  of  Cook  county  by  the 
Democratic  party,  and  was  elected  by  an  over- 
whelming majority.  As  a  judge  he  proved  him- 
self fearless,  independent  and  impartial ;  his 
decisions  were  clear,  laconic  and  comprehensive, 
and  gave  proof  of  much  care,  study  and  legal 
knowledge.  His  energy  and  industry  were  re- 
markable, and  won  for  him  the  highest  encom- 
iums of  the  press,  the  people  and  the  profession. 

After  discharging  the  duties  of  his  high  office 
with  the  utmost  satisfaction  for  five  years.  Judge 
Altgeld  astonished  everyone  by  handing  his 
resignation  to  the  Governor.  The  Judge  assured 
his  friends  that  the  claims  of  his  private  business 
only  could  force  him  to  retire  from  the  position 
to  which  they  did  him  the  honor  to  elect  him. 
"  The  duties  of  a  judge,"  he  said,  "  were  not  only 
onerous  but  unceasing,  and  he  would  not  occupy 
the  position  unless  he  could  give  it  his  undivided 
attention.  The  people  deserve  and  .should  receive 
the  fullest  services  of  those  whom  they  select  for 
high  and  important  ofifice."  In  1890  he  was  made 
Chief  Justice  of  the  Superior  Court. 

Judge  Altgeld  is  a  Democrat,  liberal  and  toler- 
ant of  the  opinions  of  others,  but  an  able  exponent 
of  the  principles  of  his  party.  He  is  earnest, 
original  and  practical ;  and  is  a  quiet,  silent  man 
who  prefers  action  to  talk,  and  who  believes  that 
social  and  industrial  reforms  are  more  readily 
effected  by  business  methods  than  by  the  most 
eloquent  post-prandial  orations.     His  arguments 


/^-  ^^^^/^ 


^^^^^  ^^^^.^..^i^LiC^ 


B/OCRAP/nClL  DICT/OXAKY  AXn  rORTRAlT  CALLERY. 


281 


are  clear,  concise  and  convincing,  and  his  thoughts 
are  occasionally  clothed  in  the  choicest  language 
and  adorned  by  a  simple  and  unaffected  beauty. 
Judge  Altgeld  has,  during  the  last  nine  years, 
built  some  of  the  finest  mercantile  office  build- 
ings of  this  city,  and  has  just  completed  Unity 
Building,  probably  the  finest  building  of  its  class 
in  the  world.  Amid  his  many  business  and  pro- 
fessional duties,  he  has  not  forgotten  or  neglected 
the  studious  habits  of  early  life,  for  we  find  him 
in  these  later  busy  days  devoting  himself  occa- 
ionally  to  literature.  "  Our  Penal  Machinery  and 
Its  Victims,"'  "  Live  Questions,"  and  papers  on 
various  questions  of  the  day,  are  from  his  pen. 
When  tired  of  law  and  business,  then  he  falls 
back  to  his  early  friend — study.  He  is  fond  of 
travel,  and  has  visited  nearly  every  place  of  inter- 
est in  North  America. 


Judge  Altgeld  was  married  in  1877  to  Miss 
Ford,  of  Richland  county,  Ohio. 

He  is  in  the  prime  of  life,  with  fine  physical 
development,  and  in  the  enjoyment  of  robust 
health.  His  expressive  features  reflect  a  calm, 
thoughtful  and  active  intelligence,  and  impress 
you  with  the  dignity,  strength  and  reserve  of  an 
original  mind.  The  success  which  has  crowned 
his  public  career  and  the  intelligent  and  manly 
grasp  he  has  taken  of  social  and  industrial  re- 
forms, mark  him  out  as  a  man  of  whom  we  shall 
hear  more  in  the  near  future.  If  strong  sym- 
pathy and  active  co-operation  with  every  move- 
ment for  the  benefit  of  the  masses,  and  a  broad 
and  liberal  spirit,  guiding  great  and  generous 
efforts,  deserve  recognition,  then  shall  an  honor- 
able and  irreproachable  career  be  rewarded  by  a 
grateful  people. 


SAMUEL  W.   ALLERTON, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


DURING  the  past  half  century  the  growth 
and  development  of  the  city  of  Chicago 
has  surpassed  the  expectations  of  the  most  san- 
guine. From  a  small  village  without  organiza- 
tion, wealth  or  trade,  she  has  become  one  of  the 
foremost  cities,  not  only  of  this  continent,  but  of 
the  world.  This  wonderful  result  and  rapid 
growth  has  been  effected  by  the  courage,  energy 
and  business  ability  of  her  prominent  citizens. 
Her  healthful  location  on  the  shores  of  Lake 
Michigan,  her  prosperous  industries  and  progres- 
siA-e  instincts,  have  attracted  to  her  the  active  and 
energetic  workers  of  the  world  who  represent  the 
highest  development  of  every  industry  and  handi- 
craft. They  run  the  factories,  man  the  ships, 
people  the  warehouses,  direct  the  banks  and  hold 
the  markets  of  Chicago.  In  this  great  Western 
metropolis  they  find  ability  recognized,  energy 
appreciated  and  courageous  effort  amply  re- 
warded. This  phenomenal  city  to-day  rules  and 
regulates  the  stock  markets  of  the  world.  The 
growth  of  this  important  industry  may  justly  be 
called  marvelous. 

For  nearly  forty  years  the  name  of  Samuel  W. 
Allerton  has  been  connected  with  this  prosperous 
industr}-,  and  to  him  more  than  to  any  other  mer- 


chant may  be  given  the  credit  of  placing  within 
the  boundaries  of  this  city  the  greatest  stock  mar- 
ket of  the  world. 

Samuel  W.  Allerton  was  born  in  Dutchess 
county.  New  York,  in  the  year  1829.  He  was 
brought  up  on  his  father's  farm  and  received 
such  education  as  could  be  obtained  at  that 
date  on  a  farm  in  Northern  New  York.  He 
remained  on  the  farm  until  he  was  eighteen 
years  of  age,  working  during  the  summer  and  at- 
tending school  in  the  winter.  About  this  time  he 
commenced  farming  on  his  own  account,  and  was 
very  successful,  particularly  in  raising  stock,  and 
in  a  couple  of  years  had  accumulated  the  hand- 
some sum  of  four  or  five  thousand  dollars.  He 
was  young,  energetic  and  enterprising,  and  he  de- 
cided to  go  West,  where  he  hoped  to  find  a  new 
and  wide  field  for  his  ambition.  He  first  visited 
Buffalo,  N.  Y.,  then  Cleveland,  O.,  and  last  Chi- 
cago. He  soon  after  invested  his  savings  in  a 
cattle  ranch  near  Piatt  county,  111.,  but  continued 
to  attend  the  Chicago  markets.  By  close  attention 
to  business  and  by  untiring  energy  he  .soon  be- 
came known  as  one  of  the  most  successful  stock- 
men of  the  West,  and  by  his  own  unaided  efforts 
created  and  guided  a  most  extensive  and  lucra- 


282 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


tive  business.  From  that  early  date  to  the  pres- 
ent the  business  has  continued  under  his  individ- 
ual management,  and  has  grown  and  spread  its 
branches  to  St.  Louis,  Omaha,  Kansas  City  and 
many  other  Western  cities.  Mr.  Allerton  is  also 
the  owner  of  many  farms  and  ranches  and  is 
financially  interested  in  the  principal  stock  yards 
on  this  continent. 

Quiet,  unostentatious  and  kind-hearted,  he  is 
always  ready  to  help  the  deserving  and  the  needy. 
His  large  wealth  he  invests  with  care  and  bestows 
\\ith  generosity.  The  city  of  Chicago  feels  proud 
of  such  men,  whose  honor,  integrity  and  sterling 
character  have  done  much  for  it  and  for  the  de- 
velopment of  the  resources  of  the  West. 

The  appointment  of  Mr.  Allerton  as  a  member 
of  the  Board  of  Management  of  the  World's  Co- 
lumbian Exposition  was  a  high  compliment  to  his 
experience  and  ability,  and  has  given  satisfaction 
generally.  Mr.  Allerton's  thorough  knowledge  of 
finance,  organizing  ability,  and  practical  knowl- 
edge of  stock   and  farming  and  its  claims,   point 


him  out  as  a  most  useful  accession  to  the  World's 
Fair  Directory. 

Mr.  Allerton  is  a  director  of  the  F"irst  National 
Bank  of  Chicago,  one  of  the  largest  and  most  suc- 
cessful institutions  of  the  kind  in  the  United 
States,  and  great  credit  is  due  to  the  directory  for 
bringing  this  great  banking  house  to  the  front 
rank  of  financial  institutions.  Mr.  Allerton  is  also 
a  director  of  the  Chicago  City  Railway  Company, 
and  is  interested  and  identified  with  nearl\-  all  the 
great  undertakings  for  the  benefit  of  the  city. 

In  i860  Mr.  Allerton  married  Miss  Paduella  W. 
Thompson,  of  Peoria.  They  have  a  family  of  two 
children,  one  boy  and  one  girl — Robert  H.  and 
Katy  R.  His  first  wife  died  in  1880.  He  mar- 
ried a  year  later  to  Agnes  C.  Thompson,  a  sister 
of  his  first  wife.  In  the  quiet  and  sunshine  of  his 
happy  home  on  Prairie  avenue  Mr.  Allerton  finds 
rest  and  repose  after  the  cares  and  anxieties  of 
his  business,  and  in  companionship  of  his  accom- 
plished wife  and  affectionate  children  he  spends 
his  happiest  hours. 


NELSON   THOMASSON. 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


THE  life  of  him  whose  name  heads  this  sketch 
represents  an  eventful  and  interesting 
career.  Integrity,  activity  and  energy  have  been 
the  crowning  points  of  his  success.  Few  men  are 
wider  and  more  favorably  known  in  the  city  of 
Chicago  than  is  Nelson  Thomasson.  He  is  a  na- 
tive of  Kentucky,  and  was  born  October  15,  1839, 
the  son  of  William  Poindexter  and  Charlotte 
(Pierce  Leonard)  Thomasson. 

His  father  was  born  in  1796,  and  was  in  the  war 
of  1812,  although  very  young.  Afterward  he 
located  in  Corydon,  Indiana,  became  a  member  of 
the  legislature,  and  subsequently  was  prosecuting 
attorney;  and  while  holding  this  office  he  prose- 
cuted the  murderer  of  the  present  United  States 
Judge  Gresham's  father,  who  was  at  the  time 
sheriff  of  the  county.  (See  history  of  Indiana 
about  the  early  life  of  W.  P.  Thomasson,  by  Gov. 
Wm.  H.  English,  just  published.)  Corydon  was  at 
that  time  not  only  the  capital  of  the  State  of  In- 
diana, but  in  reality  the  capital  of  the  whole 
Northwest  Territory. 


Mr.  Thomasson  soon  after  removed  to  Louisville, 
Ky.,  and  was  for  many  years  a  member  of  Con- 
gress from  the  Louisville  district.  On  his  father's 
side.  Nelson  Thomasson  can  trace  his  genealogy 
back  to  the  Huguenots  (see  Dupuy  family  tree), 
and  on  his  mother's  side  to  the  Pilgrim  Fathers. 
A  Captain  Pierce  commanded  the  Mayflower  on 
several  of  her  voyages  (see  the  Pierce  book).  The 
name  Thomasson  is  essentially  English,  and  prom- 
inent in  the  nation.  There  is  to-day  (1892)  a 
Thomasson  in  the  English  parliament.  Nelson  re- 
ceived a  good  education,  attending  private  schools 
and  the  academy  at  Louisville,  and  when  eighteen 
years  old  removed  to  Chicago  and  became  a  stu- 
dent and  clerk  in  the  law  office  of  Messrs.  Morris, 
Thomasson  &  Blackburn,  and  later  held  a  similar 
position  in  the  ofifice  of  Mr.  John  G.  Rogers,  after- 
ward Judge  of  the  Circuit  Court  of  Cook  County 
for  several  terms.  Nelson  Thomasson  attended 
the  law  lectures  of  Louisville,  Kentucky,  during 
the  junior  class  of  1859  and  '60,  and  attended  the 
law  lectures  of  i860  and    "61    in   Chicago,  and  his 


,y^^C&7n^    ^=?^-eC^rx.,n...,_£:p^^a^ 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIiWARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


285 


name  is  in  the  catalogue  of  the  first  year's  grad- 
uates of  the  Chicago  Law  School.  Judge  Henry 
Booth  delivering  him  the  diploma.  At  the  open- 
ing of  the  War  of  the  Rebellion,  he  abandoned  his 
law  studies,  and  enlisting  in  the  army,  entered  the 
United  States  service  as  a  member  of  the  "Sturges 
Rifles,"  one  of  the  most  noted  companies  that 
Chicago  sent  to  the  war,  and  being  one  of  the  only 
two  companies  in  the  Union  army  not  connected 
with  a  regiment.  These  companies  were  mustered 
into  the  service  for  a  special  purpose,  and  were 
mustered  out  at  the  time  General  ^McClellan  was 
relieved  of  his  command.  Mr.  Thomasson  was 
promoted  to  the  regular  army  after  the  campaign 
in  Western  Virginia,  becoming  a  member  of  the 
Company  E,  Fifth  Regiment  U.  S.  Infantry.  He 
was  at  once  ordered  to  his  regiment  in  New 
Mexico,  and  when  on  the  way  to  the  regiment,  he 
was  retained  to  drill  and  instruct  recruits;  first  at 
Fort  Leavenworth  and  afterward  at  Fort  Riley. 
During  his  five  years'  stay  in  New  Mexico,  he 
was  an  almost  dailj'  companion  of  the  famous  Kit 
Carson.  After  joining  his  regiment  he  served  in 
the  campaign  against  the  Texans,  said  Tcxans 
were  commanded  by  the  rebel  Generals  Sibley 
and  Bailey,  and  against  the  numerous  Indian 
tribes  of  Arizona,  Colorado  and  New  Mexico, 
there  being  in  his  command  besides  his  regiment, 
several  of  the  regular  army,  three  Colorado  regi- 
ments, four  California  regiments  and  one  regiment 
of  regular  artillery.  It  was  during  this  time 
that  occurred  the  celebrated  Navajo  campaign, 
led  by  the  famous  fighter,  General  James  H.  Carle- 
ton.  His  entire  command  was  engaged  in  this 
campaign  some  three  years,  and  he  removed  the 
Navajo  tribe  of  Indians  from  West  of  the  Rio 
Grande  to  Fort  Sumter,  one-hundred  miles  East 
on  the  Pecos  rivet,  and  kept  them  there  until 
they  became  semi-civilized,  when  General  Sher- 
man had  them  returned  to  where  they  are  now,  at 
Fort  Wingate,  on  the  Rio  Fuerco.  On  several 
occasions  during  the  war,  Mr.  Thomasson's  regi- 
ment was  ordered  to  return  to  the  States,  but  the 
orders  were  countermanded  by  General  Canby 
upon  the  plea  that  he  could  not  spare  it  from  his 
command.  As  to  Captain  Thomasson's  history 
during  his  army  service,  it  is  too  long  to  incorpo- 
rate here,  and  we  will  have  to  refer  the  reader  to 
Colonel  Guy  \ .  Henry's  able  book  on  army  ap- 
pointments,  published   in   the  "  seventies,"'   also 


the  many  complimentary  orders  and  reports  in 
the  War  Department  at  Washington.  After  the 
close  of  the  war,  Mr.  Thomasson  was  engaged  in 
the  recruiting  service  for  one  year  at  Chicago,  and 
another  year  at  Newton  Barracks,  after  which  he 
was  ordered  to  join  his  regiment  on  the  Western 
plains,  where  he  continued  in  service  until  De- 
cember, 1S70.  Upon  the  reduction  of  the  regular 
army  about  that  time,  Mr.  Thomasson  resigned 
from  the  service,  receiving  one  year's  pay  in  ad- 
vance, as  six  hundred  other  regular  army  officers 
did  at  this  time.  Upon  retiring  to  private  life, 
he  took  up  his  abode  in  Chicago,  and  at  once  en- 
gaged in  the  real  estate  business,  meeting  with 
marked  success  from  the  start.  One  of  his  first 
real  estate  transactions  was  the  purchase  of  a  tract 
of  one-hundred  and  sixty  acres  lying  south  from 
Chicago,  now  known  as  "  Pitner's  Subdivision,"  in 
which  Judge  Gwynn  Garnett  was  associated  with 
him.  They  paid  for  this  land  one  hundred  and 
forty  dollars  per  acre,  and  sold  it  for  four  hundred 
dollars  per  acre,  thus  realizing  from  this  one  tran- 
saction a  snug  little  fortune.  His  unusual  success 
continued  uninterruptedly  until  the  financial  crisis 
of  1873  swept  over  the  country,  when,  like  so 
many  others,  he  lost  nearly  everything  that  he 
had  made ;  but  fortunately  was  enabled  to  meet 
his  obligations  and  pay  his  debts  dollar  for  dol- 
lar. During  the  several  years  succeeding  this 
panic,  when  real  estate  business  was  paralyzed, 
and  the  values  were  depreciated,  and  trade  in  all 
lines  was  dull,  he  never  lost  heart,  but  with  strong 
determination  to  regain  his  losses  worked  with  a 
will,  much  of  the  time  at  his  daily  duty  fourteen 
hours  per  day. 

With  the  return  of  prosperous  times,  Mr. 
Thomasson's  business  revived,  so  that  he  not  only 
regained  his  former  financial  standing,  but  far 
surpassed  it,  and  now  (1892)  is  counted  among 
the  wealthy  real  estate  owners  of  Chicago.  In 
connection  with  an  extensive  brokerage  business, 
he  handles  much  of  his  own  property,  and  with 
facilities  unsurpassed,  is  always  prepared  to  buy, 
sell,  lease  or  exchange  city  or  suburban  property 
of  every  description.  His  long  experience  ren- 
ders his  opinions  of  great  value  to  those  seeking 
his  counsels. 

While  Mr.  Thomasson  owns  a  large  amount  of 
real  estate,  his  investments  have  extended  into 
other  channels  as  well.    He  is  a  large  stockholder 


286 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


in  all  the  Chicago  street  railway  companies,  and 
owns  a  large  amount  of  stock  in  various  buildings, 
among  which  are  the  Chemical  Bank  building, 
and  also  in  many  of  the  industrial  companies. 

Mr.  Thomasson  is  a  man  of  fine  personal  and 
social  qualities,  and  is  exceedingly  popular  among 
his  wide  circle  of  friends  and  acquaintances.  Mr. 
Thomasson  is  a  Republican — not  a  partisan  nor  a 
sycophant ;  but  he  is  content  to  work  hard  at 
every  election  for  the  success  of  good  officers  and 
honest  government,  but  says  he  has  been  an  office- 
holder for  ten  years  of  his  life,  and  is  satisfied 
to  let  others  scramble  for  ofifices. 

He  is  a  member  of  the  Oriental  Lodge,  No.  33, 
and  also  of  the  Apollo  Commandery  of  Knights 
Templar.  He  also  belongs  to  the  Loyal  Legion, 
and  to  the  Union  League  and  Washington  Park 
clubs,  and  also  the  Union  Club  on  the  North  Side. 
Mr.  Thomasson  is  a  man  of  fine  literary  attain- 
ments, and  in  his  elegant  library  has  probably  the 


finest  collection  of  Napoliana  and  Americana  in 
Chicago. 

He  is  an  interesting  conversationalist  and  ready 
thinker,  and  well  posted  on  all  topics  of  the  day. 
In  stature,  slightly  above  the  medium  height, 
stockily  built,  quick  and  active  in  his  movements, 
and  possesses  a  decidedly  military  bearing. 

His  success  in  life  is  due  mainly  to  his  own 
unaided  efforts.  He  has  earned  for  himself  a 
nam.e  that  will  always  be  identified  with  the  his- 
tory of  Chicago. 

Mr.  Thomasson  was  married  in  1873  to  Miss 
Nanniene  Mason  Norton,  of  Louisville,  Kentucky, 
who  descended  from  the  well-known  Douglass 
families  of  Virginia  and  originally  from  Scotland. 
This  little  lady  is  very  popular  among  her  many 
admiring  friends,  and  when  she  gives  receptions, 
few,  if  any,  regrets  are  ever  sent.  They  have 
three  children — Leonard,  Nelson  and  Nanniene 
Thomasson. 


EDWARD    R  LAWRENCE, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


THE  person  whose  name  stands  at  the  head 
of  this  sketch  was  born  on  the  29th  of  Oc- 
tober, 1835,  at  Groton,  Middlesex  county,  Massa- 
chusetts, which  was  the  home  of  several  previous 
generations  of  his  family.  His  father  was  Benja- 
min F.  Lawrence,  and  his  mother,  Elizabeth 
Fenelly  Staples.  In  1837  they  moved  to  Bclvi- 
dere,  Boone  county,  Illinois,  where  their  boy 
attended  the  public  schools.  He  afterwards 
studied  under  Rev.  Arthur  B.  Fuller,  brother  of 
Margaret  Fuller,  Countess  af  Ossoli,  for  about 
two  years,  and  in  1847  he  was  sent  to  Lawrence 
Academy,  Groton,  Massachusetts,  of  which  Rev. 
James  Means  was  the  .principal.  He  returned 
home  in  1849,  'i"'^  ^^'"^^  placed  by  his  father  in  a 
country  store,  conducted  by  Henry  Loop  and 
Sons,  where  he  spent  the  winter  of  1849-50. 

In  the  spring  of  1850,  he  was  in  the  employ  of 
Honorable  Robert  W.  Waterman,  now  Governor 
of  California,  at  Genoa,  DeKalb  county,  Illinois, 
and  in  the  summer  of  the  same  year  he  moved  to 
Sycamore,  same  county,  and  went  into  the  em- 
ploy of  J.  S.  and  J.  C.  Waterman,  brothers  of 
his' former  employer.      The  experience  of  those 


years  was  all  gained  in  what  are  known  as  "  coun- 
try stores,"  dealing  in  everything  usually  kept  in 
such  establishments,  and  tended  to  pre-pare  him 
for  other  fields  of  labor. 

In  the  fall  of  1850,  Mr.  Lawrence's  father  was 
in  Boston,  purchasing  goods  for  his  own  store  at 
Belvidere,  and  while  there,  apprenticed  his  son  to 
Messrs.  Whitney  and  Fenno,  one  of  the  leading 
dry  goods  jobbing  houses  of  that  period.  With 
this  house  Mr.  Lawrence  remained  six  years,  dur- 
ing the  several  changes  which  took  place  in  the 
firm  name,  gaining  experience  and  business  train- 
ing, and  winning  the  confidence  and  esteem  of  his 
employers.  A  portion  of  his  term  of  service  was 
spent  as  a  .salesman  of  the  firm,  in  traveling 
through  a  scope  of  country  of  which  Chicago  was 
one  corner,  St.  Paul  and  Minneapolis,  then  St. 
Anthony's  Falls,  another.  Rock  Island  another,  and 
then  across  country  by  way  of  the  Illinois  ri\er, 
back  to  Chicago.  In  those  days  railroads  were 
few,  and  sleeping  cars  unknown,  the  distances  be- 
tween different  places  being  made,  except  on  the 
Mississippi  and  Illinois  rivers,  by  horses.  In  the 
winter  the  vehicle  was  a  sleigh,  and  at  other  sea- 


-^"' 


rQ.^....   f^^^-^ 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLI:RY. 


2S9 


sons  a  wagon.  Many  ludicrous  incidents  occurred, 
one  of  them,  which  Mr.  Lawrence  relates  to  the 
writer,  will  serve  as  an  illustration.  While  mak- 
ing a  trip  through  Wisconsin  in  a  covered  wagon, 
with  two  other  drummers  (that  being  the  name 
by  which  parties  traveling  to  solicit  trade  are 
known),  each  representing  different  lines  of  busi- 
ness, they  were  crossing  the  Wisconsin  river,  just 
before  reaching  Prairie  du  Chien,  when  they  met 
a  St.  Louis  drummer  who  had  stopped  his  horse 
at  a  hole  in  the  ice  for  the  purpose  of  letting  him 
drink.  Noticing  that  he  had  a  singular  outfit 
with  which  to  make  his  journey,  they  hailed  him 
and  he  responded.  His  horse  was  so  poor  as  to 
cause  them  to  wonder  whether  he  would  be 
able  to  stand  alone  when  taken  from  his  harness. 
The  harness  consisted  of  a  few  ropes,  with  the 
necessary  knots  here  and  there  to  keep  it  from 
falling  off.  His  vehicle  was  a  sleigh,  of  the  kind 
called  by  half-breed  Frenchmen,  "  a  train."  The 
whole  outfit,  including  the  horse,  if  put  up  at  auc- 
tion, would  not  have  brought  ten  dollars.  Mr. 
Lawrence  was  the  spokesman  of  his  party,  and 
after  learning  that  he  had  been  from  home  nearly 
six  weeks,  asked  him  how  and  where  he  had 
come  by  that  turnout.  His  reply  was,  that  when 
he  left  St.  Louis  he  had  a  fine  pair  or  horses,  new 
harness,  Buffalo  robes  and  new  leather  top  buggy. 
His  desire  for  trading  was  so  great  that  he  had 
begun  to  swap  horses,  and  had  indulged  in  that 
luxury  from  time  to  time,  and  before  them  was 
the  result.  He  concluded  by  advising  Mr.  Law- 
rence to  beware  of  horse  traders. 

Occasionally  the  monotony  of  the  trip  was 
varied  by  a  break-down,  and  one  was  recalled 
which,  at  the  time,  bade  fair  to  be  a  serious  and 
uncomfortable  accident.  Fortunately,  it  hap- 
pened near  a  house.  The  break  was  in  the 
whiffle-tree.  A  new  one  was  a  necessity,  the 
ironing  of  which  required  the  boring  of  holes. 
The  only  tool  on  the  place  was  an  a.xe — not  at 
all  handy  for  boring  a  half-inch  hole — that  being 
the  size  needed.  Neither  Lawrence  nor  his  com- 
panions knew  how  to  get  out  of  the  trouble,  nor 
could  the  host  give  the  necessary  information. 
Fortunately,  deliverance  was  near  at  hand,  for, 
later  in  the  evening.  Elder  Bronson,  a  Methodist 
Episcopal  preacher,  on  his  circuit,  arrived  at  the 
house.  This  man,  who  had  been  on  the  frontier 
as  a  missionary'  for   more   than   fifty  years,  knew 


what  to  do.  He  first  ordered  a  big  fire  in  the 
open  fireplace,  and  in  it  threw  the  old  whiffle-tree, 
iron  work  and  all.  The  wood  was  soon  consumed 
and  the  irons  released.  But  how  to  bore  the 
holes  with  an  a.xe  was  the  difficulty  for  Mr.  Law- 
rence and  his  companions.  To  the  Elder  it  was 
perfectly  easy.  He  took  one  of  the  hot  irons  and 
soon  made  a  hole  by  burning.  By  midnight  the 
job  was  finished,  and,  while  not  so  handsome  as 
the  broken  whiffle-tree,  the  new  one  was  stronger 
and  carried  them  safely  through.  Then  Mr.  Law- 
rence and  his  companions  e.xpressed  their  thank- 
fulness, and  united  with  the  Elder  in  prayer 
and  praise  for  their  deliverance. 

Mr.  Lawrence  came  to  Chicago  in  1858,  and  has 
resided  there  ever  since.  He  has  been  engaged 
in  various  lines  of  business,  and  has  been  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Chicago  Board  of  Trade  since  1859. 
He  is  one  of  the  directors  of  the  World's  Colum- 
bian Exposition,  and  has  been  for  more  than 
twenty  years  a  director  of  the  First  National  Bank 
of  Chicago.  As  a  business  man,  he  has  been  suc- 
cessful beyond  the  ordinary  lot  of  men,  and  en- 
joys the  reputation  in  the  commercial  world  of 
being  clear-headed.  He  is  cool  and  deliberate  in 
his  judgments,  a  good  judge  of  men,  and  is  uni- 
versally esteemed  for  his  integrity,  his  hospitable 
nature,  and  engaging,  social  qualities.  A  marked 
characteristic  throughout  his  life  has  been  his 
ready  adaptation  to  circumstances  and  environ- 
ments ;  and  a  rule  of  his  life  has  been  to  make 
the  best  of  everything.  He  is  a  man  of  even 
temperament,  and  while  prosperity  has  never 
caused  him  to  be  elated  overmuch,  misfortunes 
and  disappointments  have  not  cast  him  down. 
In  his  business  relations  and  in  his  private  life 
he  has  sustained  a  manliness  and  nobility  of 
character  that  have  won  for  him  universal  confi- 
dence and  esteem. 

In  politics  he  has  always  been  a  Democrat,  and 
takes  great  interest  in  the  success  of  his  party. 
At  the  same  time,  he  extends  to  those  who  differ 
with  him  in  political  faith,  that  toleration  which 
he  demands  for  himself. 

Mr.  Lawrence  married  Mary,  the  youngest 
daughter  of  David  and  Agnes  Ballentinc,  of  Wau- 
kegan.  Lake  county,  Illinois,  on  the  twenty-third 
day  of  May,    1861.     They  have   one  son,  Dwight. 

Mr.  Lawrence  is  a  man  of  fine  presence,  being 
large  in   stature,  and  robust  in  constitution.     He 


290 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


is  courteous  and  dignified,  l<ind-hearted  and  gen- 
erous. He  inherits  from  the  ancestors  of  his 
mother    a    French    spohation    claim,    but,    like 


many  others,  regards  it  rather  in  the  light  of 
a  relic  than  a  possible  source  of  addition  to  his 
fortune. 


BENJAMIN    F.  JACOBS, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


IN  this  materialistic  age,  an  age  in  which  almost 
every  one  seems  imbued  with  but  one  idea, 
that  of  the  rapid  accumulation  of  wealth,  it  is  re- 
freshing occasionally  to  meet  with  one  who  has 
other  ambitions,  other  thoughts  and  immeasurably 
higher  motives  in  life.  The  business  men  of  Chi- 
cago have  the  reputation  of  being  wide  awake  and 
enterprising,  but  too  much  devoted  to  business. 
While  this  may  be  true,  there  are  yet  to  be  found 
among  ouf  representative  business  men  a  few  at 
least  who  manage  to  devote  time  and  thought  to 
some  great  movement  of  worthy  cause,  be  it  edu- 
cational, charitable  or  religious.  Among  the  most 
prominent  of  this  class  in  the  city  of  Chicago  is 
the  subject  of  this  sketch.  Benjamin  F.  Jacobs, 
the  son  of  Charles  P.  and  Eliza  (Pelton)  Jacobs, 
W'as  born  in  Paterson,  N.  J.,  September  18, 
1834.  His  father's  family  were  from  Rhode  Is- 
land, and  formerly  from  England.  His  mother  was 
of  French  extraction,  a  descendent  of  the  Hugue- 
nots. Upon  leaving  school  he  entered  his  father's 
store,  and  in  April,  1854,  with  much  courage  and 
little  cash,  he  came  to  Chicago.  Acting  as  clerk 
for  several  years  (until  1861),  he  formed  a  partner- 
ship and  engaged  in  the  grocery,  fruit  and  pro- 
vision business  on  South  Water  street.  In  1868 
he  associated  his  brothers  with  him,  continuing 
business  in  the  same  place  until  the  great  fire  of 
1 87 1  stripped  them  of  nearly  all  their  possessions. 
Meanwhile,  in  1869,  Mr.  Jacobs  began  to  operate 
in  real  estate,  and  in  1870  he  left  the  other  busi- 
ness in  the  care  of  his  brothers  and  devoted  him- 
self to  this  new  avocation.  After  the  fire  of  1871 
he  extended  his  operations  and  was  engaged  in 
building  one  of  the  suburbs  of  the  city,  when 
overtaken  by  the  panic  of  1873.  Though  suffer- 
ing in  common  with  others  severe  reverses  as  the 
result  of  this  financial  crisis,  nevertheless  he  con- 
tinued his  business,  and  to-day  is  numbered  among 
the  successful  and  prominent  real  estate  dealers  of 
this  city.     Energy  and  determination,  combined 


with  integrity  and  good  business  methods,  have 
won  for  him  ultimiUe  success. 

But  it  is  as  an  educator,  as  an  organizer  and  as 
a  tireless  worker  and  manager,  that  the  subject  of 
this  sketch  has  perhaps  gained  his  highest,  and  in 
a  certain  sense  a  remarkable,  reputation.  Coming 
to  Chicago  in  his  twentieth  year,  he  united  with 
the  First  Baptist  Church  and  entered  the  Sunday- 
school  as  a  pupil,  and  soon  after  became  a  teacher. 
In  1856  he  was  elected  superintendent  of  the 
First  Mission  Sunday-school,  under  the  care  of 
Baptists,  and  the  Third  Mission  school  of  the  city. 
Subsequently  he  became  the  superintendent  of 
the  home  school,  which  made  for  itself  a  notable 
reputation  throughout  the  countrj-.  He  was  at 
the  same  time  the  teacher  of  an  adult  class  that 
numbered  five  hundred.  After  the  fire  of  1874 
had  destroyed  the  building  of  the  First  Church, 
Mr.  Jacobs  organized  a  down-town  mission,  from 
which  grew  the  Newsboys'  Mission,  afterward 
called  the  Waifs'  Mission.  In  1881  he  united  with 
others  in  the  organization  of  the  Immanuel  Bap- 
tist Church,  and  became  superintendent  of  its 
school,  which  office  he  retains.  He  is  now  serv- 
ing his  thirty-sixth  year  as  a  Sunday-school  super- 
intendent. 

He  was  one  of  the  organizers  of  the  Young 
Men's  Christian  Association,  in  1858,  of  which  he 
was  president  in  1863-4,  and  is  one  of  the  life 
trustees.  At  the  breaking  out  of  the  war,  in  1S61, 
he  was  made  one  of  the  Arm}-  Committee,  and 
for  four  years  was  secretary  of  the  Northwestern 
branch  of  the  United  States  Christian  Commis- 
sion. In  this  capacity  he  was  often  on  the  battle- 
field, beginning  with  Fort  Donelson.  in  1862.  and 
ending  at  Nashville  in  December,  1864.  He  also 
traveled  over  the  Northwest,  holding  meetings 
and  raising  money  and  supplies  for  the  troops. 

At  the  close  of  the  war,  with  Mr.  Moody  and 
others,  Mr.  Jacobs  turned  his  efforts  to  the  work 
of  Sunday-school   organization.      He  was  elected 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  A.\D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


293 


president  of  the  State  Sunday-School  Convention 
in  1S68,  and  chairman  of  the  State  Executive 
Committee  in  1873.  He  has  been  annually  re- 
elected to  the  latter  office,  and  is  now  serving  his 
twentieth  year.  In  1867  he  began  to  urge  the 
adoption  of  the  uniform  or  International  plan  of 
Sunday-school  lessons,  which  has  since  given 
him  world-wide  fame.  Of  him  and  his  connection 
with  this  great  work,  Miss  Frances  E.  Willard 
writes  in  the  Sunday-School  Times:  "  Ours  is  a 
day  in  which  each  great  movement  has  for  its 
central  figure  some  personality  that  incarnates  its 
method  and  idea.  Organization  being  the  watch- 
word, there  must  be  organizers;  and  it  is  safe  to 
say  that  each  of  the  guilds  now  so  numerous  is  a 
success  according  to  the  vigor  and  devotion  of  its 
chief.  Men  will  not  rally  around  vacancy,  but 
they  will  around  a  leader.  He  must  be  born,  he 
cannot  be  made.  He  must  have  a  hand  of  iron  in 
a  glove  of  velvet.  He  must  believe  in  and  must 
work  for  their  best  interests  without  haste  and 
without  rest.  He  must  fling  himself  into  the  move- 
ment with  it  to  sink  or  swim,  and  he  must  be  loyal 
to  the  unfolding  purpose  of  God  as  he  under- 
stands it,  even  unto  death. 

"A  man  who  was  to  develop  after  this  fashion 
until  he  became  the  central  figure  of  the  World's 
Sunday-School  movement  now  lives  in  the  Elec- 
tric City,  otherwise  Chicago,  and  his  name  is 
Benjamin  F.  Jacobs." 

The  National  Sunday-School  Convention  which 
met  at  Indianapolis,  Indiana,  in  1872,  adopted  the 
plan  of  uniform  lessons,  and  a  committee  was 
chosen  to  select  the  first  course  of  lessons  for 
seven  years;  the  second  committee  was  chosen 
at  Atlanta,  Georgia,  in  1S78;  the  third  commit- 
tee at  Louisville,  Kentucky,  in  1884,  and  the 
fourth  committee  at  Pittsburgh,  Pennsylvania, 
l8go.  The  fourth  committee's  term  of  office  is 
from  1894  to  1899.  Mr.  Jacobs  has  from  the  be- 
ginning been  a  member  of  this  committee.  In 
1881  he  was  elected  chairman  of  the  Executive 
Committee  of  the  International  Sunday-School 
Convention  He  was  re-elected  in  1884,  1887,  and 
in  1890  to  serve  until  1893.  He  planned  the 
World's  Sunday  School  Convention,  held  in  Eng- 
land in  1889,  and  secured  the  attendance  of  428 
delegates  from  America,  a  steamship  being  char- 
tered to  convey  them  across  the  Atlantic.  He 
declined  the  presidency  of  that  convention,  but 


was  chosen  one  of  the  two  executives  of  the 
World's  Sunday-school  Committee.  He  has  been 
for  the  last  twelve  years  the  leader  of  the  Far- 
well  Hall  Saturday  noon  teachers'  meeting  in 
Chicago,  which  has  now  an  attendance  of  five  hun- 
dred active  Sunday-school  workers.  His  duties 
as  chairman  of  the  International  Sunday-School 
Executive  Committee  have  taken  him  into  most 
of  the  States  and  territories,  and  the  Canadian 
Provinces. 

He  has  been  honored  by  his  own  denomination, 
having  been  president  of  the  Chicago  Baptist 
Social  Union  in  1887-8,  and  chairman  of  the  Illi- 
nois Baptist  Sunday-School  Commission  since 
1888. 

Into  his  public  speaking  Mr.  Jacobs  puts  the 
same  earnestness  that  is  characteristic  of  all  that 
he  does.  Whether  it  be  in  a  talk  before  a  group 
of  friends,  in  his  weekly  unfolding  of  the  Sunday- 
school  lesson,  in  an  illustrated  lecture  descriptive 
of  life  across  the  sea,  or  in  an  address  before  listen- 
ing thousands  in  a  great  convention,  there  will  be 
found  that  kind  of  direct,  telling  appeal  to  the 
heart  as  well  as  the  mind  which  moves  men. 
There  is  about  his  public  addresses  the  "ac- 
tion," which  is  the  test  of  true  oratory,  while 
every  now  and  then  some  humorous  phrase  or 
epigrammatic  sentence  will  provoke  a  smile  or 
bring  a  burst  of  applause.  A  tender  allusion  or  a 
pathetic  anecdote  is  likely  to  follow  and  turn  the 
smiles  to  tears. 

Mr.  Jacobs  was  married  April  16,  1854,  to  Miss 
Frances  M.  Eddy,  daughter  of  Dr.  John  M. 
Eddy,  of  Naperville,  Illinois,  formerly  a  lead- 
ing physician  of  Rochester,  New  York.  Her 
mother  was  the  daughter  of  Judge  Benjamin 
Wiley,  formerly  of  Rome,  New  York.  Mrs. 
Jacobs  is  a  lady  of  much  ability  and  fine  culture, 
a  true  helpmeet  in  every  sense  of  the  word. 

Well-known  for  his  ability  and  enterprise  in  the 
management  of  real  estate,  highly  respected  by 
all  who  know  him,  and  possessing  a  large  circle  of 
friends,  B.  F.  Jacobs  is  a  representative  business 
man,  and  a  typical  Chicago  citizen.  We  cannot 
do  better  in  closing  this  sketch  of  a  man  who  has 
commanded  success  in  whatever  he  has  attempted, 
than  to  use  the  words  of  the  brilliant  woman 
from  whose  tribute  to  her  friend  quotation  has 
been  made.  She  says:  "  It  has  become  trite  to 
say  that  Illinois  gave  Lincoln  and  Grant  to  the 


294 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Union;  but  we  may  well  remind  the  Republic, 
and  the  rest  of  mankind,  that  here  Dwight  L. 
Moody  served  his  apprenticeship,  here  Philip  P. 
Bliss  began  to  sing  his  deathless  songs,  here  Major 
Whittle's  name  first  attained  celebrity,  here  Marj- 
A.  Livermore  became  known  as  a  philanthropist, 
and  here  B.  F.  Jacobs  was  set  for  the  advance  of 


such  world-wide  and  popular  study  of  the  Bible 
as  had  never  before  been  dreamed  of.  He  is  a 
true  Chicagoan,  with  the  push  and  pluck  and  the 
daring  that  go  with  such  a  make-up,  but  all  these 
qualities  would  not  avail  except  that  his  heart 
has  become  gentle  as  that  of  a  child,  and  his 
spirit  most  tender  and  brotherly." 


WILLIAM    BEST, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


WILLIAM  BEST  was  born  in  the  ancient 
city  of  Canterbury,  England,  in  1841,  and 
is  the  son  of  William  and  Mary  Ann  (Whitehead) 
Best.  Canterbury  was  his  fathers  native  city, 
while  his  mother  came  originally  from  Sussex, 
England.  Ariving  in  this  country  when  but  ten 
years  of  age  (in  1852),  our  subject  came  almost 
directly  to  Chicago,  and  completed  his  education 
in  the  public  schools,  gaining  a  good  commercial 
and  thoroughly  practical  education.  In  1857  h^ 
entered  the  employ  of  Messrs.  John  C.  Partridge 
&  Co.,  wholesale  tobacconists,  as  an  office  boy,  at 
a  salary  of  five  dollars  per  week.  At  the  end  of 
one  year  he  was  promoted,  and  such  was  his  abil- 
ity and  value  to  the  firm  that  he  finally  became  a 
partner  in  the  business.  Mr,  John  C.  Partridge 
dying  in  1876,  Mr.  Best  became  head  of  the  house, 
and  shortly  afterward  organized  the  firm  of  Best, 
Russell  &  Co.,  which  succeeded  to  the  business  of 
John  C.  Partridge  &  Co.  On  May  ist,  1891,  the 
concern  of  Best,  Russell  &  Co.  was  incorporated 
under  the  State  laws,  under  the  name  of  Best  & 
Russell  Company,  Mr.  Best  being  elected  presi- 
dent of  the  same. 

In  1883  Mr.  Best  was  elected  collector  of  taxes 
of  the  town  of  South  Chicago,  being  nominated 
without  his  knowledge  or  consent.  He  reluct- 
antly accepted  the  nomination  at  the  earnest  so- 
licitations of  his  friends,  and  at  the  election  which 
followed  he  ran  far  ahead  of  his  ticket,  and  that, 
too,  without  any  canvassing  or  solicitation  on  his 
part.  The  bond  which  he  furnished  amounted  to 
the  immense  sum  of  seven  million  two  hundred 
and  fifty  thousand  dollars,  and  the  seventeen  men 
who  signed  it  represented  twenty-tour  million  dol- 
lars. It  was  undoubtedly  the  largest  bond  ever 
given  in  the  West,  and  worthily  evidenced  the 


great  confidence  and  trust  reposed  in  Mr.  Best's 
honesty  and  integrity.  For  his  bond  it  must  be 
remembered  was  signed  by  business  men,  and  not, 
as  is  usually  the  case,  by  banks,  whose  recom- 
pense it  is  to  have  control  of  all  surplus  collec- 
tions. Mr.  Best  filled  his  ofifice  until  1884,  with 
great  ability  and  satisfaction  to  the  tax-payers, 
and  to  his  credit  be  it  said,  he  refused  to  retain 
the  two  per  cent,  usually  retained  by  occupants  of 
this  position. 

He  was  married  in  August,  1865,  to  Miss  Louise 
C.  Sterling,  daughter  of  Isaac  B.  Sterling,  of  Chi- 
cago. Mr.  Best  has  two  children  living — William 
and  Florence  G.  Another  daughter,  Grace  L., 
died  at  the  age  of  thirteen  years.  He.  was 
appointed  in  March,  1886,  South  Park  commis- 
sioner as  successor  to  Mr.  Bernard  Callaghan. 
The  position  came  to  him  unsolicited,  and  he  con- 
sented to  accept  it  only  upon  the  urgent  demands 
of  those  who  recognized  his  fitness  and  ability. 
The  proposition  to  extend  Michigan  avenue  boul- 
evard south  of  Thirt)--fifth  street  was  at  that  time 
a  much  discussed  topic.  Interested  parties  were 
greatly  at  variance  in  their  opinions,  and  Mr.  Best, 
though  asked  to  make  his  views  public,  with  that 
energy  and  honesty  which  are  so  characteristic  of 
him,  refused  to  state  his  views  or  how  he  would 
vote  if  he  became  a  member  of  the  board  until  he 
was  thoroughly  informed  and  understood  the  mat- 
ter in  all  its  bearings ;  and,  to  use  his  own  words, 
"  Until  I  have  so  informed  myself,  I  will  not  put 
myself  on  record  as  holding  to  any  opinion  or 
pledge  rnyself  to  vote  either  way — not  for  all  the 
ofifices  in  the  county."  This  reply  was  straight- 
forward ;  it  was  the  reply  of  a  man  accustomed  to 
weigh  well  his  motives,  and  who  never  promises 
what  he  does  not  intend  to  perform.     His  reply 


Cr't-'e^'t^ 


lUOGRArmCAL  DICTIOXARY  A.XD  /'OA'TRI/T  CAI.LERY. 


297 


jilcased  the  judges,  and  ho  was  recommended  by 
them  as  a  thoroughly  reliable  and  competent  man 
— and  he  was  elected,  giving  a  bond  (as  is  usual) 
of  fifty  thousand  dollars.  In  1887  Mr.  Best  was 
elected  president  of  the  board,  and  held  that  posi- 
tion until  the  expiration  of  his  term,  in  1891.  Ile 
was  the  unanimous  choice  of  the  Circuit  Court 
judges  to  succeed  himself  as  commissioner,  an 
action  which  reflected  Iiigh  honor  upon  Mr.  Best 
and  has  resulted  in  great  benefit  to  Chicago's  park 
system. 

In  September,  1886,  he  was  nominated  for  the 
shrievalty  of  Cook  county.  His  nomination  was 
substantially  by  acclamation,  and  was  the  result  of 
the  high  esteem  in  which  he  is  held  by  the  com- 
munity wherein  his  active  life  has  been  spent. 
When  his  name  was  mentioned  for  a  more  desira- 
ble place  than  the  sheriffs  office — one  that  would 
make  smaller  demand  upon  the  personal  attention 
— Mr.  Best  was  emphatic  in  his  refusal  to  be  con- 
sidered a  candidate.  His  nomination  for  the 
sheriff 's  office  was  an  expression  of  the  popular 
wish,  and  Mr.  Best  at  first  made  an  effort  to  accede 
to  the  popular  wish,  but  on  further  consideration 
was  forced  to  withdraw  his  name.  The  demands 
of  his  extensive  business  already  engrossed  so 
much  of  his  time  and  attention  that  to  accept  this 
office,  and  still  attend  to  his  business  affairs,  must 
have  resulted  in  great  injustice  to  one  of  these 
interests.  His  retirement  was  marked  with  the 
kindliest  feeling  of  his  party. 

Politically  a  Democrat,  he  is  one  of  the  party's 
staunchest  supporters,  but   his  business  interests 


are  so  great  and  his  time  so  fully  occupied  that 
he  is  unable  to  devote  to  party  organization  that 
attention  which  he  would  otherwise  be  glad  to 
devote. 

Socially,  he  is  connected  with  some  of  our  best 
clubs,  such  as  the  Washington  Park,  Calumet, 
Douglas,  Iroquois,  etc.  He  is  a  Mason  of  the 
thirty-second  degree  and  a  member  of  Apollo 
Commandery,  Knights  Templar. 

In  religious  faith  he  is  a  Presbyterian.  He  is  an 
attendant  at  the  Sixth  Presbyterian  Church,  and 
for  many  years  has  been  a  member  of  its  Board 
of  Trustees.  He  was  chairman  of  the  Building 
Committee  at  the  time  the  present  church  build- 
ing was  erected  at  the  corner  of  Vincennes  and 
Oak  avenues,  and  laid  the  corner-stone  of  same  on 
Tuesday,  July  8,  1879,  '^"'^  has  always  been  prom- 
inent in  all  its  affairs.  Mr.  Best  is  a  stockholder 
in  the  World's  Columbian  Exposition,  and  was 
official  proxy  holder  of  shares  subscribed  for  same 
for  the  purpose  of  electing  directors  thereof,  and 
had  sufficient  proxies  which  with  his  own  shares 
would  have  elected  him  a  director,  but  being 
president  of  the  South  Park  Board  of  Commis- 
sioners, and  knowing  that  the  "  site  "  question 
would  come  up  between  the  two  bodies,  he  chose 
to  cast  his  votes  for  others  than  himself. 

As  a  representative  of  one  of  Chicago's  great 
commercial  enterprises,  and  as  a  citizen  of  more 
than  ordinary  prominence,  William  Best  is  well 
deserving  a  place  in  a  work  which  contains  the 
biographies  and  the  history  of  Chicago's  most 
eminent  citizens  and  representative  business  men. 


ORLANDO    11.   CHENEY, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


THE  subject  of  this  sketch  was  born  at  Ash- 
tabula, Ohio,  on  Nov.  i,  1839.  His  parents, 
born  in  Massachusetts  and  Connecticut,  and  de- 
scended on  both  sides  from  old  New  England 
stock,  moved  to  Ohio  and  were  among  the  pio- 
neers in  that  State.  I  lis  elementary  education  was 
attained  in  such  schools  as  the  times  afforded. 
The  school-hou.se  he  attended,  however,  has  be- 
come an  object  of  historical  interest,  it  having 
been  the  scene  of  the  early  labors  of  the  martyred 
president,  James  A.  Garfield. 


After  mastering  the  rudiments,  he  entered  the 
Grand  River  Institute,  where  he  completed  his 
school  education  and  was  graduated.  His  incli- 
nation and  education  fitted  him  for  the  profession 
of  civil  engineering,  and  as  the  Lake  Shore  & 
Michigan  Southern  Railroad  was  then  being  con- 
structed, he  accepted  a  position  on  its  surveying 
force,  and  thus  put  his  knowledge  to  a  practical 
use. 

At  the  opening  of  the  War  of  the  Rebellion  in 
1 86 1,  he,  as  his  father  had  done  in  the  war  of 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  A.XD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


i8i2,  did  not  permit  the  first  call  for  volunteers 
to  pass  unheeded,  but  responded  to  the  call  for 
seventy-five  thousand  ninety-days  men,  and  en- 
listed on  April  16,  1861,  in  the  Nineteenth  Regi- 
ment, Ohio  Volunteers,  infantry. 

After  his  term  of  enlistment  had  expired,  he 
re-enlistcd  in  the  Eleventh  New  York  Battery, 
and  although  severely  wounded  on  July  3,  1863, 
in  the  battle  of  Gettysburg,  he  did  not  lay  down 
his  arms  until  the  surrender  of  Lee. 

In  1866  he  settled  in  Chicago,  and  has  held 
ofificial  positions  ever  since,  maintaining  through 
all  an  unspotted  record  and  a  character  above  re- 
proach.    The  positions  he  has  held  have  been : 


Assistant  County  Surveyor,  1866  to  1875;  Assis- 
tant Engineer  of  the  Street  Department,  1875  to 
1880.  In  1880  he  was  appointed  Superintendent 
of  Sewers,  and  is  still  (1892)  holding  that  position. 

In  1875  he  joined  the  Masonic  Fraternity,  and 
lias  held  all  chairs  from  the  Blue  Lodge  to 
Chapter  and  Commandery. 

On  December  21,  1871,  he  was  married  to  Miss 
Laura  McMahon.  and  has  a  family  of  four  chil- 
dren. 

Mr.  Cheney  has  a  well-developed  physique,  a 
pleasing  address  and  a  commanding  presence, 
and  a  man  whose  very  manner  marks  him  as  a 
man  of  prominence. 


HON.  ALFRED   ENNIS, 


CHICAGO.   ILL. 


THE  subject  of  this  sketch  is  a  profound 
lawyer,  argumentative  and  diplomatic,  schol- 
arly, dignified  and  accomplished,  careful,  pains- 
taking, studious  and  unassuming.  He  has  attained 
eminence  in  his  profession  and  an  honorable  place 
among  his  fellow  men.  He  has  a  well-balanced 
judgment,  and  possesses  strong  analytical  and 
logical  reasoning  power.  He  delves  deep  into 
legal  science  in  the  endeavor  to  bring  to  light 
new  facts  and  principles.  He  is  a  recognized 
authority  on  corporation  law.  He  is  broad,  com- 
prehensive and  liberal  in  his  views.  He  has  trav- 
eled extensively  and  is  well  informed.  He  is 
genial  and  makes  many  warm  friends. 

Alfred  Ennis  was  born  June  24,  1837,  in  Mor- 
gan county,  Indiana.  He  was  the  oldest  of  three 
brothers — his  brothers  being  named  Gainford 
Forrest  and  James  Paris.  His  father,  Mitchell 
Ennis,  was  a  native  of  Kentucky,  and  his  mother, 
whose  maiden  name  was  Nancy  Trent,  was  a 
native  of  Virginia.  They  were  among  the  early 
settlers  in  Central  Indiana.  They  owned  and 
resided  upon  a  farm ;  were  members  of  the 
Methodist  Church,  exemplary  citizens  and  highly 
esteemed.  Alfred  lived  upon  the  farm  with  his 
parents.  He  was  ambitious  and  progressive  and 
a  great  favorite  with  his  associates  and  acquaint- 
ances. At  the  age  of  eighteen  his  educational 
advantages  had  been  only  such  as  resulted  from 
his    own    efforts    in   studying    at   home,  evenings 


and  Sundays,  and  in  attending  a  country  school 
during  the  winter  seasons. 

In  the  fall  of  1855,  having  earned  and  saved  a 
small  sum  of  money,  he  was  enabled  to  attend 
Franklin  College,  Indiana.  While  there  he  was 
compelled  to  avoid  the  slightest  unnecessary  ex- 
pense, which  proved  good  training.  He  was  a 
faithful  and  laborious  student.  When  his  money 
was  exhausted,  he  returned  home  and  taught 
school  in  the  district  where  he  was  raised.  In  at- 
tendance at  this  school  were  many  of  his  former 
associates  and  acquaintances,  some  of  whom  were 
much  older  and  larger  than  himself.  The  school 
was  a  success.  At  its  close,  with  the  money 
earned,  he  was  enabled  to  resume  his  attendance 
at  college,  and  applied  himself  to  study  with 
more  than  his  usual  zeal.  At  the  close  of  his 
college  course  he  returned  home  and  devoted  his 
spare  time  to  study,  teaching  school  during  the 
winter  seasons.  At  the  age  of  twenty-one  he  had 
become  a  leader  in  his  community. 

In  the  summer  of  1858  he  was  offered  the  posi- 
tion, which  he  accepted,  of  salesman  in  the  dry 
goods  house  of  Messrs.  Parks  and  Hite  (Perminter 
M.  Parks  and  Milton  Hite),  the  largest  and  wealth- 
iest mercantile  firm  at  Martinsville,  the  county 
seat.  He  gave  entire  satisfaction  to  his  employ- 
ers, whose  implicit  confidence  he  gained,  and  who 
were  ever  afterward  his  most  intimate  personal 
and  business  friends. 


1 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXAKV  AXD  PORTRAIT  OALLllRV. 


301 


In  March.  1859,  Mr.  Ennis'  father  died,  leavinsj 
liis  mother  and  two  brotliers  alone  upon  the  farm. 
He  at  once  witlidrew  from  his  engagement  with 
;\Iessrs.  Parks  and  Hite,  and  returned  home, 
where  he,  with  liis  two  brothers,  took  charge  of 
and  cultivated  the  farm  that  season.  He  was  ap- 
pointed administrator  of  his  father's  estate,  which 
necessitated  his  obtaining  and  reading  the  .statutes 
of  the  State,  and  this  resulted  in  his  forming  a 
desire  to  study  law.  He  obtained  Blackstone's 
Commentaries  and  read  them  during  the  summer 
of  that  year.  When  the  greater  part  of  farm 
work  was  done  for  that  season,  he  taught  a  sub- 
scription school  in  his  home  district,  from  which 
he  realized  sufficient  money  to  enable  him  to  at- 
tend law  school. 

In  the  fall  of  1859,  having  successfully  settled 
up  his  father's  estate,  leaving  his  mother  and  two 
brothers  upon  the  farm,  he,  in  company  with  a 
young  neighboring  friend,  James  M.  Dill  (now 
Judge  Dill,  of  Hellville.  Illinois),  attended  a  law 
school  in  Indianapolis,  Indiana,  conducted  by  the 
Hons.  Jonathan  \V.  Gordon,  Napoleon  13.  Taylor 
and  John  Coburn.  At  the  close  of  this  school  he 
attended  the  law  school  of  the  Northwestern 
Christian  University,  in  the  same  city,  where  the 
Hon.  Samuel  E.  Perkins,  then  one  of  the  Judges 
of  the  Supreme  Court  of  Indiana,  was  the  profes- 
sor. At  this  school  he  entered  the  senior  class, 
and  in  the  spring  of  i860  was  graduated.  He 
again  returned  home,  wlicre  his  counsel  was  soon 
sought  by  his  friends  and  acquaintances.  He 
was  .soon  employed  to  commence  suits  and  con- 
duct trials.  His  first  case  was  of  a  novel  charac- 
ter and  without  a  precedent.  A  man  named  Hall 
seeing  a  swarm  of  bees  passing  in  the  air,  pursued 
them  some  distance,  wiien  he  succeeded  in  set- 
tling them  on  a  small  tree  on  the  land  of  a  man 
named  Hess.  Hall  returned  home  for  a  hive. 
While  gone,  Hess,  who  lived  near  by,  discovered 
the  bees,  felled  the  tree,  put  the  bees  into  a  hive, 
and  carried  them  away.  Hall  claimed  the  bees. 
Hess  refused  to  give  them  up.  Hall  applied  to 
Mr.  Ennis  for  counsel,  who  advised  the  com- 
mencement of  an  action  of  replevin.  The  action 
was  commenced.  On  the  day  of  the  trial.  Mr. 
Ennis  appeared  for  Hall.  lie  recognized  the 
fact  that  this  was  more  than  an  ordinary  event 
in  his  life,  perhaps  a  turning  point.  He  took 
the   position    that    bees,    though    fcrw    natum. 


might  be  subdued  and  reclaimed,  when  they 
would  become  the  subject  of  qualified  property 
and  ownership;  that  the  pursuing  and  settling 
the  bees  by  Hall  was  such  a  subduing  and  re- 
claiming as  to  give  him  a  qualified  property  in 
thcni.  His  reasoning  had  its  desired  effect — a 
decision  was  rendered  in  favor  of  Hall.  This  vic- 
tory was  followed  by  others.  Thus  encouraged, 
Mr.  Ennis  applied  himself  to  the  study  of  his  pro- 
fession with  renewed  hope,  energy  and  persever- 
ance. 

In  the  fall  of  i860  he  opened  an  office  at 
Martinsville,  Indiana,  the  county  seat  of  his 
native  county.  He  .soon  gained  the  reputation 
of  being  the  most  studious  and  industrious  law- 
yer, and  of  keeping  the  neatest  and  best  arranged 
office,  in  the  place.  He  was  determined  to  suc- 
ceed, consequently  gave  his  undivided  attention 
to  business,  and  was  in  almost  constant  attend- 
anceat  his  ofifice  or  in  court.  About  this  time 
Mr.  Ennis  formed  a  partnership  with  the  Hon. 
Samuel  H.  Buskirk,  subsequently  one  of  the 
Judges  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  Indiana,  a  lawyer 
of  experience  and  ability,  who  then  resided  at 
Bloomington,  Indiana,  but  attended  the  courts 
at  Martinsville. 

On  November  29,  i860,  Mr.  Ennis  was  married, 
at  Manchester,  Indiana,  to  Miss  Almarinda  Bald- 
ridge,  a  young  lady  of  high  culture  and  refine- 
ment, whose  acquaintance  he  had  formed  while 
attending  law  school.  Miss  Baldridge  was  a 
daughter  of  the  late  Rev.  Daniel  Baldridge,  a 
pioneer  minister  of  renown  in  the  Christian 
Church  of  Ohio.  She  was  a  faithful  and  devoted 
member  of  the  church,  and,  like  her  husband,  in- 
dustrious, economical,  energetic  and  persevering. 
From  this  time  forward  Mr.  Ennis  applied  him- 
self to  the  duties  of  his  profession  with  all  the 
power  he  could  command.  His  fidelity  to  clients, 
honesty  of  purpose,  and  upright  deportment  as  a 
man,  commanded  universal  respect.  He  suc- 
ceeded in  his  profession  far  beyond  his  most 
sanguine  expectations.  He  was  in  his  office  early 
and  late;  would  often  rise  in  the  morning  before 
daylight,  and,  while  his  wife  prepared  breakfast, 
.saw  and  split  a  supply  of  wood  for  the  day ;  then 
eat  his  breakfast  and  go  to  his  office  and  com- 
mence the  day's  work  while  it  was  yet  too  dark  to 
read  without  the  aid  of  a  lamp.  In  the  summer  of 
1863  the  partnership  existing  between  Mr.  Ennis 


302 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


and  Mr.  Buskirk  was  dissolved  by  mutual  consent, 
the  strongest  ties  of  friendship  and  personal  regard 
for  each  other  ever  afterward  existing. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  year  1864,  Mr.  Ennis 
formed  a  partnership  with  Hon.  Cyrus  F.  Mc- 
Nutt,  a  man  of  the  same  age,  a  classmate  both 
at  college  and  at  law  school,  and  subsequently 
professor  of  law  in  the  State  University  of  Indi- 
ana, and  now  judge  of  the  Superior  Court  at 
Terre  Haute,  Indiana.  This  partnership  was  a 
success. 

In  the  summer  of  1866,  !\Ir.  Ennis  joined  the 
Christian  Church,  and  has  since  lived  a  worthy, 
consistent  and  e.xemplary  member  thereof. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  year  1867  the  partner- 
ship existing  between  Mr.  Ennis  and  Mr.  McNutt 
was  dissolved  by  mutual  consent,  their  friendship 
continuing. 

In  the  spring  of  1867,  Mr.  Parks,  one  of  Mr. 
Ennis'  former  employers,  then  the  wealthiest  as 
well  as  the  most  prominent  and  influential  man 
in  the  county,  died.  By  the  terms  of  his  will, 
which  had  not  been  previously  made  known  to 
Mr.  Ennis,  his  estate,  consisting  of  large  banking, 
mercantile  and  farming  interests,  aggregating 
more  than  a  quarter  of  a  million  dollars,  was 
placed  under  the  exclusive  control  and  manage- 
ment of  his  executors  for  a  period  of  over 
nine  years.  So  much  confidence  had  Mr.  Parks 
in  Mr.  Ennis'  integrity  and  ability  that  in  his 
will  he  named  him  as  his  principal  executor — 
there  being  two,  one  of  Mr.  Parks'  sons,  much 
younger  than  Mr.  Ennis,  being  named  as  the 
other.  The  tenure  of  this  trust  being  so  great, 
Mr.  Ennis,  who  had  determined  to  devote  his 
entire  time  strictly  to  the  duties  of  his  profession, 
and  not  to  engage  in  any  other  business  pursuits, 
voluntarily  declined  to  accept  it. 

In  the  fall  of  1867,  Mr.  Ennis,  who  has  always 
been  the  embodiment  of  order,  system  and  regu- 
larity in  business,  and  who  has  a  critically  artistic 
taste,  refitted  and  refurnished  his  offices  in  the 
most  attractive  manner,  at  the  same  time  adding 
a  great  number  of  new  volumes  to  his  then  large 
law  library.  He  now  had  the  best  arranged  law 
offices  and  the  largest  law  library  in  the  place. 
At  this  time  his  mother  and  two  brothers 
moved  to  the  county  seat,  where  his  elder 
brother,  who  had  received  a  good  education,  en- 
gaged in  mercantile  pursuits,  his  }'oimgcr  brother 


attending   school  and  subsequently  commencing 
the  study  of  law  in  Mr.  Ennis'  office. 

In  the  spring  of  1869,  Mr.  Ennis  was  em- 
ployed to  go  abroad  in  the  interest  of  clients. 
Before  starting  he  was  presented  with  many  kind 
letters  of  introduction  and  commendation  ad- 
dressed to  prominent  men  both  in  this  country  . 
and  in  England.  Among  such  letters  was  the 
following  from  the  Hon.  Thomas  A.  Hendricks, 
late  Vice-President  of  the  United  States,  now  de- 
ceased : 

INDI.ANAPOLIS.    lND.,May2I,  1869. 
Hon.  John  E.  Rislev,  Washington,  D.  C. 

Dear  Friend:  Allow  me  to  introduce  Alfred  Ennis, 
Esq.,  a  prominent  lawyer  and  most  worthy  gentleman  of 
Morgan  county  in  this  State.  He  visits  Washington  on  his 
way  to  Europe,  and  will  make  a  short  stay.  If  you  can  make 
It  pleasant  for  him,  in  any  way,  or  aid  him  in  any  prepara- 
tions for  hisjourney,  I  shall  be  gratified. 
I  am  very  truly  yours, 

T.  A,  Hendricks. 

Mr.  Ennis  first  stopped  in  the  city  of  Liver- 
pool, where  he  saw  many  objects  of  general  in- 
terest. He  then  visited  the  city  of  Chester,  the 
oldest  inhabited  place  in  the  United  Kingdom, 
where  he  saw  many  objects  of  great  antiquity, 
some  of  which  dated  back  more  than  two 
thousand  years.  He  then  visited  the  citj'  of 
London,  where  he  remained  about  one  month. 
While  there  he  attended  sessions  of  all  the  courts, 
and  saw  their  practical  working  under  the  old 
common  law  and  equity  forms  of  procedure.  He 
was  present  at  the  trial,  before  the  House  of 
Lords,  of  the  noted  suit  of  William  Patrick  Ralston 
Shedden  and  his  daughter.  Miss  Annabella  Jean 
Shedden,  of  Scotland,  appellants,  against  Patrick 
and  the  Attorney  General,  respondents.  The 
suit  involved,  among  other  things,  the  questions 
of  whether  or  not  William  Patrick  Ralston  Shed- 
den, the  father,  was  a  legitimate  or  illegitimate 
son,  and  whether  or  not  he  was  an  alien  or  a 
British  subject.  The  arguments  for  the  appel- 
lants were  made  by  themselves  in  person,  the 
father  speaking  two  days  and  the  daughter,  Miss 
Shedden,  speaking  twenty-three  days.  While 
there  he  visited  many  places  of  general  interest, 
including  the  Houses  of  Parliament,  the  Rev.  C. 
H.  Spurgeon's  religious  temple,  where  he  heard 
that  celebrated  divine.  He  also  made  many 
acquaintances  while  there.  He  visited  George 
Peabod}'    and    Jiulali    P.    Henjamin,     the     distin- 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


303 


guished  Americans,  then  there.  Through  the 
courtes}'  of  the  Hon.  Benjamin  Moran,  at  that 
time  the  American  Secretan,-  of  Legation  in  Lon- 
don, he  was  granted  the  privileges  while  there  of 
the  reading-room  of  the  British  Museum.  The 
following  was  Mr.  Moran's  letter  of  request : 

United  States  Leg.ation,  London,  June  14,  1869. 
My  Dear  Sir:  The  bearer,  Alfred  Ennis,  Esq.,  is  an 
American  gentleman  who  has  come  highly  recommended  to 
me.  He  desires  a  card  of  admission  to  the  reading-room  of 
the  British  Museum,  and  you  will  much  oblige  me  by  grant- 
ing this  favor  to  him. 

Very  truly  yours, 

Benj.amin  Moran. 
J.  Winter    Jones,    Esq.,     Principal     Librarian    British 
Museum. 

Mr.  Ennis  visited  France,  first  stopping  in  the 
city  of  Paris.  While  there  he  attended  sessions 
of  all  the  courts,  and  saw  the  practical  adminis- 
tration of  justice  under  the  civil  law.  He  then 
visited  the  city  of  Versailles,  and  .saw  the  cele- 
brated palace  at  that  place,  and  inspected  its  im- 
mense art  galleries  and  historical  museums.  He 
then  visited  Malmaison,  and  saw  the  old  residence 
of  Napoleon  I — the  home  of  the  Empress  Jose- 
phine when  living.  He  visited  Scotland,  stopping 
in  the  cities  of  Edinburg  and  Glasgow,  where  he 
saw  much  that  was  interesting.  He  visited  Ireland, 
stopping  in  the  cities  of  Belfast,  Dublin,  Cork  and 
Queenstown.  From  Queenstown  he  sailed  for 
home,  experiencing  four  days  and  nights  of  severe 
storm  in  mid-ocean. 

In  the  fall  of  1869  he  completed  the  construc- 
tion of  one  of  the  most  elegant  residences  in  his 
native  county.  He  now  had  everj-  reason  to  feel 
that  he  was  settled  for  life.  He  had  built  up  a 
large,  and,  for  that  place,  lucrative  general  law 
practice,  giving  special  attention  to  corporation 
law.  In  the  summer  of  1870,  although  having 
previously  traveled  extensively,  he  for  the  first 
time  visited  the  State  of  Kansas,  stopping  in 
Topeka.  While  there  he  became  so  favorably 
impressed  with  the  prospective  greatness  of 
the  State  that  he  formed  a  desire  to  remove 
there.  In  the  spring  of  1871  he  again  visited 
Kansas,  this  time  accompanied  by  his  family. 
He  stopped  in  Topeka,  as  before,  and  while 
there  finally  decided  to  remove  to  that  place. 
On  his  return  home  he  at  once  commenced  to 
close  up  his  business,  preparatory  to  locating  in 
Topeka. 


On  June  29,  1871,  Mr.  Ennis,  accompanied  by 
his  family,  left  Martinsville,  Indiana,  his  former 
home,  to  take  up  his  residence  in  Topeka. 
When  starting,  and  while  on  the  platform  of  the 
railroad  depot,  he  was  visited  by  his  brother 
lawyers  of  the  place,  who,  after  bidding  him 
adieu,  as  a  further  token  of  their  high  respect 
and  esteem  for  him  formally  presented  him 
with  engrossed  preambles  and  resolutions  which 
had  been  adopted  at  a  bar  meeting  held  in  his 
absence  and  without  his  knowledge  ;  and  were 
to  the  effect  that,  as  their  brother,  with  whom 
the\-  had  been  so  long  and  pleasantly  associated, 
was  about  to  leave  them  for  another  field  of  use- 
fulness, they  deemed  it  fitting  to  express  their 
unfeigned  sorrow  and  regret  at  parting  with  him  ; 
and  that  they  cheerfully  commended  him  to  the 
courts,  to  the  members  of  the  bar,  and  to  the 
people  generally,  "  as  an  honest,  industrious  and 
able  lawyer,  a  faithful  friend,  a  valuable  citizen 
and  a  Christian  gentleman."  Hon.  William  R. 
Harrison,  whose  name  was  signed  to  the  pre- 
ambles and  resolutions  as  president,  was  the 
oldest  lawyer  in  the  place,  having  been  in  act- 
ive practice  about  thirty  years,  and  was  also  one 
of  the  most  talented  lawyers  in  the  State.  Hon. 
P.  S.  Parks,  whose  name  was  signed  to  the  same 
as  secretary,  was  the  oldest  son  of  Mr.  Ennis' 
former  employer,  a  lawyer  by  profession,  and 
at  one  time  a  resident  of  the  State  of  Kansas, 
where  he  was  a  member  of  the  constitutional  con- 
vention of  that  State  held  at  Wyandotte  in 
1859,  ^t  which  the  constitution  of  Kansas  was 
adopted,  and  was  a  man  of  noted  ability.  As  a  still 
further  evidence  of  the  high  respect  and  esteem 
with  which  Mr.  Ennis  was  regarded  in  the  place 
of  his  nativity,  he  carried  with  him  letters  of  the 
highest  commendation  from  many  leading  citizens, 
all  the  officers  of  the  county,  all  the  officers  of 
the  State,  and  the  judges  of  the  courts  in  his 
part  of  the  State. 

Mr.  Ennis  and  his  family  arrived  in  Topeka  on 
July  I,  1 87 1.  He  soon  thereafter  opened  an 
office,  and  was  immediately  favored  with  large 
retainers  by  corporations  and  others:  his  busi- 
ness soon  increased  to  a  large  and  lucrative  prac- 
tice. In  the  fall  of  1871  his  mother  and  two 
brothers  moved  to  Topeka,  where  his  elder 
brother  engaged  in  .successful  mercantile  pur- 
suits until  his  death  on   January   12,   1S74.     Mr. 


304 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Ennis  applied  himself  strictly  to  the  practice  of 
his  profession  while  in  Kansas,  giving  almost  ex- 
clusive attention  to  business  in  the  Federal  courts 
of  some  six  or  eight  States,  and  especiall}'  to  that 
branch  of  litigation  growing  out  of  the  default  of 
payment  of  municipal  and  other  corporate  se- 
curities in  the  Western  States,  and  to  railroad  and 
corporation  law  generally.  His  success  was  com- 
plete. He  had  an  extensive  acquaintance,  and  as 
a  consequence  his  clientage  was  not  alone  confined 
to  this  country,  but  extended  to  England.  His 
business  was  large  and  profitable,  and  probably 
second  to  that  of  no  law  firm  in  the  West. 

In  the  summer  of  1880,  Mr.  Ennis,  accompanied 
by  his  family,  visited  California.  He  carried  with 
him  numerous  letters  of  introduction  and  com- 
mendation from  prominent  persons,  among  which 
was  the  following  from  the  Hon.  Albert  H.  Hor- 
ton,  then  and  now  Chief  Justice  of  the  Supreme 
Court  of  Kansas,  addressed  to  the  Chief  Justice  of 
the  Supreme  Court  of  California  : 

St.^te  ok  Kansas,  Supreme  Court. 
ToPEKA,  June  18,  18S0. 
To  THE  Chief  Justice  of  California  : 

Sir:  Pardon  my  addressing  you  without  acquaintance, 
but  as  our  townsman,  Hon.  Alfred  Ennis,  is  about  to  visit  your 
State,  I  desire  to  commend  him  to  your  confidence  and  atten- 
tion. Mr.  Ennis  is  one  of  the  ablest  lawyers  in  Kansas,  is  a 
gentleman  of  high  character,  and  greatly  esteemed  by  all 
acquainted  with  him.  He  has  won  distinction,  especially  in 
the  litigation  of  railroad  and  other  securities,  and  has  an  ex- 
tensive practice  in  this  and  in  the  adjoining  States. 
Respectfully, 

.Albert  H  Horton. 

Also  equally  complimentary  letters  from  the 
Hon.  John  F.  Dillon,  late  United  States  Circuit 
Judge  for  the  Eighth  Circuit,  addressed  to  the 
Hon.  S.  J.  Field,  then  and  now  one  of  the  Jus- 
tices of  the  United  States  Supreme  Court,  and 
the  Hon.  Lorenzo  Sawyer,  Judge  of  the  United 
States  Circuit  Court  for  the  Ninth  Circuit ;  from 
the  Hon.  Cassius  G.  Foster,  then  and  now 
United  States  District  Judge  for  the  District  of 
Kansas,  addressed  to  the  Hon.  Ogden  Hoffman 
and  the  Hon.  Mathew  ?.  Deady,  United  States 
District  Judges,  the  former  for  the  District  of 
California  and  the  latter  for  the  District  of  Ore- 
gon ;  and  from  the  officials  of  the  Mis.souri  Pacific 
and  the  Atchison,  Topeka  and  Santa  Fe  Railway 
companies,  addressed  to  the  officials  of  the  Centi-al 
Pacific  and  the  Southern  Pacific  Railway  com- 
panies. 


In  the  summer  of  1882,  Mr.  Ennis,  accompanied 
by  his  family,  took  up  his  temporary  residence 
in  Boston,  where  he  attended  to  business  inter- 
ests and  law  practice  that  had  made  it  necessary 
for  him  to  go  there,  and  where,  meantime,  his 
children  received  the  educational  advantages  of 
that  city.  In  the  fall  of  1883  it  became  necessary 
for  him  to  be  in  New  York  City  for  some  time ; 
hence,  accompanied  by  his  family,  he  went  there, 
where  he  remained  until  the  spring  of  1884,  when, 
by  previous  arrangement  he  came  to  Chicago,  and 
took  charge  of  the  legal  department  of  Pull- 
man's Palace  Car  Company  as  general  counsel  of 
the  company.  He  carried  with  him  to  Chicago 
many  highly  complimentary  letters  from  men  of 
high  standing  in  Boston,  in  New  York  and  in 
other  cities,  among  which  letters  was  one  from 
the  Hon.  Archibald  L.  Williams,  of  Topeka,  Kan- 
sas, ex-Attorney  General  of  Kansas,  and  then 
and  now  counsel  for  the  Union  Pacific  Railway 
Company,  an  able  lawyer,  and  from  whose  letter 
the  following  quotation  is  made:  "  Hon.  Alfred 
Ennis  is  a  first-class  lawyer,  and  as  counsel  for 
corporations  is  invaluable.  I  have  frequently 
been  associated  with,  and  still  more  frequently 
opposed  to,  him  in  large  corporation  cases,  and  I 
know  few  men  more  valuable  as  an  associate  or 
more  formidable  as  an  adversary." 

Mr.  Ennis  removed  his  family  to  Chicago,  where 
they  have  since  resided.  His  family  consisted  of 
his  wife,  an  only  son,  Walter  B.,  and  three  daugh- 
ters, Lilie  A.,  Luna  May  and  Alma  Viola. 

Mr.  Ennis,  as  general  counsel,  conducted  the 
large  business  of  the  legal  department  of  the 
Pullman  Company  for  about  five  years,  achieving 
the  greatest  success.  During  the  time  named  the 
business  in  his  charge  aggregated  many  million 
dollars,  and  included  many  thousand  miscellane- 
ous and  contested  matters,  and  many  hundred  law- 
suits throughout  the  United  States,  Canada  and 
Mexico,  on  account  of  all  of  which  under  his 
management  the  company  had  to  pay  less  than 
two-thirds  of  one  per  cent,  upon  the  amounts  in- 
volved. About  the  close  of  the  year  18S8  Mr. 
Ennis  resigned  from  the  position  of  general  coun- 
sel of  the  Pullman  Company,  retaining  the  highest 
respect  and  esteem  of  the  officers  and  all  others 
connected  with  the  company. 

In  pursuance  of  previous  plans,  on  May  i.  1S89, 
he  opened  offices  in  "  The  Rookery,"  in  Chicago, 


BIOGRAriUCAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  POKTRAIT  uALLERV. 


305 


for  the  practice  of  law,  and  especially  with  the 
view  of  associating  with  himself  as  a  partner  in 
the  practice  his  son,  Walter  B.,  who  was  studying 
law,  and,  although  in  delicate  health,  was  thor- 
oughly educated  and  a  young  man  of  sterling 
qualities  and  of  great  promise,  and  to  whom  Mr. 
Ennis  and  his  family  looked  forward  with  the 
brightest  hopes  ;  but  before  he  regained  his 
health,  and  before  he  was  able  to  enter  upon  tlic 
duties  of  his  chosen  profession,  he  died,  on  March 
31,  1S90.  Since  the  death  of  his  son  Mr.  Ennis 
has  endeavored  to  confine  his  practice  to  corpo- 
ration law. 

He  occasionally,  upon  special  requests,  pre- 
pares and  delivers  an  address  upon  subjects  of 
current  interest.  He  read  before  the  Illinois 
State  Bar  Association,  at  its  twelfth  annual  meet- 
ing, an  exhaustive  paper  upon,  the  subject  of 
"Commerce:  Intra-State  and  Inter-State;  Its 
Regulation  and  Taxation."  He  also  read,  on  the 
occasion  of   the  banquet  at  the  twelfth   annual 


meeting  of  the  American  Bar  Association,  a 
complimentary  sentiment  upon  the  subject  of 
"  The  American  Bar  Association." 

Mr.  Ennis'  daughters  are  highly  educated  and 
accomplished  j-oung  ladies,  having  been  graduated 
at  Dearborn  Seminary  in  Chicago,  and  at  Miss 
Brown's,  in  New  York,  besides  having  received 
special  instruction  in  special  branches  of  study. 

His  mother  resides  in  Chicago  and  his  brother 
in  New  York. 

Mr.  Ennis  has  been  for  many  years  a  Mason  of 
the  higher  degrees — Royal  Arch,  Knights  Tem- 
lar  and  Scottish  Rite.  He  is  a  member  of  the 
City,  State,  American  and  National  bar  asso- 
ciations. 

In  politics  he  has  always  been  a  Democrat. 
While  of  positive  political  opinions,  he  favors 
strict  economy  and  practical  reform  in  the  man- 
agement of  public  affairs,  municipal,  state  and 
national.  His  efforts  have  been  blessed.  He  has 
a  large  business  and  a  most  desirable  clientage. 


JAMES  SAGER   NORTON, 


CHIC..\GO.    ILL. 


THE  professional  man  who  has  the  advantage 
of  an  earlj-  and  liberal  education,  an  exten- 
sive and  varied  course  of  reading,  and  whose  well- 
developed  mind  has  been  enlarged  by  considera- 
ble travel,  possesses  many  advantages  over  his 
less  fortunate  associates.  By  study  he  has  culti- 
vated his  intelligence,  and  by  intercourse  with 
others  he  has  gained  experience. 

James  Sager  Norton,  gifted  with  more  than 
ordinary  ability,  afforded  early  opportunity  for 
study,  and  who  finished  his  academic  course  with 
foreign  travel,  is  to-day  amongst  the  most  promi- 
nent professional  men  of  this  city.  He  was  born 
December  6,  1S44,  at  Lockport,  111.  His  parents 
were  Hiram  Norton  and  Elizabeth,  iii'e  Sager, 
both  of  whom  were  descended  from  highly  re- 
spected families.  His  father  was  a  grain  mer- 
chant at  Lockport,  and  the  proprietor  of  the 
Norton  Mills.  Young  Norton  received  his  ele- 
mentary education  at  the  public  school,  and  later 
at  a  select  school  in  his  native  town.  He  was 
afterwards  entered  at  Kenyon  College,  Gambicr. 
Ohio,  where  he  proved  himself  to  be  an   earnest 


and  careful  student.  His  progress  was  such  that 
his  parents  determined  to  send  him  to  Yale, 
where  he  graduated  with  honor  in  the  class  of 
1865.  A  docile  student,  a  cheerful  companion 
and  a  careful  and  accurate  reader,  his  training 
and  culture  reflect  credit  on  his  professors. 

Being  twentv-one  years  of  age,  he  resolved  on 
making  the  law  his  future  profession,  and,  after  a 
year  of  travel  in  Europe  entered  himself  as  a 
student  in  the  Columbia  Law  School,  New  York 
City,  where  he  made  considerable  progress  in  the 
study  of  the  theory  of  law. 

When  Mr.  Norton  completed  his  course  at  the 
law  school,  he  chose  Chicago  as  his  residence,  and 
entered  the  law  office  of  Scammon,  McCagg  and 
Fuller.  Here  he  gave  evidence  of  the  ability 
which  he  has  since  developed.  He  was  admitted 
to  practice  in  186S,  his  first  association  being  with 
Benjamin  D.  Magruder,  then  Master  in  Chancery, 
and  now  Judge  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  this 
State.  He  was  afterwards  associated  for  many 
years  with  John  N.  Jcwett,  under  the  firm  name 
of  Jewett  &   Norton.     The  present  firm  of  Nor- 


3o6 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


ton,  Burley  &  Howell  (Clarence  A.  Burley  and  J. 
W.  Howell),  was  formed  January  i,  1888.  The 
firm  has  a  large  and  lucrative  practice,  principally 
in  real  estate  and  corporation  law.  As  a  lawyer 
he  is  careful,  conscientious  and  painstaking,  pos- 
sessed of  a  high  degree  of  honor,  and  in  all  his 
transactions  a  man  of  uncompromising  integrity. 
In  his  statement  of  a  case  he  is  clear,  concise 
and  accurate  :  in  his  argument  brief,  logical  and 
convincing.  He  seldom  attempts  any  rhetorical 
display,  but  when  he  does,  his  style  is  florid, 
pleasing  and  attractive.  He  has  the  art  of  using 
his  extensive  reading  to  adorn  and  illustrate  with- 
out revealing  the  art  or  labor  of  rhetoric. 

In  politics.  Mr.  Norton  is  independent.  He  be- 
lieves in  casting  his  ballot  for  the  most  deserving 
candidate,  whatever  his  politics.  His  extensive 
travels  through  this  country  have  shown  him  that 
party  atifiliations,  strictly  followed,  are  not  always 
for  the  people's  benefit. 


He  is  a  member  of  many  social  and  literary 
clubs,  amongst  them  the  Chicago,  the  Union,  the 
University  and  the  Literary.  He  has  been  presi- 
dent of  the  Literary-  Club,  and  is  now  president 
of  the  Civil  Service  Reform  Club.  In  literar}- 
and  political  circles  Mr.  Norton  has  a  high  repu- 
tation. He  is  averse  to  controversy,  but  is  a 
powerful  adversary  and  an  able  exponent.  In 
social  circles  and  in  post-prandial  efforts,  he  is 
very  happy.  His  wit  and  humor,  graceful  diction 
and  felicitous  allusions  sparkle  in  ever>'  sentence. 

In  October,  1873,  Mr.  Norton  married  Miss 
Frances  Rumsey.  daughter'of  George  F.  Rumsey, 
Esq.,  of  this  city.  They  have  two  daughters  liv- 
ing. Besides  his  residence  here  he  has  also  a 
summer  residence  at  Lake  Geneva,  where  he  en- 
joys, after  his  professional  duties,  the  company  of 
his  accomplished  wife  and  daughters,  whom  it  is 
his  greatest  pleasure  to  surround  with  ever)-  com- 
fort and  luxury. 


EDWARD   B.  BUTLER, 


CHICAGO,  ILL. 


EDWARD  B.  BUTLER,  one  of  the  direct- 
ors of  the  World's  Columbian  Exposition, 
is  a  native  of  the  Pine  Tree  State,  and  was  born  at 
Lewiston,  December  16,  1853.  When  he  was 
five  years  old  his  family  removed  to  Boston,  where 
he  received  such  education  as  was  afforded  by 
the  grammar  and  high  schools  of  that  city.  He 
was  brought  up  to  work,  and  between  school 
hours  assisted  his  father,  who  was  engaged  in  the 
retail  grocery  business.  This  may  be  said  to  be 
his  first  mercantile  experience,  but  at  the  age  of 
sixteen  he  left  school  and  engaged  with  a  whole- 
sale dr>'  goods  and  notion  house,  where,  filling 
successively  the  usual  positions  of  bundle-boy, 
packer,  entry  clerk  and  shipper,  he  became  a 
traveling  salesman  for  the  house  at  the  early  age 
of  eighteen.  The  next  five  years,  engaged  as 
a  commercial  traveler,  first  through  New  England 
and  Canada,  and  afterward  in  the  Western  States, 
are  regarded  by  Mr.  Butler  as  among  the  most 
important  of  his  life,  because  of  the  practical 
knowledge  of  business  and  merchants  thus  gained, 
and  which  it  seems  impossible  to  acquire  in  any 
other  way. 


In  1877  he  returned  to  Boston,  and  with  his 
brother,  George  H.  Butler,  started  in  business 
under  the  firm  name  of  Butler  Brothers,  their 
brother,  Charles  H.,  joining  them  a  year  later. 
The  coming  together  of  these  three  brothers 
meant  certain  ultimate  success,  but  a  history 
of  the  marvelous  and  extremely  rapid  growth  of 
this  house  would  read  almost  like  a  fairy  tale. 
At  first  the  firm  dealt  only  in  notions  and  small 
wares,  and  except  that  its  members  were  unusu- 
ally alert  and  active,  its  business  was  not  materi- 
ally different  from  that  of  a  dozen  other  firms 
then  engaged  in  a  similar  line  of  trade. 

In  January,  1878,  however,  a  decided  and  rad- 
ical change  was  made,  an  innovation  so  abrupt 
and  original  in  the  methods  of  doing  business  as 
to  place  this  firm  prominently  before  the  mercan- 
tile world  as  the  creators  of  a  new  line  of  trade  so 
peculiarly  its  own  as  to  necessitate  for  it  a  new 
classification  in  the  business  directory  of  that  day. 
They  inaugurated  among  the  retailers  of  America 
the  "  five-cent  counter  plan,"  a  method  which 
in  itself  seemed  so  trifling  as  to  appear  but  a 
passing   "  bright  idea  " — a   mere  incident   in  mer- 


rku^%a_d^   \\cr^ 


BIOGRAPHICAL  D/CTIOXARV  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


309 


chandising — yet  which  has  proven  tlie  foundation 
of  the  wonderfully  successful  "  department  stores  " 
of  the  present  day.  The  business  increased  with 
great  strides  to  marvelous  proportions,  since 
merchants  everywhere,  from  the  Atlantic  to  the 
Pacific,  were  practically  dependent  upon  this  one 
house  for  their  "  department  store  "  goods.  The 
idea  of  supplying  thousands  of  articles  which 
could  be  retailed  at  a  uniform  price  was  hardly 
more  novel  than  the  radical  departure  from  exist- 
ing business  methods  which  the  firm  of  Butler 
Brothers  made  in  its  manner  of  soliciting  trade. 
Instead  of  sending  out  a  great  number  of  travel- 
ing men.  they  issued  a  comprehensive  catalogue, 
stjled  by  them  •"  Our  Drummer,"  which,  growing 
with  the  business,  is  to-day  without  doubt  the 
most  original  and  effective  publication  of  its  kind 
in  the  world.  Mr.  Butler  is  now  president  of  the 
corporation — still  retaining  the  name  of  Butler 
Brothers — which  he,  with  his  brothers,  now  dead, 
founded ;  with  two  houses,  one  in  New  York 
and  the  other  in  Chicago,  employing  more  than 
three  hundred  men,  and  doing  d  yearly  business 
of  more  than  five  million  dollars.  In  order  to 
give  some  idea  of  the  magnitude  of  the  adver- 
tising features  of  this  house,  we  will  state  that 
last  year  upward  of  forty  thousand  dollars  were 
paid  for  postage  stamps  for  mailing  the  cata- 
logue from  their  Chicago  house  alone.  To  origi- 
nate, establish  and  carry  to  a  successful  issue  such 
a  scheme  requires  peculiar  endowments  in  the 
man  who  has  so  succeeded.  Mr.  Butler  is  the  pos- 
sessor of  the  qualifications  needed.  He  is  cool 
and  deliberate  in  his  judgment,  a  good  judge  of 
men,  far-sighted  and  clear  in  his  views  of  men  and 
events.  He  is  a  man  of  courage,  combined  with 
that  energy  and  perseverance  that  will  overcome 
difificulties.      To  these    qualities    he    adds  a   sa- 


gacity and  self-possession  which  enables  him  to 
employ  his  powers  to  the  best  advantage  in  all 
the  affairs  of  life.  The  world  owes  much  to  such 
men.  He  is  one  of  those  who  will  behave  with 
moderation  under  both  good  fortune  and  bad ; 
who  will  know  how  to  be  exalted  and  how  to 
be  abased ;  neither  excessively  elated  with  suc- 
cess, nor  cast  down  by  failure.  He  is  graceful 
and  dignified  in  person  and  manner,  and  culti- 
vated in  his  tastes,  which  of  course  he  can  gratify. 
He  takes  a  special  interest  in  all  matters  pertain- 
ing to  moral  progress,  and  contributes  liberally 
of  his  money  to  the  support  of  every  worthy 
cause,  having  lately  erected  a  building  containing 
a  picture  gallery,  a  reading-room  and  branch  of 
the  Public  Library-,  and  donated  it  to  the  Hull 
House  settlement,  which  is  located  in  the  midst 
of  Chicago's  poor,  in  the  southwestern  portion  of 
the  city.  The  supervision  of  the  immense  busi- 
ness, as  well  as  several  private  enterprises,  and  as 
director  in  a  bank  and  trustee  in  four  public 
institutions,  together  with  his  duties  as  vice-chair- 
man of  the  Ways  and  Means  Committee  of  the 
World's  Columbian  E.xposition,  combine  to  make 
Mr.  Butler  one  of  the  extremely  busy  men  of 
Chicago.  He  is,  however,  always  accessible  to 
visitors,  and  receives  all  with  cordial  and  un- 
feigned courtesy.  He  is  a  lover  of  the  fine  arts, 
and  has  a  gallery  at  his  residence,  in  which  are 
hung  many  fine  paintings.  He  is  known  to  be  an 
open-handed  giver,  particularly  to  objects  which 
aim  to  help  the  poor  to  help  themselves,  and  im- 
prove the  mental  and  moral  condition  of  men. 

Mr.  Butler  was  married  in  18S0  to  Miss  Jennie 
Holley,  of  Nor\valk,  Connecticut,  a  lady  of  rare 
attainments,  added  to  much  beauty  of  person  and 
character,  and  who  is  greatly  admired  by  a  wide 
circle  of  friends. 


CHARLES   FRANCIS   DAVIES, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


THE  subject  of  this  biography  is  one  of  the  attention,  there  are  few  lawyers  who  are  better 
most  substantial  young  lawyers  practicing  posted  than  he. 
at  the  Chicago  bar.  He  is  well  versed  in  all  the  He  was  born  February  20,  1865,  at  Urbana, 
elemcntar>-  principles  of  the  law,  as  well  as  the  Illinois,  and  is  the  son  of  Benjamin  M.  and  Eliza- 
technicalities  and  subtlctit.'s  of  his  profession,  and  beth  (Cook)  Davies.  His  father  is  a  wealth)-  re- 
in  corporation  law,  to  which  he  has  given  special  tired   lumberman.     Charles    Francis  commenced 


3IO 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARV  A.XD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


his  education  in  the  pubHc  schools.  He  spent 
four  years  in  Washburn  College,  at  Topeka,  Kan- 
sas, and  was  graduated  from  that  institution  in 
1884.  During  the  last  two  years  he  was  in  col- 
lege he  not  only  kept  up  his  classical  and  scien- 
tific studies,  but  also  found  considerable  time  to 
devote  to  the  study  of  the  law  in  the  office  of  an 
attorney  at  Topeka.  He  after\vards  attended  the 
Yale  Law  College  two  years,  and  was  graduated 
therefrom  in  1886.  He  was  then  admitted  to  the 
bar,  and  immediately  settled  in  Chicago,  where 
he  has  practiced  law  alone  ever  since  with  excel- 
lent   success.     He    now    has    a    lar^e    clientage 


among  the  wealthy  citizens  and  large  corpora- 
tions of  Chicago,  occup\-ing  an  elegant  suite  of 
offices  in  the  Rookery  building,  and  enjoying  a 
luxurious  'home  on  Prairie  avenue  agreeably  envi- 
roned. He  is  now  reaping  the  reward  of  his  years 
of  hard  study  and  early  industry.  Mr.  Davies  is 
a  member  of  the  Union  League  Club,  the  Carle- 
ton  Club,  and  the  Union  Veteran  League  Club. 

He  was  married  in  1886  to  Miss  Lena  Tipton, 
of  Jacksonville,  Illinois,  a  highly  educated  lady, 
finely  accomplished  in  music,  painting  and  draw- 
ing. They  have  two  children :  BenAlla  Francis 
and  LuBcth  Marjjurite. 


CHARLES    FREDERICK    GUNTHER. 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


AMONG  the  men  who  have  visited  most 
quarters  of  the  globe  and  made  use  of  the 
artistic,  scientific  and  practical  knowledge  that 
they  had  thus  obtained,  for  the  benefit  of  their 
fellow-men,  none  is  more  favorably  known,  nor 
has  made  better  use  of  their  advantages,  thus  ob- 
tained, for  the  city  of  Chicago  and  its  inhabitants, 
than  has  the  subject  of  this  biograph}\  He  was 
born  in  Wildberg,  a  beautiful  town  located  in  the 
celebrated  "  Black  Forest "  district  of  W'Urtem- 
berg.  South  Germany,  on  March  6,  1837.  When 
a  lad  of  five  years,  his  parents  immigrated  to 
the  United  States,  the  ocean  voyage  occupj-ing 
fifty-two  days  between  Havre  and  New  York. 
They  finally  settled  at  Columbia,  Lancaster 
County,  Pennsylvania.  In  1848,  the  family 
moved  to  the  mountain  district  in  Somerset 
county,  and  it  was  here  and  in  the  place  of  their 
previous  residence  that  Charles  obtained  his  ele- 
mentary education,  by  attending  pri\ate  schools. 
Our  subject  early  in  life  showed  those  traits  of  in- 
dependence and  love  of  adventure  and  travel 
that  have  characterized  his  later  life,  and  when 
but  a  mere  child  he  made  daily  journeys  over  the 
mountains,  carrj^ing  the  United  States  mail.  His 
daily  trip  was  twenty  miles  and  return.  For  this 
service  he  received  twenty-five  cents  per  diem. 

In  the  spring  of  1850  the  family  removed  to 
Peru,  Illinois,  journeying  by  the  Pennsylvania 
canal  to  Pittsburg,  thence  by  the  rivers  to  St. 
Louis,  and  thence  up  to   the   headwaters   of  the 


Illinois  river.  Here  young  Gunther  attended  pri- 
vate and  public  schools,  and  at  an  early  age  be- 
gan his  business  career  in  a  general  store,  which  he 
soon  left  to  accept  a  position  in  a  drug  store.  He 
became  a  competent  drug  clerk,  and  also  studied 
the  rudiments  of  medical  science.  His  next  po- 
sition was  in  the  post  office  at  Peru,  where  he  be- 
came manager  of  the  office.  Following  that  he 
became  an  employe  in  the  bank  of  Alexander 
Cruickshank,  who  represented  the  famous  banking 
house  of  George  Smith  and  Co.  of  Chicago.  He 
remained  with  this  firm  five  years,  and  after  three 
years  in  their  employ,  was  made  cashier  of  the 
bank.  In  those  days  Peru  was  a  great  ice  pack- 
ing depot,  whence  large  quantities  of  this  com- 
modity' were  shipped  to  southern  cities.  Young 
Gunther,  through  his  business  relations,  became 
intimately  acquainted  with  prominent  business 
men  of  the  South,  which  at  that  time  offered 
great  opportunities  to  an  ambitious  young  man. 
Resigned  his  position  in  the  early  fall  of  i860,  he 
went  thither,  and  after  visiting  all  of  the  leading 
cities  of  the  Southern  states,  settled  in  Memphis, 
accepting  a  position  with  Messrs.  Bohlen,  Wilson 
and  Co.,  the  leading  ice  firm  in  the  South.  The 
opening  of  the  war  of  the  Rebellion  about  this 
time,  paralyzed  mercantile  business  in  the  South. 
After  the  firing  upon  Fort  Sumter  and  the 
proclamation  by  President  Lincoln,  closing  the 
ports  of  all  Southern  cities,  a  majority  of  the 
population  of  the  South  enlisted  in  the  Confeder- 


BTOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  CALLER Y. 


313 


;iic  Army,  and  many  of  the  "  Sons  of  the  North  " 
fled  from  the  southern  territory.  Not  so  with  Mr. 
Gunther;  he  believed,  witli  many  others  in  tlie 
South,  that  the  trouble  would  be  short  lived,  and 
remained  faithfully  at  his  post.  When  the  block- 
ade became  effective  and  all  mercantile  pursuits 
practically  dead,  he  accepted  a  position  on  the 
Arkansas  River  steamer,  "  Rose  Dout^las,"  in  the 
service  of  the  Confederate  Government,  as  pur- 
chasing steward  and  subsequently  as  purser.  He 
navigated  all  of  the  southern  rivers  tributary 
to  the  Mississippi,  transporting  troops,  conscripts 
and  supplies.  By  the  capture  of  Memphis  and 
New  Orleans,  this  steamer,  while  up  the  Arkansas 
river  was  blockaded,  and  afterward  was  captured 
and  burned  at  \'an  Huren,  Arkansas,  by  Gen. 
Blunt's  army,  consisting  principally  of  Kansas 
troops.  Mr.  Gunther,  upon  being  liberated,  was 
courteously  entertained  at  the  headquarters  of 
the  commanding  general,  and  also  at  the  head- 
quarters of  his  successor.  Gen.  Scofield.  He  next 
journeyed  northward  to  Fort  Scott  and  thence 
to  Fort  Leavenworth,  traveling  partly  on  horse- 
back and  partly  on  a  captured  coach,  there  being 
then  no  railroads  in  that  part  of  Missouri  and 
Kansas.  Returning  to  his  old  home  in  Peru,  he 
remained  there  three  days  and  then  accepted  a 
position,  for  a  short  time,  in  a  bank  at  Peoria, 
made  vacant  by  the  temporary  illness  of  an  em- 
ploye. 

He  next  accepted  a  situation  as  traveling  sales- 
man for  the  wholesale  confectionery  of  C.  \^^ 
Sanford,  of  Chicago,  and  became  one  of  the  first 
representatives  of  Chicago  that  sold  goods 
throughout  the  South.  He  placed  large  amounts 
of  goods  in  the  cities  of  the  reconstructed  South 
and  he  also  represented  the  firm  in  the  States 
of  Ohio,  Michigan,  Indiana,  West  Virginia  and 
Kentucky.  It  was  while  employed  as  a  traveling 
salesman  that  he  made  his  first  trip  to  Europe 
and  so  familiarized  himself  with  European  lan- 
guages and  customs  that  he  was  afterward  en- 
abled to  converse  fluently  with  those  of  his  cus- 
tomers whi>  had  been  reared  on  the  other  side  of 
the  Atlantic. 

Tempted  by  an  increased  salary  he  next  en- 
tered the  employ  of  Thompson,  Johnson  and  Co., 
wholesale  grocers  on  South  Water  street.  He 
represented  the  house  in  the  West  for  two  years, 
but    finding    the    business    uncongenial    he    re- 


turned to  the  line  in  which  he  had  become  so 
prominent,  and  became  the  Chicago  representa- 
tive of  Messrs.  Greenfield,  Young  and  Co.,  the 
leading  New  York  confectioners,  for  whom  his 
travels  covered  the  New  England,  MiilcUe  and 
Western  States. 

In  the  fall  of  1868  he  opened  a  retail  store  at 
No.  125  Clark  street,  Chicago,  on  his  own  account, 
it  being  the  first  establishment  ojiened  in  Chi- 
cago introducing  high  grade  confections. 

Mr.  Gunther  was  the  first  confectioner  to  man- 
ufacture and  introduce  the  famous  caramels  as 
now  made  and  sold  throughout  the  United  States 
and  Europe,  a  fact  in  which  betakes  a  justifiable 
pride. 

The  general  conflagration  of  1871  totally  de- 
stroyed his  establishment  and  left  him  absolutely 
without  resources,  but  with  characteristic  enter- 
prise he  immediately  reopened  business  in  a  small 
way  and  soon  recuperated  his  losses,  and  was  re- 
warded with  great  subsequent  success. 

Mr.  Gunther  has  a  decided  inclination  for  ad- 
venture and  travel,  and  has  visited  all  the  ex- 
positions of  note  in  Europe,  and  he  has  traveled 
in  every  country  from  the  land  of  the  "  midnight 
sun"  to  Constantinople  and  Damascus;  he  has 
also  journeyed  to  the  Holy  Land,  through  Egypt, 
Syria  and  the  countries  lying  adjacent  to  the 
Mediterranean,  including  Morocco,  Algeria,  Tri- 
poli, Spain,  Portugal,  Italy  and  Turkey.  He 
speaks  French,  German  and  Spanish  fluently,  and 
he  is  perfectly  at  home  in  all  of  the  capitals  of 
Europe. 

In  1879  ^I""-  Gunther  was  one  of  a  commission 
organized  to  make  a  tour  of  Mexico  with  a  view 
to  opening  trade  relations  between  the  two  repub- 
lics, that  up  to  that  time  had  been  very  incon- 
siderable. On  that  tour,  which  was  one  contiual 
ovation,  he  acquired  much  useful  information. 
The  result  of  the  commission's  work  was  to  call 
the  attention  of  our  merchants  to  the  advantages 
derivable  from  trade  relations  with  this  sister 
republic,  which  at  that  time  had  no  railroad  con- 
nections with  the  United  States. 

Mr.  Gunther  has  indulged  his  innate  love  for 
historical  and  scientific  research  to  the  fullest  ex- 
tent, and  has  secured  the  finest  historical  collec- 
tion in  the  United  States.  This  collection  com- 
prises manuscripts  of  the  most  ancient  writings  of 
the  world,  from  the  stone  rolls  of  the  Assyrian  of 


314 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AND  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


the  Babylonian  period,  and  in  fact,  parchments 
and  writings  on  papyrus  from  the  days  of  the 
earhest  Pharaohs  down  to  modern  times.  He 
undoubtedly  possesses  the  rarest  and  finest  collec- 
tion of  Bibles  in  the  world,  including  the  famous 
Martha  Washington  Bible,  also  that  of  Washing- 
ton's sister  Betty,  also  the  first  New  Testament 
printed  in  the  English  language  at  Worms,  Ger- 
many, by  Tindal,  about  1528,  and  all  of  the  first 
Bibles  printed  on  the  American  continent,  includ- 
ing the  Elliot  Indian  Bibles,  and  the  first  German 
Bible,  by  Sauer,  1743,  and  the  first  American  Bible 
by  Atkinson,  1782.  He  also  owns  historic  man- 
uscripts of  all  nations  of  many  centuries  past,  in- 
cluding an  autograph  of  Shakespeare  and  origi- 
nal manuscripts  of  Goethe,  Schiller,  Tasso,  Michael 
Angelo,  Gallileo,  Moliere,  and  many  others ;  also 
original  manuscripts  of  all  the  world's  famous 
writers,  poets,  musicians,  kings,  queens,  clergy- 
men and  politicians,  including  the  original  manu- 
scripts of  "Home  Sweet  Home,"  "Old  Lang 
Syne,"  "  Old  Grimes"  and  "  Lead,  Kindly  Light." 
He  also  has  all  the  earlist  maps  of  America  from 
1507  up,  and  the  first  edition  of  the  Cosmographie 
of  Martin  Waldseemuller  which  was  the  first  book 
that  gave  the  name  of  America  to  the  New 
World  ;  also  a  large  number  of  relics  of  George 
Washington,  covering  his  entire  career,  as  well  as 
of  Abraham  Lincoln,  and  of  all  other  American 
historical  characters. 

His  collection  also  includes  the  famous  portrait 
of  Columbus  by  Sir  Antonio  Moro,  painted  about 
1552,  from  two  miniatures  then  in  possession  at 
the  Palace  of  Pardos,  Spain.  Washington  Irving 
pronounced  this  the  best  and  truest  likeness  of 
Columbus  extant,  and  used  an  engraved  copy  of 
it  (afterwards  destroyed  by  fire)  as  a  frontispiece 
for  his  second  revised  English  edition  of  his 
"  Life  of  Columbus."  The  collection  also  con- 
tains six  original  portraits  of  Washington,  in- 
cluding the  first  ever  made  of  him,  by  the  elder 
Peale,  and  the  only  portrait  in  existence  of  Wash- 
ington's sister  Betty  and  her  husband. 

One  of  the  greatest  attractions  that  is  at 
present  on  exhibition  in  Chicago,  and  one  that 
will  doubtless  excite  the  interest  of  the  many 
thousands  that  will  visit  the  Columbian  Expo- 
sition, is  the  W^ar  Museum  contained  in  the 
celebrated  Libby  Prison,  that  was  several  years 
ago   removed    to   Chicago   from    Richmond,   Vir- 


ginia. This  vast  undertaking  was  successfully 
accomplished  by  Mr.  Gunther,  associated  with  Mr. 
W.  H.  Gray  and  other  public-spirited  men  of 
Chicago,  and  to  them  Chicago  is  indebted  for  the 
finest  collection  of  war  relics  on  the  American 
continent.  The  great  collection  of  interesting 
and  historical  war  relics  with  which  the  Libby 
Prison  is  filled  is  the  private  property  of  Mr. 
Gunther,  and  is  loaned  by  him  to  the  associa- 
tion. 

Mr.  Gunther  is  president  of  The  Libby  Prison 
War  Museum  Association,  also  a  prominent  mem- 
ber of  the  Chicago  Historical  Society,  and  a 
trustee  of  the  Academy  of  Science.  He  is  a 
member  of  the  Union  League  and  Iroquois  Clubs. 
He  became  a  Master  Mason  in  Peru,  111.,  in  i860, 
and  during  his  thirty-one  years'  membership  he 
has  passed  through  many  degrees,  including  the 
Knights  Templar,  Oriental  Consistory  (thirty- 
second  degree)  and  Sovereign  Grand  Inspector- 
General  of  the  thirty-third  and  last  degree  of  the 
Northern  Jurisdiction,  U.  S.  A.  He  is  also  a 
member  of  the  Mystic  Shrine. 

In  1869,  he  was  marrried  to  Miss  Jennie  Bur- 
nell,  of  Lima,  Indiana.  They  have  two  sons — 
Burnell,  now  a  student  at  Berlin,  Germany,  and 
Paris,  twenty  years  old ;  and  Whitman,  aged 
eighteen.  Mrs.  Gunther  is  a  highly  educated  and 
refined  woman,  active  in  charitable  and  religious 
work.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Gunther  are  active  members 
of  Grace  Episcopal  Church. 

In  politics,  Mr.  Gunther  had  been  for  many 
years  affiliated  with  the  Republican  party,  but 
being  fully  in  sympathy  with  Mr.  Cleveland's 
views  on  the  tariff,  supported  that  gentleman  for 
the  presidency.  He  believes  in  "tariff  for  rev- 
enue onl)-." 

As  a  business  man,  Mr.  Gunther  has  been  enter- 
prising, energetic  and  always  abreast  of  the  times, 
and  has  been  rewarded  by  an  ample  fortune.  His 
business  motto  has  always  been,  "  Not  how  cheap, 
but  how  good  ?  "  He  undoubtedly  has  the  largest 
retail  trade  in  fine  confections  of  any  house  in  the 
United  States,  and  his  store  is  not  surpassed  in 
beauty  or  arrangement  by  that  of  any  of  its  kind 
in  the  world.  Mr.  Gunther  has  attained  to  a 
position  of  prominence  through  his  own  exer- 
tions, and  may  justly  be  proud  of  what  he  has 
wrought.  He  is  a  man  of  generous  impulses  and 
gives  liberally  of  his  time  and  money  to  all  worthy 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


315 


causes,  and  in    everything  that   he  does  tries  to     by  his  friends  and  highly  esteemed  by  his  fellow- 
make  the  world  brighter  and  better.     He  is  loved     citizens. 


JAMES   D.   MARSHALL, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


AMONGST  Chicago's  representative  men  who 
have  materially  aided  in  the  advancement 
and  prosperity  of  the  city,  few  are  better  known, 
and  none  are  more  worthy  of  a  place  in  this  work 
than  is  the  subject  of  this  sketch. 

James  D.  Marshall  was  born  in  Ogdensburg, 
N.  Y.,  October  24,  1824.  He  is  of  Scotch  de- 
scent, his  father  coming  to  this  country  from 
Paisley,  Scotland,  in  the  year  1796.  James  re- 
ceived the  rudiments  of  education  at  the  public 
schools  of  his  native  town.  When  he  became  six- 
teen years  of  age  his  parents  decided  to  prepare 
him  for  a  professional  calling,  and  accordingly 
sent  him  to  Fort  Covington.  N.  Y.,  where  he  pur- 
sued a  special  academic  course  of  three  years, 
graduating  at  the  end  of  that  time. 

He  ne.\t  entered  the  office  of  Dr.  Pierce  at 
Madrid,  St.  Lawrence  county,  N.  Y.,  and  there 
began  the  study  of  medicine.  This  sedentary  life 
did  not  find  favor  with  one  of  his  active  dis- 
position ;  relinquishing,  therefore,  the  study  of 
medicine,  he  ne.xt  entered  the  employ  of  Allen 
Lincoln,  a  tanner,  at  Fort  Covington,  N.  V., 
where  for  the  next  succeeding  two  years  he  occu- 
pied his  time  in  acquiring  a  thorough  kno'vledge 
of  the  business.  Completing  his  apprenticeship, 
he  shipped  for  a  time  as  a  sailor  on  the  Great 
Lakes  in  the  employ  of  E.  G.  Merrick,  but  subse- 
quently tiring  of  this  life. 

His  keen  perception  enabled  him  to  early  fore- 
see the  immense  possibilities  that  awaited  the  City 
of  Chicago,  and  in  1849  ^^  directed  his  steps  to 
the  Garden  City,  which  place  was  destined  to  be- 
come the  field  of  his  future  operations.  The  sum 
total  he  possessed  was  but  S40.  His  capital  did 
not,  however,  consist  of  money.  A  plentiful 
supply  of  brains  and  a  strong  determination  to 
succeed  were  the  qualifications  he  possessed.  He 
found  Jerome  Heecher,  whom  he  had  formerly 
known  in  New  York,  and  from  him  obtained  em- 
ployment in  the  tannery  business.  His  next  em- 
ployer was  Walter  S.  Gurney,  who  afterwards  be- 


came Mayor  of  Chicago.  He  remained  with  Mr. 
Gurney  until  1853,  \\hen  he  resigned  to  enter  into 
partnership  with  Wm.  L.  Gray  and  Robert  B. 
Clark,  the  latter  being  a  brother  of  the  present 
collector  of  customs.  The  firm  of  Gray,  Marshall 
and  Co.  was  then  established.  They  continued  in 
business  until  the  death  of  Mr.  Clark,  which  oc- 
curred in  1864,  after  which  the  firm  became  Gray 
and  Marshall. 

They  established  the  first  e.xclusive  sole  leather 
tannery  in  the  West.  The  business  continued  to 
prosper  until  the  fire  of  1871,  after  which  Mr. 
Gray  withdrew  to  establish  the  Hide  and  Leather 
National  Bank  of  Chicago,  of  which  he  is  now  the 
President.  Mr.  Marshall  then  assumed  entire 
control  of  the  business. 

During  a  period  of  nineteen  years  of  partner- 
ship between  Messrs.  Gray  and  ^Lirshall,  so  har- 
monious did  they  agree  that  no  dispute  or  differ- 
ence ever  occurred. 

W'hile  Mr.  Marshall's  success  and  fortune  are 
the  result  of  his  own  sterling  integrity,  yet  he  at- 
tributes much  of  it  to  the  counsel  and  business 
abilities  of  his  friend  and  former  partner,  Mr. 
Gray. 

Under  Mr.  Marshall's  direction,  the  business 
steadily  advanced,  until  his  trade  extends  (as 
it  does  to-day)  throughout  the  United  States. 
Thus  we  have  practical  proof  of  a  man  begin- 
ning with  $40,  overcoming  all  obstacles  and 
emerging  from  life's  stern  battle  triumphant  and 
victorious. 

A  remarkable  fact  in  connection  with  his  forty- 
two  years'  residence  in  Chicago  is  during  that 
time  he  has  never  been  confined  to  his  home  a 
single  hour  by  sickness  or  accident. 

In  Masonic  circles  he  is  well  and  favorably 
known  and  is  a  member  of  Covenant  Lodge.  Co- 
rinthian Chapter,  and  St.  Bernard  Commandery. 
Ever  since  his  installation  he  has  taken  an  active 
interest  in  all  things  pertaining  to  the  welfare  of 
the  order. 


i6 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


In  religious  faith,  a  Presbyterian  ;  for  more  than 
twenty-five  years  a  member  of  Dr.  Goodwin's 
congregation. 

He  has  traveled  much,  as  is  evidenced  from  the 
fact  that  he  has  visited  ever)-  city  of  importance 
in  America  and  Xova  Scotia,  believing  in  seeing 
and  knowing  his  native  country  rather  than 
foreign  ones. 

In  June  24,  1854.  he  was  married  to  Miss  Ade- 
line Barker  of  Babcock's  Grove,  Illinois,  and  was 
called  to  mourn  her  loss  on  the  fifth  anniversary 
of  their  marriage.  The  result  of  this  union  was 
one  daughter,  now  married  to  Mr.  Arthur  Gray, 
of  Chicago.  Mr.  Marshall  did  not  again  marry 
until  February,  1861,  this  time  to  Mrs.  Augusta 
A.  Hall  of  Chicago. 

They  have  two  children,  viz.,  George  A.,  who 
is  a  prosperous  leather  merchant  on  Lake  street, 
this  city,  and  who  married  Miss  Dona  Wheeler, 
an  accomplished  young  lady  of  Marshall,  Michi- 
gan, and  Charles  Gray,  connected  with  his  father's 
business,  both  of  whom  bid  fair  to  follow  in  the 
honorable  paternal  footsteps. 


In  manner  Mr.  Marshall  is  pleasing  and  courte- 
ous, but  of  strong  determination,  w'ithal  possess- 
ing a  kind,  sympathetic  disposition.  He  is  a  phi- 
lanthropist in  the  best  sense  of  the  word,  and  one 
of  the  few  who  give  unostentatiously.  A  barrel  of 
flour  or  stock  of  provisions  given  to  some  needy 
family  is  a  favorite  mode  of  his  bestowing  charitj-. 

He  has  made  an  untarnished  record  and  un- 
spotted reputation  as  a  business  man;  upright,  re- 
liable and  honorable.  In  all  places  and  under  all 
circumstances  he  is  loyal  to  truth,  honor  and 
right,  justly  valuing  his  own  self-respect  as  infi- 
nitely more  valuable  than  wealth,  fame  or  posi- 
tion. In  those  finer  traits  of  character  which 
combine  to  form  that  which  we  term  friendship, 
which  endear  and  attach  man  to  man  in  bonds 
which  nothing  but  the  stain  of  dishonor  can  sever, 
which  triumph  and  shine  brightest  in  the  hour  of 
adversity — in  these  qualities  he  is  royally  en- 
dowed. Few  men  have  more  devoted  friends 
than  he;  none  excel  him  in  unselfish  devotion  and 
unswerving  fidelity  to  the  worthy  recipients  of  his 
confidence  and  friendship. 


WILLIAM    HEATH    BVFORD,   LL.D.,   M.D. 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


WILLIAM  HEATH  BYFORD  was  born 
on  March  20,  1817.  in  the  village  of 
Eaton,  Ohio,  and  was  the  son  of  Henry  T.  and 
Hannah  Byford.  The  family  is  of  English  ex- 
traction, and  has  been  traced  back  to  Suffolk. 
His  father,  a  mechanic  of  limited  means,  to  bet- 
ter his  condition,  removed  to  the  Falls  of  the 
Ohio  River,  now  New  Albany,  whence,  in  1821. 
he  changed  his  residence  to  Hindostan,  Martin 
county,  Indiana,  where  he  suddenly  died,  leaving 
a  widow  and  three  children.  William,  the  eldest, 
in  his  ninth  year,  was  compelled  to  give  up  his 
studies,  which  he  had  pursued  with  signal  success 
for  three  or  four  years  in  the  neighboring  country 
school,  in  order  to  help  his  mother  in  the  support 
of  the  family.  F"or  the  next  four  years  he  worked 
at  whatever  he  could  find  to  do,  and  his  scant 
earnings  often  dropped  into  the  lap  of  his  wid- 
owed mother  like  blessings  from  above.  At  the 
end  of  that  time  his  mother  moved  to  Crawford 
county,    Illinois,   and    joined    her    father.      After 


working  two  years  on  his  grandfather's  farm,  the 
condition  of  the  family  being  somewhat  im- 
proved, it  was  decided  that  William's  wish  to  learn 
a  trade  should  be  gratified.  Accordingly,  he  set 
out  on  foot  for  the  village  of  Palestine,  several 
miles  distant,  and  on  reaching  it  presented  him- 
self at  a  blacksmith  shop  and  asked  the  smith  if 
he  would  undertake  to  teach  him  how  to  shoe 
horses  and  become  a  skillful  worker  in  iron.  The 
blacksmith  declined  to  have  anything  to  do  with 
him,  and  the  would-be  apprentice  continued  his 
tramp  from  one  shop  to  another,  with  no  better 
success,  until  he  finally  caught  sight  of  a  tailor's 
sign,  and  concluded  to  try  his  luck  wMth  the 
clothes-maker.  He  had  no  particular  fancy  for 
this  occupation,  but  he  had  come  to  town  to 
make  all  necessary  preparations  for  learning  a 
trade,  and  he  was  determined  not  to  return  home 
before  the  accomplishment  of  his  purpose.  The 
tailor,  whom  Dr.  Byford  always  mentioned  as  "a 
kind-hearted,  Christian  gentleman,  bv  the  name  of 


#-    ■//  (fl^y/^^ 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AM)  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


319 


Davis,"  received  the  young  man  kindly,  and  when 
he  started  home  that  night  it  had  been  agreed 
that  he  should  be  received  by  the  tailor's  family 
as  an  apprentice,  provided  a  certain  Methodist 
minister  in  the  neighborhood  would  recommend 
him  as  "a  moral  anil  industrious  boy."  The  rec- 
ommendation secured,  he  was  soon  installed  as 
an  apprentice,  and  held  the  position  for  two  years, 
when  Mr.  Davis  removed  to  Kentucky.  During 
the  ensuing  four  years  he  finished  learning  his 
trade  in  the  employ  of  a  tailor  at  Vincennes, 
Indiana.  The  boy  was  now  twenty  years  old. 
While  serving  his  apprenticeship  he  devoted  all 
his  spare  time  to  study,  and  day  after  day.  while 
working  on  a  garment,  he  had  concealed  some  old 
text-book,  bought  or  borrowed,  which  contributed 
to  his  stock  of  knowledge.  In  this  way  he  mas- 
tered the  construction  of  his  native  tongue,  ac- 
quired some  knowledge  of  the  Latin,  Greek  and 
French  languages,  and  studied  with  especial  care 
physiolog>',  chemistry  and  natural  history. 

About  eighteen  months  before  the  expiration 
of  his  term  of  apprenticeship,  Jie  determined  to 
devote  his  life  to  the  study  and  practice  of  medi- 
cine, and  subsequently  placed  himself  under  the 
professional  guidance  of  Dr.  Joseph  Maddox,  of 
Vincennes,  Indiana.  Soon  after  the  expiration  of 
his  term  of  apprenticeship,  he  was  examined, 
according  to  a  custom  then  prevailing  in  Indiana, 
by  three  commissioners  appointed  for  the  pur- 
pose, who  certified  that  they  were  satisfied  with 
his  acquirements  and  authorized  him  to  engage 
in  the  practice  of  medicine.  At  once  he  began 
the  practice  of  his  profession  at  Owensville,  Gib- 
son county,  Indiana.  This  was  on  August  8th, 
1838.  In  1S40  he  removed  to  Mount  Vernon, 
Indiana, '  where  he  associated  himself  with  Dr. 
Hezekiah  Holland,  whose  daughter  he  afterwards 
married.  He  remained  in  Mount  Vernon  until 
1850.  During  this  period  he  attended  lectures 
at  the  Ohio  Medical  College,  in  Cincinnati,  and 
in  1845  he  applied  for  and  received  a  regular 
graduation  and  an  accredited  diploma  from  that 
institution. 

In  1847  he  performed  two  Carsarian  sections, 
and  wrote  an  e.xcellent  account  of  the  operations. 
One  of  these  patients  survived  the  ojieration  for 
some  days,  but  ultimately  died  from  peritonitis, 
presumably  due  to  an  error  in  diet.  This  was 
followed  by  contributions  to  the  medical  journals 


which  attracted  the  attention  of  the  medical 
community,  and  gave  their  author  a  respectable 
reputation  for  literary  acquirements,  intellectual 
penetration  and  scientific  knowledge. 

In  October,  1850,  he  was  elected  to  the  chair  of 
anatomy  in  the  Evansville  Medical  College,  Indi- 
ana, and  two  years  later  he  was  transferred  to  the 
chair  of  theory  and  practice  of  medicine,  which 
he  held  until  the  extinction  of  the  college,  in 
1854.  During  his  professorship  in  Kvansville  he 
was  one  of  the  editors  of  a  medical  journal  of 
merit.  In  May,  1857,  he  was  elected  vice-presi- 
dent of  the  American  Medical  Association,  then 
assembled  at  Nashville,  Tennessee,  and  in  the 
following  autumn  he  was  called  to  the  chair  of 
obstetrics  and  diseases  of  women  and  children  in 
the  Rush  Medical  College,  at  Chicago,  vacated  by 
Dr.  John  Evans,  the  talented  physician  and  Uni- 
ted States  senator  from  Colorado.  This  position 
he  held  for  two  years,  when,  together  with  several 
associates,  he  aided  in  the  organization  of  the 
Chicago  Medical  College.  In  this  institution  he 
occupied  the  chair  of  obstetrics  and  diseases  of 
women  and  children,  and  continued  to  hold  the 
professorship  of  diseases  of  women  and  children 
until  1879,  when  he  was  again  called  to  Rush 
Medical  College  to  fill  the  chair  of  gynecology, 
especially  created  for  his  occupancy.  In  1870  he 
became  one  of  the  founders  of  the  Woman's 
Medical  College,  of  Chicago.  He  was  made 
president  of  the  faculty,  and  also  of  the  board  of 
trustees,  and  both  of  these  positions  he  held  up 
to  the  day  of  his  death.  He  was  prominently 
identified  with  the  organization  of  the  American 
Gynecological  Society,  having  been  elected  one 
of  its  first  vice-presidents,  and  its  president  in 
1881.  Dr.  Byford  was  the  prime  mover  in  the 
successful  organization  of  the  Chicago  Gyneco- 
logical Society,  and  through  his  personal  efforts 
maintained  it  during  its  struggling  infancy  until 
it  had  attained  its  high  standing  in  the  profes- 
sion. 

Dr.  Byford  was  married,  October  3,  1840,  to 
Mary  Anne  Holland,  daughter  of  Hezekiah  Hol- 
land, by  whom  he  had  five  children,  two  son.s,  the 
late  Wm.  H.  Byford,  Jr.,  M.  D.,  and  Dr.  Henry 
T.  Byford,  the  distinguished  gynecologist,  of  Chi- 
cago, and  three  daughters,  Mrs.  Anna  Byford 
Leonard,  Mrs.  Mary  B.  Schuyler  and  Mrs.  Maud 
B.  Van  Schaack.     Mrs.  Byford  died  in  1864.    She 


320 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AND  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


was  a  woman  of  rare  Christian  piety.  In  1873  he 
married  Miss  Lina  W.  Flersheim,  of  Buffalo,  N. 
Y.,  who  survives  him.  Tlic  only  cliild  of  the 
second  union  died  in  infancy. 

Dr.  Byford  won  merited  fame  as  a  prolific  writ- 
er and  as  an  authority  in  gynecology.  Beginning 
with  his  paper  on  Caesarian  section,  published  in 
1847,  he  has  contributed  much  of  permanent 
value  to  every  phase  of  the  subject.  In  1864  he 
published  his  first  book,  entitled,  "  Chronic  In- 
flammation and  Displacements  of  the  Unim- 
prcgnated  Uterus,"  which  is  also  the  first  medical 
work  attributable  to  a  Chicago  author;  second  edi- 
tion, iS/i.  In  1866  appeared  his  "Practice  of 
Medicine  and  Surgery  Applied  to  the  Diseases 
and  Accidents  of  Woman,''  which  is  extensively 
used  as  a  te.xt-book,  and  which  passed  through  its 
fourth  edition  in  1888.  "  The  Philosophy  of  Do- 
mestic Life"  was  published  in  1869,  followed,  in 
1872,  by  his  text-book  on  "  Obstetrics,"  which 
passed  through  a  second  edition  the  following 
year.  During  a  term  of  years  he  was  associated 
with  Dr.  N.  S.  Davis,  Sr.,  in  the  editorial  man- 
agement of  the  Chicago  Medical  Journal.  Later, 
he  became  editor-in-chief  of  the  Chicago  Medical 
Journal  and  Examiner,  and  published  under  the 
auspices  of  the  Chicago  Medical  Press  Associa- 
tion. There  are  many  measures  in  practice  with 
which  his  name  is  intimately  connected  ;  for  ex- 
ample, the  use  of  ergot  in  fibroid  tumors  of  the 
uterus;  drainage  per  rectum  of  pelvis  abscesses 
that  have  previously  discharged  into  that  viscus ; 
abdominal  section  for  extra  uterine  pregnancy, 
proposed  long  before  the  days  of  Tail  ;  the  sys- 
tematic use  of  the  slippery-elm  tent. 

Dr.  Byford  was  richly  endowed  with  an  inven- 
tive faculty,  which  found  expression  in  the  inven- 
tion, modification  and  improvement  of  many  val- 
uable surgical  instruments.  As  a  teacher  in  the 
lecture  room,  at  the  bedside  or  in  debate.  Dr. 
Byford's  utterances  were  always  characterized 
by  simplicity,  clearness  and  pertinency.  No 
wonder,  then,  that  his  clinics  were  always  over- 
crowded with  students  and  practitioners,  and 
that  his  slightest  word  invariably  received  a  de- 
gree of  attention  all  the  more  flattering  because 
involuntarj'. 

But  perhaps  it  was  as  a  practitioner  that  he 
achieved  the  greatest  measure  of  success ;  wisdom 
and    enormous  experience    created    his    vantage- 


ground  as  a  consultant.  It  will  be  remembered 
that  for  more  than  twenty-five  years  he  was  a 
general  practitioner,  before  he  devoted  himself 
exclusively  to  gynecology.  Even  then,  the  scope 
of  his  specialty  included  other  organs  than  the 
womb.  Like  Trousseau,  he  was  very  exact  in 
keeping  his  appointments.  Throughout  his  ca- 
reer he  was  a  rigid  adherent  to  the  code  of  ethics, 
because  he  believed  its  precepts  both  reasonable 
and  right. 

It  has  long  been  customary  to  regard  compen- 
sation in  money  as  one  criterion  of  success  in  the 
practice  of  medicine.  Dr.  Byford's  professional 
income  during  the  last  twenty  years  of  his  life 
varied  from  twenty-five  thousand  to  thirty  thou- 
sand dollars  per  annum,  and  he  bequeathed  to  his 
family,  along  with  the  heritage  of  a  spotless  name, 
a  handsome  fortune,  well  invested. 

He  was  not  an  extremist ;  he  rode  no  hobbies. 
None  the  less,  his  life  had  certain  clearly  defined 
and  fondly  cherished  purposes.  They  were  all 
nobly  sustained.  One  of  these  was  the  advocacy 
of  the  medical  education  of  women.  In  this 
cause  he  was  the  pioneer  in  the  West.  To  it  he 
gave  freely  of  his  time,  of  his  influence,  of  his 
wealth.  Another  was  the  establishment,  in  Chi- 
cago, of  the  Woman's  Hospital.  To-day  this 
institution,  with  one-third  of  its  beds  free,  flour- 
ishes a  monument  to  his  persistent  effort. 

He  loved  young  men  ;  counsel,  encouragement, 
recommendation,  money — all  were  freely  given, 
as  if  he  were  the  debtor.  Back  of  all  his  skill  of 
hand  and  wisdom  of  professional  judgment,  there 
was  a  wonderfuHy  large  and  generous  heart.  He 
died  May  21,  1890,  at  the  age  of  seventy-three 
years.  For  the  last  three  years  he  showed  symp- 
toms of  heart  disease  that  culminated  in  a  fatal 
attack  of  angina  pectoris. 

He  continued  in  active  practice  and  in  full  pos- 
session of  all  his  faculties  to  the  end.  On  the 
Saturday  preceding  his  death  he  performed  ab- 
dominal section  for  the  removal  of  the  append- 
ages, on  account  of  fibroid  tumors  of  the  uterus, 
and  on  Tuesday,  the  day  of  his  fatal  illness,  he 
attended  to  his  usual  professional  duties.  Among 
the  people  of  the  city  of  Chicago,  of  the  State  of 
Illinois,  and,  indeed,  of  the  whole  Northwest,  the 
name  of  Byford  has  been  a  household  word  for 
more  than  a  quarter  of  a  century.  By  the  mem- 
bers of  his  profession  he  was  as   universally  be- 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


321 


loved   for  personal  qualities  as  he  was  esteemed 
for  professional  eminence. 

[The  above,  with  the  exception  of  the  para- 
graph referring  to  Dr.  Byford's  inventions  in 
surgical    instruments,   is  copied   from   the   Amer- 


ican Journal  of  Obstetrics  and  Diseases  of  Women 
and  Children,  Vol.  XXIII.  No.  6,  1890,  and  was 
written  by  Dr.  W.  W.  Jaggard,  an  accomplished 
and  successful  physician  and  obstetrician,  of 
Chicago.] 


LEVI   ZEIGLER    LEITER. 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


LZ.  LEITER  was  born  in  1834.  of  well-to- 
.  do,  Calvinistic  Dutch  parents,  in  the  town 
of  Leitersburg,  Washington  county,  Maryland, 
founded  by  his  ancestors.  Here  he  received  a 
good  education,  and  afterwards  spent  several 
years  in  a  country  store,  that  universal  educator 
of  so  many  of  our  prominent  men.  When  eight- 
een years  of  age  he  became  dissatisfied  with  his 
quiet  surroundings,  and  determined  to  sedk  a 
wider  field  for  the  exercise  of  his  energies. 

In  1833  he  turned  his  face  westward,  first  stop- 
ping at  Springfield,  Ohio,  where  he  entered  the 
store  of  Peter  Murray,  a  prominent  merchant, 
and  remained  one  year.  This  place  not  furnish- 
ing the  desired  field,  he  pushed  on  to  Chicago, 
arriving  there  in  the  summer  of  1854.  Here  he 
entered  the  employment  of  Messrs.  Downs  & 
Van  Wyck,  where  he  remained  until  January, 
1856,  when  he  entered  the  wholesale  house  of 
Messrs.  Cooley,  W'adsworth  &  Co.,  in  which  he 
continued,  through  its  various  changes,  until  Jan- 
uar>'  1st,  1865.  when,  with  Marshall  Field,  who 
entered  the  house  at  the  same  time,  and  who,  with 
young  Leiter,  had  secured  an  interest  in  the  busi- 
ness, in  consideration  of  their  valuable  ser\-ices, 
on  January-  1st.  1865,  sold  their  intere.st  to  John 
V.  Farwell.  and  purchased  a  controlling  interest 
in  the  business  of  Potter  Palmer,  which  was  con- 
tinued for  two  years  as  Field,  Palmer  &  Leiter, 
and  then  as  Field,  Leiter  &  Co.,  until  January  ist, 
1 88 1.  By  the  exercise  of  rare  intelligence,  based 
upon  the  soundest  principles,  .the  business  was 
rapidly  increased  until  it  occupied  the  leading 
position  in  the  country. 

On  Januar>-  Ist,  1881,  Mr.  Leiter,  having  large 
real  estate  and  other  interests,  and  longing  for 
freedom  from  the  daily  duties  of  an  exacting 
business,  sold  his  interest  to  his  partners,  that  he 
might  devote  more  of  his  time  to  his  family,  to 


travel  and  to  his  choice  library,  which  is  one  of 
the  best  private  collections  in  the  United  States. 

Mr.  Leiter  has  never  sought  nor  held  a  public 
office,  but  from  boyhood  he  has  been  a  diligent 
.student  of  politics  in  its  highest  sense,  and  no  one 
has  a  wider  range  of  intelligence  concerning  the 
principles  of  our  government  and  of  legislation 
which  would  affect  the  welfare  and  industries  of 
our  countr)'. 

For  many  years  Mr.  Leiter  was  a  director  of 
the  Chicago  Relief  and  Aid  Society,  and  gave 
much  time  and  patient  study  to  the  wise  distribu- 
tion of  charity;  and  not  only  in  this  enterpri.se, 
but  in  all  intelligently  directed  charities,  he  has 
been  an  honest  worker  and  a  liberal  contributor 
when  he  could  be  convinced  that  money  and  time 
would  produce  more  good  than  harm.  The  Amer- 
ican Sunday  School  Union  has  always  been  one 
of  his  favored  instrumentalities  of  good  to  his 
fellow-man.  With  a  keen  insight  into  the  spring 
which  lies  behind  human  action,  he  has  never 
courted  popularity,  but  preferred  at  all  times,  in 
speech  and  action,  to  do  his  whole  duty  to  his 
fellow-man  and  the  community  in  which  he  lived. 

In  the  rebuilding  of  Chicago,  since  the  fire  of 
1871,  Mr.  Leiter  has  been  one  of  the  most  pro- 
gressive and  important  of  its  citizens.  He  has 
erected  many  handsome  office  and  store  blocks 
in  the  business  district,  and  is  still  engaged  in 
extensive  building  operations,  one  of  them  being 
the  magnificent  structure  on  State  street  between 
Van  Buren  and  Congress  streets. 

Of  temperate  habits  and  strong  physique,  with 
great  powers  of  application  and  endurance,  Mr. 
Leiter,  in  his  active  business  career,  confined  him- 
self so  closely  to  his  business  that  he  was  enabled 
to  turn  off  a  quantity  of  work  which  would  have 
killed  any  ordinary  man. 

In    all    which   goes  to  advance  the  social  and 


322 


BIOGRAFHICAL  DICTIOXARY  A.XD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


educational,  as  well  as  the  business  interests  of 
Chicago,  Mr.  Leiter  has  been  a  moving  spirit. 
His  great  means,  as  well  as  his  keen  business 
sagacity,  have  been  enlisted  in  many  worthy  enter- 
prises. He  was  the  first  president  of  the  Com- 
mercial Club,  and  is  now  a  leading  member  of  the 
Iroquois,  the  Chicago,  the  Calumet,  the  Union, 
the  Washington  Park  and  the  Union  League 
Clubs.  Mr.  Leiter  took  an  active  interest  in  the 
reorganization  of  the  Chicago  Historical  Society 
after  the  great  fire,  and  contributed  liberally  to  its 
building  fund,  and  for  the  purchase  of  books. 
The  debt  which  had  hampered  the  Society  was 
also  lifted  by  the  co-operation  of  Mr.  Leiter  with 
Profs.  Mark  Skinner,  E.  H.  Sheldon,  D.  K.  Pear- 
son, S.  M.  Nickerson,  Thos.  Hoyne  and  others, 
and  the  Society  placed  upon  a  sound  basis.  Mr. 
Leiter  was  also  the  president  of  the  Chicago  Art 
Institute  in  1885,  succeeding  Mr.  George  Armour, 


who  v»'as  its  first  executive.  For  many  years,  in 
fact  ever  since  its  organization,  Mr.  Leiter  has 
been  a  heavy  stockholder  in  the  Illinois  Trust  and 
Savings  Bank,  and  is  now  one  of  the  directors  of 
that  institution. 

After  the  great  fire  of  187 1,  when  everyone 
was  damaged  by  loss  of  insurance  capital,  Mr. 
Leiter  was  instrumental  in  inducing  the  Liver- 
pool, London  and  Globe  Insurance  Company  to 
re-establish  its  agency  here,  and  also  to  make  this 
one  of  its  departments,  thus  giving  confidence  to 
other  reliable  companies  to  re-establish  their  busi- 
ness here,  and  enable  business  men  to  protect 
themselves  against  the  hazard  of  fire.  Mr.  Lei- 
ter's  great  aim  has  been  to  be  a  model  citizen, 
and  not  to  accumulate  great  wealth,  believing, 
with  Goldsmith  : 

•'  Hi  fares  the  land,  to  hastening  ills  a  prey. 
Where  wealth  accumulates  and  men  decay." 


LAURIN    P.   MILLIARD, 


CHICAGO.    ILL. 


LAURIN  PALMER  HILLIARD  was  born 
at  Unadilla  Forks,  Otsego  county,  N.  Y., 
October  11,  1814.  His  parents  were  Isaiah  and 
Keturah  (Palmer)  Hilliard.  His  father,  whose 
ancestors  were  among  the  early  settlers  of  Con- 
necticut, was  left  an  orphan  in  early  boyhood, 
and  soon  entered  on  a  somewhat  adventurous 
career  as  a  "sailor-boy,"  first  in  the  cabin  and 
finally  as  a  fully-equipped  seaman.  With  other 
sailors  he  paid  his  twenty-five  cents  to  inspect 
Robert  Fulton's  original  little  steamer  and  joined 
in  predicting  the  results — wise  and  otherwise.  His 
"protection  paper,"  No.  3,123,  U.  S.  A.,  to  insure 
against  seizure  and  impressment  by  the  British  on 
the  high  seas,  is  in  the  possession  of  Edward  P.  Hil- 
liard, of  Chicago.  Upon  attaining  his  majority, 
he  left  New  York  City  and  invested  his  savings 
in  unimproved  land  near  Unadilla  Forks,  where 
he  soon  afterward  married  Miss  Keturah,  daugh- 
ter of  his  neighbor,  Jonathan  Palmer.  Mr.  Pal- 
mer also  was  of  New  England  ancestry,  which  is 
traced  to  Walter  Palmer,  who  came  to  America 
in  1629,  from  Nottinghamshire,  England.  He 
built  the  first  dwelling  in  Charlestown,  Mass.  In 
1653  he  moved  to  Stonington,  Conn.,  where  he 


died  in  1661,  and  was  buried  at  \\'equetsquock 
Cove.  In  1 88 1  a  reunion  of  the  Palmer  family  was 
held  at  Stonington,  and  nearly  two  thousand  of 
the  descendants  were  present.  At  that  gathering 
the  origin  of  the  family  name  was  traced  to  the 
Crusades.  Many  pilgrims  to  the  tomb  of  Christ, 
from  the  days  of  Peter  the  Hermit  to  the  close 
of  the  fourteenth  century,  on  their  return,  wore 
palm-leaves  in  their  hats  or  carried  staves  from 
palm  branches.  Hence,  it  is  said,  they  were 
called  "  palm-bearers  "  or  "  palm-ers."  In  Spen- 
cer's Fairie  Oueene  and  in  Shakespeare  these  allu- 
sions to  the  palmers  are  found.  Jonathan  Palmer 
was  of  the  sixth  generation  from  Walter,  which 
places  our  subject,  Laurin  Palmer  Hilliard,  in  the 
eighth. 

Our  subject's  boyhood  was  spent  on  his  father's 
farm.  He  was  ejlucated  in  the  public  schools 
and  at  Hamilton  College.  When  about  eighteen 
years  of  age  he  entered  the  store  of  Charles 
Walker,  at  Burlington  Flats,  near  his  native 
place,  receiving  no  salary  for  the  first  year  and 
fifty  dollars  for  the  second.  His  success  led  to  a 
partnership  in  a  new  establishment  at  Unadilla 
P'orks.      While  there,  Mr.  Walker's  brother  took 


L^C^i^^^ 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


325 


a  stock  of  goods  to  Chicago,  and  the  good  report 
of  the  venture  then  impressed  Mr.  Milliard  with 
the  advantages  of  that  place.  He  closed  out  his 
business  and.  with  a  few  hundred  dollars,  started 
West,  via  canal  boat,  stage  and  steamer,  from 
Utica  to  Buffalo,  Dunkirk  and  Detroit,  and 
reached  Chicago  in  the  spring  of  1836.  His  first 
night  was  spent  at  a  log  tavern  on  the  west  side, 
but  he  afterward  stayed  at  the  "Green  Tree  Ho- 
tel." He  visited  various  towns  in  Illinois  and 
Wisconsin,  and  on  invitation  of  an  old  friend, 
who  was  interested  in  projecting  a  town  at  Mani- 
towoc River,  he  joined  the  equipped  party  on 
the  schooner  "Wisconsin,"  and  v.as  present  at 
the  time  the  original  town  site  of  Manitowoc 
was  laid  out. 

Returning  to  Chicago,  he  started  a  little  store, 
taking  produce  in  exchange  for  goods.  He  re- 
turned to  the  East  in  the  fall  of  1S36,  and  a 
brother-in-law  of  Mr.  Walker,  his  former  partner, 
took  charge  of  the  store,  and  shipped  East  the 
country-  produce — one  of  the  earliest  ventures  in 
Chicago's  great  specialty.  The  following  spring, 
Mr.  Hilliard  returned  to  Chicago.  He  entered, 
first,  the  employment  of  Peter  Cohn,  an  old 
French  trader,  then  with  his  successors,  Taylor, 
Breese  &  Co.  He  was  afterwards  with  Clifford  S. 
Phillips,  a  leading  merchant.  During  the  sum- 
mer of  1837  he  made  a  trip  on  horseback  into 
Wisconsin  to  report  on  lands  to  Eastern  inves- 
tors. He  found  the  town  site  of  Madison  with 
few  finished  improvements,  aside  from  a  log 
boarding-house,  and  wild  game  about  the  four 
lakes  made  it  a  "  hunter's  paradise." 

After  being  several  years  in  charge  mainly  of 
Mr.  Phillips'  large  business,  he  again  joined  his 
former  partner,  Mr.  Walker,  who  had  begun  mer- 
chandising in  Chicago.  Money  was  still  scarce, 
but  the  business  prospered  and  increased  by  the 
exchange  of  goods  for  country  produce,  which 
was  shipped  east.  The  firm  also  started  ship- 
building, first  buying  a  disabled  schooner,  which 
they  repaired  and  christened  the  "  C.  Walker." 
They  next,  as  part  owners,  built  the  "  Independ- 
ence," said  to  be  the  first  propeller  constructed 
on  Lake  Michigan.  Her  first  trip  was  made  in 
March  to  Green  Bay,  whither  she  went  after  ice, 
the  winter  having  been  an  open  one.  While 
there,  cold  weather  gave  Chicago  plenty  of  ice, 
and  the  propeller  was  frozen  in  and  loaded  with 


ice  cut  to  give  her  a  channel  for  the  return  trip. 
The  fair  schooner,  "  Maria  Hilliard,"  also  was 
built  by  the  firm.  Mr.  Hilliard  afterward  suc- 
ceeded to  the  business,  and  continued  both 
branches  until  1849,  when  his  store,  at  the  corner 
of  Lake  and  Franklin  streets,  was  burned.  The 
following  year  he  organized  the  firm  of  Hilliard 
and  Howard,  and  occupied  yards  in  the  lumber 
business  where  James  H.  Walker  and  Co.'s  whole- 
sale house  now  stands.  With  the  exception  of  a 
few  years  in  public  office,  he  continued  in  the 
lumber  trade  until  1873.  The  financial  disasters, 
then  general,  forced  a  suspension  of  trade.  For- 
tunately, he  had  invested  in  a  large  tract  of  land 
twelve  miles  south  of  Chicago,  and  having  wisely 
planned  for  railroad  connection  with  his  farm,  he 
removed  his  family  thither,  when  his  city  resi- 
dence was  destroyed  in  the  great  fire  of  1871. 
By  concerted  action  with  other  property-owners, 
their  efforts  resulted  in  the  suburban  villages  of 
Washington  Heights,  Longwood,  Beverly  Hills, 
etc.,  all  now  within  the  city  limits.  So  the  city 
went  out  to  Mr.  Hilliard's  home,  absorbed  his 
"  farm,"  and  is  giving  him  increasing  wealth  and 
comfort  to  crown  his  long  and  useful  career. 

Mr.  Hilliard  was  virtually  a  "charter  member" 
of  the  Republican  party,  and  was  conscientiously 
active  for  its  success  against  the  aggressions  of 
slavery.  In  1861  he  was  elected  clerk  of  Cook 
County  Court,  and  served  the  four  years'  term  with 
great  acceptance.  He,  with  other  patriotic  citizens, 
issued  the  first  call  for  a  public  meeting,  in  1861, 
to  aid  the  government  in  suppressing  the  great 
rebellion,  and  served  on  the  financial  committee 
then  appointed. 

In  1848,  he  was  active  in  securing  the  organi- 
zation of  the  Chicago  Board  of  Trade,  and  when 
accomplished,  in  April,  he  was  made  a  member  of 
the  first  board  of  directors,  and  in  1853  was 
chosen  secretary  and  treasurer  of  the  institution. 
In  those  days,  the  Board  had  neither  the  fascina- 
tion nor  wealth  of  to-day,  and  it  is  said  that  to 
secure  even  a  respectable  attendance  the  secre- 
tary was  accustomed  to  set  out,  at  noon,  a  lunch- 
eon of  crackers  and  cheese.  Mr.  Hilliard  was 
also  a  director  for  several  years  of  the  Chamber 
of  Commerce,  and  identified  with  many  other 
important  public  enterprises.  He  was  general 
agent  of  the  Northern  Pacific  Railroad  Com- 
pany,   when    Mr.    C.    B.   Wright    was    president, 


326 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


and  Mr.  H.  E.  Sargent  general  manager,  and 
did  much  to  send  emigration  into  the  Red  River 
Valley. 

In  religious  faith,  he  has  been  a  consistent 
Episcopalian,  and  in  1844  he,  with  about  twenty 
old  settlers,  organized  Trinity  Episcopal  Church. 
He  became  a  member  of  the  board  of  trustees, 
was  also  vestryman  and  warden,  and  active  for  its 
prosperity  until  his  change  of  residence  necessita- 
ted change  in  his  church  relations. 

He  was  initiated  into  the  Oriental  Lodge  of 
Masons  in  1845.  He  long  held  its  offices,  became 
an  honorary  life  member  in  1874,  and  is  now  its 
senior  member.    He  was  made  a  Knight  Templar 


in  1854,  and  has  taken  thirty-two  of  the  consistory 
degrees. 

In  1843,  he  married  Mrs.  Maria  E.  Beaubien. 
She  was  the  daughter  of  John  K.  Boyer,  who  was 
widely  known  in  Pennsylvania,  Ohio  and  Illinois 
as  a  public  works  contractor.  He  settled  in  Chi- 
cago in  1833.  His  son,  Dr.  Valentine  A.  Boyer, 
began  the  practice  of  medicine  in  the  city  that 
year,  and  was  the  oldest  resident  physician  when 
he  died,  in  1890.  Two  sons  cheer  the  advanced 
years  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Hilliard.  Edward  P.  is  a 
resident  of  Chicago,  and  succeeds  to  the  real 
estate  business  of  his  father.  William  P.  has 
made  a  home  at  St.  Paul,  Minnesota. 


HON.  LEROV   DELANO   THOMAN, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


LEROY  DELANO  THOMAN  was  born 
July  31,  1851,  in  Salem,  Columbiana  county, 
Ohio.  His  parents  were  Jacob  S.  and  Mary  Ann 
(Sonedecker)  Thoman,  both  of  whom  were  na- 
tives of  the  Buckeye  State,  and  of  Swiss  line- 
age. The  paternal  ancestors  immigrated  to  the 
United  States  about  1680  and  settled  in  Mary- 
land and  Pennsylvania,  and  the  maternal  in 
1690,  settling  in  Virginia.  His  progenitors  were 
of  robust  physique,  healthy  and  strong,  and  en- 
dowed with  great  mental  force.  The  family 
were  always  noted  for  their  devout  and  pure 
Christian  lives.  His  mother  was  a  daughter  of 
Rev.  Henry  Sonedecker,  a  minister  of  the  Ger- 
man Reformed  Church,  a  man  of  great  learning 
and  a  profound  thinker  and  able  preacher,  who 
was  born  in  Washington  county,  Pennsylvania, 
in  1792,  and  was  a  pioneer  in  church  work  at 
Wooster,  Wayne  county,  Ohio.  He  died  in  1851 
at  North  Lima,  Ohio.  Our  subject's  mother 
was  born  at  Wooster  in  1824.  She  is  a  woman 
of  strong  Christian  character,  and  devoted  to 
her  children,  home  and  church.  Since  the  death 
of  her  husband,  which  occurred  in  1878,  she  has 
made  her  home  with  her  son,  the  subject  of  this 
sketch.  His  father  was  born  in  1817,  and  had  a 
fair  education,  and  was  a  great  reader,  with  broad 
and  liberal  views.  From  his  fifth  to  his  sixteenth 
year  Lcroy  lived  on  a  farm,  lie  received  a 
common   school   education,  and  also  pursued   an 


academic  course  of  two  years  at  South  Whitley, 
Indiana.  He  applied  himself  diligently  to  his 
studies,  and  began  teaching  school  at  the  age  of 
sixteen,  and  was  principal  of  the  public  schools 
at  Piper  City,  Illinois,  for  nearly  three  years.  He 
improved  his  spare  time  in  the  study  of  the  law, 
and  in  1872,  at  the  age  of  twenty-one,  was  ad- 
mitted to  the  bar  at  Columbia  City,  Indiana. 
Immediately  after  his  admission  he  was  ap- 
pointed deputy  prosecuting  attorney  for  the 
Ninth  Judicial  District  of  Indiana.  He  resigned 
this  office  in  February,  1873,  and  removed  to 
Youngstown,  Ohio,  and  engaged  in  the  practice 
of  law  until  1875,  when  he  was  elected  judge  of 
the  Probate  Court  of  Mahoning  county,  and  was 
re-elected  in  1878.  Judge  Thoman,  from  1875 
to  1883,  was  actively  identified  with  the  Demo- 
cratic party  of  Ohio  and  was  a  member  of  the 
State  Executive  Committee  for  several  years. 
He  was  chairman  of  the  Democratic  State  con- 
vention in  1880,  and  the  same  year  was  the  candi- 
date of  his  party  for  Congress,  but  was  defeated 
in  the  election  by  the  Honorable  William  McKin- 
ley,  Jr.,  the  present  Governor  of  Ohio.  He  was 
heartily  supported  before  the  Democratic  State 
convention  for  Governor  in  1 881.  He  was  ap- 
pointed in  February,  1883,  by  President  Arthur 
as  the  Democratic  member  of  the  United  States 
Civil  Service  Commission  under  the  Pendleton  law, 
and  served  in  that  capacity  for  some  three  years, 


^/^/-^^-^  /y ,  y^' 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  A.VD  PORTRAIT  CALLER V. 


329 


and  then  resigned.  He  removed  to  Chicago  in 
the  spring  of  1888,  and  has  since  been  engaged 
in  the  practice  of  his  profession. 

Judge  Thoman  was  a  member  of  the  Executive 
Committee  having  in  charge  the  securing  of  the 
World's  Columbian  E.xposition  for  Chicago,  and 
was  largely  instrumental  in  securing  the  Ohio 
Congressional  vote.  As  a  public  speaker  Judge 
Thoman  has  a  national  reputation.  He  delivered 
the  annual  address  before  the  literary  societies  of 
Oberlin  College  in  1888.  and  was  one  of  the  judges 
of  the  literary  and  oratorical  contest  of  Washing- 
ton and  JefTerson  College  in  1887.  In  Chicago 
he  has  frequently  spoken  at  banquets,  and  is  a 
popular  post-prandial  speaker.  The  most  notable 
of  his  Chicago  speeches  were  those  at  the  Doug- 
las banquet  given  by  the  Iroquois  Club,  April  23, 
1888,  his  subject  being  "Progressive  Politics;" 
that  at  Farwell  Hall  on  April  30,  1889,  his  sub- 
ject being  "The  beginning  of  the  Second  Cen- 
tury of  Constitutional  Government ;"  that  at  the 
Union  League  Club  banquet  on  the  evening  of 
April  30,  1889,  his  subject  being  "Thomas  Jeffer- 
son," and  at  the  Sunset  Club  in  March.  1891,  on 
"Municipal  Civil  Service  Reform."  In  the  in- 
terest of  the  Columbian  Exposition  he  spoke  at 
Atlanta,  Chattanooga,  Fort  Worth,  Dallas,  Little 
Rock,  and  other  places,  and  was  invited  to  speak 
at  the  Delmonico  dinner,  December  21,  1891.  He 
presided  at  the  historic  banquet  given  to  the 
National  Commission  of  the  World's  Columbian 
Exposition,  at  the  Palmer  House,  June  26,  1890. 

In  his  religious  belief  he  is  a  Presbyterian. 


Judge  Thoman  has  always  been  a  Democrat, 
but  fearless  and  independent  in  party  action. 

He  has  been  twice  married.  His  first  wife  was 
Mary  E.  Cripps,  of  Youngstown,  Ohio,  to  whom 
he  was  married  in  March,  1876.  Mrs.  Thoman 
died  in  December  of  the  same  year.  His  second 
wife  is  the  daughter  of  Hon.  James  M.  Smith,  of 
Lebanon,  Ohio,  judge  of  the  Circuit  Court,  First 
District,  whom  he  married  February  25,  1892. 

Judge  Thoman  is  prominent  in  Masonic  circles, 
being  a  Knight  Templar  and  Scottish  Rite  Mason 
of  the  thirty-second  degree,  and  also  a  Noble  of 
the  Mystic  Shrine.  He  is  a  member  of  the 
Union  League,  the  Chicago  Athletic  and  the 
North  Shore  clubs.  He  is  president  of  the  States 
Columbian  Association  and  also  president  of  the 
Ohio  Society  of  Chicago. 

Judge  Thoman  is  the  attorney  for  several  im- 
portant corporations.  He  is  lecturer  on  Private 
International  Law  in  the  law  department  of  the 
Northwestern  University.  He  is  also  a  member 
of  the  Committee  on  Law  Reform  of  the  World's 
Congress.  As  a  lawyer  he  is  noted  for  his  care, 
skill  and  faithfulness  to  his  clients.  As  a  public 
speaker,  his  clear  voice,  distinct  articulation,  well- 
chosen  language  and  evident  sincerity  render  him 
a  popular  and  successful  advocate.  He  devotes 
himself  almost  exclusively  to  his  profession,  and 
while  his  comprehensive  and  well-trained  mind 
and  large  experience  and  knowledge  of  men  fit 
him  for  doing  any  work  ably,  it  is  as  an  advocate 
that  he  is  most  conspicuous,  his  appeals  to  court 
and  jury  often  being  masterpieces  of  oratory. 


JAMES   FRAKE, 


CHICA(;0,   ILL. 


THE  subject  of  this  sketch  is  a  prominent 
member  of  the  Chicago  bar.  He  has  great 
versatility  of  talent.  Exactness  and  thorough- 
ness characterize  all  of  his  attainments.  With  a 
multiplicity  of  learning  everything  is  brought  to 
bear  on  his  life-work  as  a  lawyer.  Vigilant,  zeal- 
ous and  industrious,  how  could  he  be  otherwise 
than  successful? 

James  Frake  was  born  in  the  town  of  Lough- 
borough, Leicestershire  England,  March  20,  1841, 
and  is  the  son  of  George  Frake,  who  immigrated 


to  America  in  1844,  and  settled  at  Wheeling, 
Cook  county,  Illinois.  His  decease  occurred  on 
his  farm  in  the  month  of  March,  1846.  The 
mother  of  our  subject  afterward  married  Mr. 
John  Henley,  a  farmer  of  Northfield,  Illinois, 
with  whom  James  lived  until  he  was  eighteen 
years  old.  He  then  determined  to  have  an  edu- 
cation and  witli  no  other  resources  than  his  own 
energy  and  fortitude  he  started  out  to  prepare 
the  way  for  his  future  life.  He  entered  the  pre- 
paratory school  connected  with  the  Northwestern 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIO.XARY  A.XD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


University  at  Evanston,  and  during  his  academic 
career  supported  himself :  and  so  resolute  was  he 
in  his  purposes  that  he  reduced  his  expenses  to 
the  lowest  possible  figure  by  boarding  himself, 
and  on  graduation  day  in  July,  1866,  he  was  at 
the  head  of  his  class  and  carried  off  the  highest 
honors,  and  that  too,  although  during  nearly  all 
the  time  he  was  at  school  he  suffered  from  ill 
health,  which  did  not  improve  until  several  years 
after  he  entered  upon  the  practice  of  his  chosen 
profession. 

After  graduation  he  taught  school  one  year  and 
then  went  abroad.  Upon  his  return  he  attended 
the  Chicago  Law  School,  from  which  he  was  grad- 
uated in  1869.  In  May  of  that  year  he  was  ad- 
mitted to  the  Illinois  bar  by  the  Supreme  Court, 
and  since  then  has  steadfastly  and  conscientiously 
devoted  himself  to  his  profession.  Beginning  with 
nothing  he  has  accumulated  a  handsome  property, 
and  now  enjoys  a  large  and  lucrative  practice. 

In  June,  1874,  Mr.  Frake  was  elected  a  mem- 
ber of  the  board  of  Trustees  of  the  Northwestern 
University,  and  still  holds  that  position.  He 
was  chosen  secretary  of  the  joint  board   of  man- 


agement of  the  Union  College  of  Law,  which  he 
held  several  years.  In  January,  1879,  he  was  ap- 
pointed a  member  of  the  Chicago  board  of  educa- 
tion, being  called  upon  to  fill  the  unexpired  term 
of  Mr.  Joseph  S.  Dennis,  resigned. 

Mr.  Frake  has  been  twice  married.  First  in 
186910  Miss  Melinda  Doty,  of  Frankport,  Will 
county,  Illinois.  She  died  in  1873,  and  he  after- 
wards married  Evelyn  M.  Allen,  of  Elk  Grove. 
Illinois,  daughter  of  Mr.  John  Allen,  Sr.  They 
have  one  son  and  one  daughter  living. 

Mr.  Frake  is  a  member  of  the  Centenary  Meth- 
odist Episcopal  Church. 

He  has  a  mind  subtle  and  refined,  and  inclined 
to  be  judicial  in  its  nature  ;  capable  of  hearing 
both  sides  of  a  question  and  drawing  correct  con- 
clusions. He  is  remarkable  for  clearness,  and 
although  possessing  a  vivid  imagination  he  is  in- 
clined to  be  practical,  logical  and  consistent. 
These  qualifications  have  been  for  a  long  time 
recognized  by  the  members  of  the  bar  and  many 
others,  and  Mr.  Frake  has  been  mentioned  as  an 
available  man  for  one  of  the  judgeships  of  Cook 
county. 


DANIEL   KIMBALL   PEARSONS, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


THE  life-histor>'  of  him  whose  name  heads 
this  sketch  most  happily  illustrates  what 
may  be  attained  by  faithful  and  continued  effort 
in  carrying  out  an  honest  purpose.  It  is  the 
story  of  a  life  whose  success  is  measured  by  its 
usefulness— a  life  that  has  made  the  world 
brighter    and    better. 

Daniel  K.  Pearsons  is  a  native  of  the  Green 
Mountain  State,  and  was  born  at  Bradford  on 
April  14,  1820,  the  son  of  John  and  Hannah 
(Putnam)  Pearsons.  His  father  was  a  farmer  by 
occupation,  and  settled  in  Vermont  more  than  a 
century  ago.  His  mother  belonged  to  the  Israel 
Putnam  family,  her  father,  John  Putnam,  having 
been  a  soldier  in  the  Revolutionary  War.  She 
was  a  woman  of  marked  New  England  character- 
istics, and  the  mother  of  nine  children.  She  lived 
to  an  advanced  age,  and  recounted  with  pleasur- 
able pride  the  scenes  of  her  early  life,  when  she 
spun  the  yarn  and  wove  the  cloth  to  clothe  her 


entire  family.  She  died  at  Holyoke,  Mas.sachu- 
sctts,  at  the  age  of  ninety-three  years.  Daniel 
received  the  rudiments  of  his  education  in  the 
common  schools.  From  his  sixteenth  to  his 
twenty-first  year  he  taught  school  during  the  win- 
ter months  and  then  pursued  a  course  of  studies 
at  Woodstock  and  at  Dartmouth  Medical  College. 
After  his  graduation,  he  remained  a  short  time  in 
Vermont,  and  then  established  himself  in  his  pro- 
fession at  Chicopee,  a  thrifty  manufacturing  town 
near  Springfield,  Massachusetts.  He  met  with 
gratifying  success  in  his  practice,  but  was  not  sat- 
isfied, his  ambitions  and  aspirations  leading  him 
to  desire  and  seek  a  broader  field  for  the  exercise 
of  his  powers. 

Farm  life  always  had  for  him  a  peculiar  attrac- 
tion, that  even  the  success  of  latter  years  in  other 
lines  of  business  has  not  lessened.  In  1857  he 
closed  his  practice  at  Chicopee,  and  removing 
to  Ogle  County,  Illinois,  settled  on  a  farm.    Here, 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


333 


however,  his  active  mind  was  not  at  rest.  Destiny 
liad  marked  out  for  him  a  wider  and  more  active 
field  of  labor,  and  it  was  not  long  before  he  was 
established  in  Chicago  in  the  real  estate  trade. 
He  sold  lands  for  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad 
Company,  the  Sturges  estate,  Mr.  Michael  Sulli- 
van, the  farmer-king,  and  others,  his  sales  in  Illi- 
nois alone  amounting  to  over  one  million  acres. 
Through  these  transactions  he  made  a  wide 
acquaintance  throughout  the  West,  so  that  when, 
in  i860,  he  turned  his  attention  principally  to 
loaning  money  for  moneyed  men  upon  farm  lands, 
he  had  a  large  patronage,  which  constantly  in- 
creased, and  for  twelve  years  he  loaned  an  average 
of  more  than  one  million  doMars  annually.  The 
business  was  not  only  remunerative  to  him, 
but  this  vast  sum  of  money  being  distributed 
throughout  the  farming  community  was  of  incal- 
culable benefit  in  developing  the  countr)-,  and 
such  were  his  business  methods  that  the  interests 
of  both  lender  and  borrower  were  conserved,  and 
their  universal  confidence  maintained.  Mr.  Pear- 
sons had  made  profitable  investments  from  time  to 
time,  and  his  private  interests  had  so  increased 
that  they  required  his  undivided  attention,  and  in 
1S77  he  ceased  loaning  money  for  other  capital- 
ists and  devoted  himself  to  his  own  matters. 

He  has  been  a  large  stockholder  and  director  of 
the  Chicago  City  Railway  Company,  the  American 
Exchange  National  Bank  and  other  financial  in- 
stitutions of  Chicago,  but  his  favorite  investments 
have  been  in  real  property.  He  purchased  large 
tracts  of  timber  lands  in  Michigan,  which  j-ielded 
him  great  profits. 

Ever  since  he  settled  in  Chicago  Mr.  Pearsons 
has  taken  an  active  interest  in  whatever  pertained 
to  her  material  prosperity  and  good  name,  and 
when  called  to  fill  positions  of  trust,  has  con- 
scientiously and  intelligently  performed  his  duties, 
honoring  those  whom  he  represented,  benefit- 
ing the  public  and  doing  credit  to  himself. 
He  has  twice  represented  the  First  Ward  of  Chi- 
cago in  the  Common  Council,  being  elected  on 
both  occasions  on  a  non-partisan  ticket.  The 
value  of  his  ser\'ices  as  chairman  of  the  finance 
committee  in  that  body  cannot  be  overestimated. 
The  financial  condition  of  the  city  was  deplorable. 
Owing  to  extravagance  an  indebtedness  largel)-  in 
excess  of  the  constitutional  limit  had  been  in- 
curred.    To  meet   the  deficiencv  the  cit\-  h.ul  i^ 


sued  certificates  of  indebtedness  whose  legality 
was  disputed  in  the  courts.  Eastern  capitalists 
had  invested  largely  in  these  certificates,  and  were 
alarmed  at  the  situation.  Financial  disaster  was 
spreading  all  over  the  country,  and  capital,  which 
liad  become  solicitous  for  its  securities,  was  averse 
to  almost  ever}'  proffer  of  new  investment.  Chi- 
cago would  soon  need  more  money.  Her  finan- 
cial standing  must  be  maintained.  Conscious  of 
the  need  of  speedy  and  decisive  action,  Mr.  Pear- 
sons was  commissioned  to  visit  the  East,  and  soon 
appeared  among  the  bankers  of  New  York  City. 
Some  of  them  knew  him  personally  or  by  reputa- 
tion, and  those  who  did  not  were  soon  made 
acquainted  with  the  object  of  his  coming.  His 
earnest,  business-like,  straightforward  manner  won 
their  confidence  and  allayed  their  fears.  He  had 
come  officiall)-,  as  a  member  of  his  city's  Com- 
mon Council,  and  privately  as  a  capitalist  and 
man  of  honor,  to  assure  them  that  Chicago 
would  pay  her  debts.  He  pledged  his  word  of 
honor  and  that  of  his  city  that  whoever  might  be 
in  power,  however  courts  might  decide,  and  what- 
ever financial  crisis  might  come,  Chicago  would 
redeem  her  pledges  and  pay  her  certificates  of 
indebtedness,  principal  and  interest,  promptly  on 
time.  They  believed  in  him,  and  were  inspired 
with  new  faith  in  the  city  he  represented.  Their 
confidence  was  not  misplaced  ;  his  word  was  sa- 
credly kept.  His  predictions  were  fully  verified, 
and  when,  a  little  later,  more  ready  money  was 
needed,  he  was  again  commissioned  to  secure  it, 
and  with  little  difficulty  raised  among  local  capi- 
talists half  a  million  dollars.  This  achievment  is 
all  the  more  remarkable  in  view  of  the  fact  that 
in  the  meantime  the  courts  had  decided  that  the 
much-discussed  certificates  were  practically  value- 
less— illegal  promises  to  pay,  which  the  city  might 
repudiate  at  will,  but  which  she  never  did.  The 
result  of  these  negotiations  was  to  establish  the 
financial  standing  of  Chicago,  and  such  was  the 
jjublic  appreciation  of  the  services  of  the  man 
who  accomplished  it,  that  upon  Mr.  Pearsons' 
voluntar\-  rotirement  from  the  Common  Council 
two  years  later,  a  committee  of  citizens  waited 
upon  him,  and  in  a  .series  of  handsomely  engrossed 
resolutions,  testified  their  own  and  their  city's 
high  regard  for  his  effective  work  in  this  and 
other  public  matters,  and  stating,  among  other 
things,    that    he    had    fulfilled    the    duties  of    his 


334 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


office  "with  the  approval  and  plaudits  of  his  en- 
tire constituency,  regardless  of  party  affiliations." 

About  the  time  of  his  retirement  from  political 
life,  Mr.  Pearsons  withdrew  from  his  more  ardu- 
ous business  enterprises  and  resigned  several  of 
his  corporation  directorships,  although  retaining 
his  monetary  interests  in  them.  With  a  view  of 
getting  his  property  in  such  shape  that  he  could 
enjoy  the  comforts  of  life  unhampered  by  con- 
stantly pressing  business  cares,  he  began  buying 
and  improving  choice  residence  property,  princi- 
pally in  the  north  division  of  Chicago.  He  soon 
had  in  his  possession  about  one  hundred  fine 
houses  and  flats,  and  from  which  he  derives  a 
large  income. 

Mr.  Pearsons  has  been  an  extensive  traveler, 
both  in  his  own  and  in  foreign  lands.  He  has 
visited  Europe  three  times,  and  but  recently 
(1890)  returned  from  Egypt. 

Great  as  has  been  Mr.  Pearsons'  success  as  a 
business  man  and  financier,  and  valuable  as  have 
been  his  public  services,  that  which  most  distin- 
guishes him  and  in  which  he  takes  the  greatest 
satisfaction  and  pride,  is  his  system  of  practical 
philanthropy.  To  him,  money  is  valueless  ex- 
cept as  it  is  put  to  some  good  use,  and  he  has 
most  wisely  decided  to  be  the  almoner  of  his  own 
bounty.  To  attempt  to  enumerate  all  who  have 
been  the  objects  of  his  benevolence  were  a  hope- 
less task.  Their  name  is  legion.  But  without 
making  mention  of  his  hearty  responses  to  the 
calls  of  men  and  women  in  need,  it  may  be 
stated  that  his  public  gifts  during  the  last  ten 
years  have  amounted  to  one  million  dollars.  His 
favorite  method  of  giving  to  public  institutions 
is  to  base  his  gift  on  the  condition  that  another 
sum  be  raised,  which  condition  has,  in  every  in- 
stance, been  met.  He  has  given  to  Beloit  Col- 
lege, Wisconsin,  in  buildings  and  endowment,  two 
hundred  thousand  dollars;  to  Lake  Forest  Uni- 
versity, one  hundred  thousand  dollars;  to  Knox 
College,  Galesburg,  III,  fifty  thousand  dollars  ;  to 
Chicago  Theological  Seminary,  one  hundred  and 
fifty  thousand  dollars  ;  to  the  Presbyterian  Semi- 
nary, of  Chicago,  fifty  thousand  dollars;  to  the 
Young  Men's  Christian  Association,  thirty  thou- 
sand dollars;  to  the  Women's  Board  of  Foreign 
Missions,  twenty  thousand  dollars ;  to  the  Pres- 
byterian Hospital,  sixty  thousand  dollars ;  to 
Yankton  College,  Dakota,  fiftv  thousand  dollars. 


besides  other  donations  to  various  religious,  edu- 
cational, benevolent  and  charitable  objects  and 
uses,  amounting,  in  the  aggregate,  to  two  hun- 
dred and  fifty  thousand  dollars.  His  method  of 
conditioning  his  gifts  to  educational  institutions, 
upon  the  raising  of  an  equal  or  larger  amount, 
has  resulted  in  endowing  them  with  many  hun- 
dred thousand  dollars  which  else  they  might 
never  have  received. 

He  has  a  practical  sympathy  for  worthy  young 
men  and  women  who  are  striving  to  get  an  edu- 
cation, and  specifies  in  his  gifts  to  colleges  that 
one-half  shall  be  placed  in  the  hands  of  trustees, 
and  the  income  loaned  to  needy  students  at  a 
moderate  rate  of  interest,  principal  and  interest 
to  be  repaid  when  the  borrower  is  able.  The 
wisdom  of  this  system  of  giving  is  apparent, 
when  one  considers  that  in  this  way  worthy 
young  men  are  enabled  to  become  beneficiaries, 
without  weakening  their  manhood  or  lessening 
their  self-respect. 

Mr.  Pearsons  is  a  man  of  strong  and  marked 
personality,  deliberate  in  his  judgments,  firm  in 
his  convictions  and  resolute  in  his  determinations. 
Physically,  he  is  well  preserved,  and  though  sev- 
enty-two years  of  age,  he  has  the  appearance  of 
being  much  younger.  Erect  in  form,  he  walks 
with  a  steady  step,  and  in  all  his  bearing  carries 
himself  as  a  man  conscious  of  the  dignity  and 
nobility  and  worth  of  true  manhood.  Yet  he  is 
a  modest  man,  and  in  all  his  benevolent  work  he 
has,  as  far  as  possible,  avoided  publicity,  finding 
satisfaction  in  the  consciousness  of  having  used 
his  money  and  talents  in  doing  good,  rather  than 
in  the  plaudits  of  his  fellow-men. 

Since  taking  up  his  abode  in  Chicago,  Mr.  Pear- 
sons has  been  a  firm  believer  in  her  destined 
greatness  and  in  the  growing  importance  of  the 
West.  Yet  he  has  never  ceased  to  remember, 
with  admiration  and  affectionate  regard,  the  State 
of  his  nativity.  He  was  one  of  the  organizers  of 
the  Society  of  the  Sons  of  Vermont,  and  one  of 
its  early  presidents,  and  from  its  founding  has 
been  active  in  promoting  its  interests. 

Mr.  Pearsons  was  married,  in  August,  184",  to 
Miss  Marietta  Chapin,  whose  family  is  well  known 
in  Western  Massachusetts.  Mrs.  Pearsons  is  a 
woman  of  the  true  New  England  type,  and  she 
enters  heartily  into  her  husband's  methods  and 
plans  of    benevolent  work,    and    throughout  lile 


^  Ci^^V^  d>rri::^ 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARV  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


335 


has  been  to  him  a  true  helpmeet.  She  presides 
with  womanly  grace  over  their  elegant  and  happy 
home,  at  Hinsdale,  one  of  Chicago's  most  roman- 
tic suburbs,  and  here  Mr.  Pearsons,  in  the  society 
of  his  wife  and  intimate  friends,  finds  his  highest 
social  enjoyment.  He  has  never  belonged  to  a 
club  or  secret  society. 

Such  is  an  outline  of  his  life,  and  while  it  may 


not  disclose  all  that  has  contributed  to  his  re- 
markable success,  one  who  reads  it  must  be  im- 
pressed with  the  fact  that  a  genius  for  hard  work 
has  been  no  small  factor.  His  life  has  been 
manly;  his  actions  sincere;  his  manner  unaffected, 
and  his  speech  from  the  heart.  In  a  word,  it  has 
been  a  life  full  of  good  work,  and  furnishes  an 
example  most  worthy  of  emulation. 


CHARLES   H.   FOSTER, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


/~"HARLES  H.  FOSTER  was  born  at  Roch- 
^^— '  ester,  New  York,  on  April  14,  1835.  Dur- 
ing his  boyhood  he  attended  the  Wadsworth 
School  and  Dewey's  High  School  in  his  native 
city,  and  at  the  age  of  seventeen  years  went  to 
Albany,  New  York,  where  he  became  agent  of 
the  Mercantile  Line  of  Canal  Boats,  running  be- 
tween Albany  and  Rochester,  New  York.  Al- 
though but  a  youth  he  discharged  the  duties  of 
the  position  with  ability,  and  retained  it  for 
three  years.  In  1854  he  went  to  New  York 
City,  and  for  one  year  was  engaged  in  the  for- 
warding business  on  his  own  account,  his  busi- 
ness consisting  of  transporting  coal  and  lumber 
from  New  York  and  Philadelphia  for  the  Roch- 
ester market.  Closing  out  his  business  in  the 
summer  of  1855,  he  removed  to  Chicago  and 
took  a  position  with  the  Galena  &  Chicago 
Union  Railroad  Company,  his  first  work  being 
checking  goods  in  the  freight  department  of 
that  road.  He  was  check  and  bill  clerk  in  the 
local  freight  office  for  about  eighteen  months, 
and  in  January,  1857,  was  made  assistant  cashier 
in  the  same  office,  in  1858  was  chief  clerk  in  the 
general  freight  office,  and  in  1859  chief  clerk  in 
the  general  ticket  office,  and  from  Januar)',  i860, 
to  January  11,  1863,  was  general  bookkeeper  in 
the  secretary's  office,  and  he  continued  with  the 
Galena  &  Chicago  Union  Company  until  the 
spring  of  1863.  During  the  years  1863  and  1864 
he  was  employed  as  chief  clerk  in  the  office  of 
Mr.  Samuel  T.  Atwater,  agent  of  the  Buffalo 
Mutual  Insurance  Company. 

January  11,  1865,  Mr.  Foster  was  tendered  the 
position  of  general  accountant  under  Mr.  W.  M. 
Larrabee,  secretary  and  treasurer  of  the  Chicago  & 


Alton  Railroad  Company,  with  whom  he  had  been 
associated  while  in  the  employ  of  the  Galena  & 
Chicago  Union  Railroad  Company.  The  tender 
of  the  position  was  a  worthy  recognition  of  Mr. 
Foster's  eminent  fitness  and  ability.  He  gladly 
accepted  it,  and  until  May,  1879,  "'^s  subordinate 
to  Mr.  Larrabee. 

F"or  some  time  prior  to  this  Mr.  Larrabee's 
health  had  been  failing  and  the  duties  of  his  office 
had  fallen  upon  Mr.  Foster,  his  chief  clerk,  who 
was  made  treasurer  pro  tempore  at  that  time. 
His  health  continuing  to  fail,  Mr.  Larrabee  was 
compelled  to  resign  his  office  and  Mr.  Foster  was 
elected  secretary  and  treasurer  in  his  stead,  and 
has  continued  to  fill  those  offices  with  marked 
success  until  the  present  time  (1892).  Mr.  Foster 
is  also  secretary  of  the  Joliet  &  Chicago  Railroad 
Company,  secretary  and  treasurer  of  the  Missis- 
sippi River  Bridge  Company,  and  secretary  and 
treasurer  of  the  Louisiana  &  Missouri  River 
Railroad  Company,  all  of  which  corporations 
are  au.xiliaries  of  the  Chicago  &  Alton  Rail- 
road. 

Mr.  Foster  was  married  in  Chicago,  on  Decem- 
ber II,  1864,  to  Miss  Caroline  V^an  Inwagen,  a 
daughter  of  Anthony  Van  Inwagen,  who  was 
formerly  engaged  in  the  forwarding  commission 
business  at  Chicago.  Mrs.  Foster  died  on  No- 
vember 7,  1884,  leaving  three  children,  viz.:  Ger- 
trude, wife  of  Waite  Bliven ;  Harry  C,  receiv- 
ing teller  of  the  Illinois  Trust  and  Savings 
Bank,  and  Eugene,  who  was  born  on  November 
5,  1884.  Mr.  Foster's  parents  were  William  C. 
and  Permclia  (Wilson)  Foster.  His  father  was  a 
prominent  miller  and  forwarding  merchant  at 
Rochester,   New  York.     He  died  on    November 


336 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


25,  1880,  honored  and  esteemed  by  all  who  knew 
him.     His  mother  died  on  June  6,  1887. 

Mr.  Foster's  progress  has  been  a  steady  growth 
along  the  line  of  honest,  persistent  effort.  He  is 
a  man  whose  record  is  clean  and  who  is  prized  by 


his  associates  and  esteemed  by  all  for  his  genuine 
worth.  His  name  is  a  familiar  one  in  railwaj-  cir- 
cles, and  everj'where  is  a  synonym  for  faithful- 
ness, ability,  integrity,  trustworthiness  and  manly 
virtue. 


JOHN   TRVON   CHUMASERO, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


PROMINENT  among  the  energetic,  far-seeing 
and  successful  business  men  of  Chicago,  is 
the  subject  of  this  sketch.  After  a  varied  expe- 
rience in  the  East,  he  made  Chicago  his  home 
when  about  thirty  years  of  age,  and  has  resided 
there  continuously  since. 

Mr.  Chumasero  was  born  in  Rochester,  New 
York,  on  September  30,  1839,  ^'^^  comes  of  excel- 
lent parentage.  His  father,  Hon.  John  C.  Chu- 
masero, was  a  resident  of  Rochester,  New  York, 
more  than  forty  years,  and  during  that  time  was 
judge  for  many  years  and  was  very  prominent  in 
political  matters.  He  was  chairman  of  the  com- 
mittee for  raising  troops,  and  president  of  the 
American  National  League  in  1862,  and  was  instru- 
mental in  preventing  trouble  several  times  during 
the  critical  period  of  drafting.  The  Chumasero 
family  trace  their  origin  as  far  back  as  the  Span- 
ish Inquisition,  when  they  emigrated  to  Holland. 
His  mother  was  Emily  Root  Tryon,  of  Connecti- 
cut. Her  family  trace  their  ancestry  in  this  coun- 
try back  to  the  year  1652,  and  were  previously  of 
aristocratic  English  lineage.  Thomas  Tryon  was 
the  first  Governor  of  New  York,  and  another 
member  of  the  family  was  Governor  of  North 
Carolina  in  1765.  Other  instances  might  be  cited, 
but  it  is  sufficient  to  say  the  Tryon  family  have 
an  e.xcellent  record. 

Under  the  watchful  care  of  his  parents,  young 
Chumasero  received  his  education  first  in  the 
public  schools  until  he  was  twelve  years  old  and 
then  for  the  next  four  years  under  a  private  tutor. 
During  his  early  years  he  proved  himself  a  talent- 
ed, industrious  and  methodical  student,  and  was 
highly  successful  for  a  boy  of  his  age.  When  six- 
teen years  old  he  was  placed  in  the  ofifice  of  his 
uncle,  E.  N.  Buell,  to  learn  business  forms  and 
methods.  He  was  \Qxy  successful,  and  for  two 
years  had  charge  of  the  books  of  the  firm.     After 


leaving  his  uncle  he  conducted  a  manufacturing 
business  for  himself  with  good  results,  but  at  the 
commencement  of  the  War  of  the  Rebellion  he 
sold  out  and  entered  the  service  of  his  countrj-. 
The  Governor  of  New  York  commissioned  him  ad- 
jutant of  the  One  Hundred  and  Eighth  New  York 
Regiment,  which  was  commanded  by  Colonel  Oli- 
ver H.  Palmer,  well  known  in  later  years  as  presi- 
dent of  the  Western  Union  Telegraph  Company. 
Before  going  to  the  front  with  his  regiment  he  was 
made  recruiting  officer  for  his  district,  and  mus- 
tered several  regiments  into  the  service,  paying 
them  the  bounty  of  fifty  dollars  per  man,  which 
amounted  to  several  hundred  thousand  dollars. 
The  young  adjutant  participated  with  his  regiment 
in  the  battles  of  South  Mountain  and  Antietam, 
where  he  proved  himself  a  brave  soldier  and  a 
good  disciplinarian.  His  arduous  duties  and  the 
exposure  to  which  he  was  subjected  at  this  time 
brought  on  an  attack  of  typhoid  fever,  and  the 
best  his  comrades  could  do  for  him  was  to  send 
him  on  horseback  from  Harper's  Ferry  to  a  sick 
camp  at  Arlington.  The  results  of  this  journey 
and  the  delay  of  proper  treatment  rendered  his 
case  hopeless;  the  doctors  gave  him  up,  and  for 
weeks  he  lay  at  the  point  of  death.  His  consti- 
tution, however,  was  strong  and  sound,  and  he 
pulled  through,  contrary  to  expectation,  but  was 
so  emaciated  that  he  weighed  only  ninety  pounds. 
The  results  of  this  illness  he  felt  for  years  after. 
At  this  time  he  received  his  discharge  from  his 
regiment  and  went  home  to  his  family,  where  for 
two  years,  notwithstanding  their  great  care  and 
kindness,  he  remained  an  invalid.  The  first  em- 
ployment in  which  he  engaged  after  his  illness  was 
in  the  New  York  custom  house,  in  charge  of  the 
claim  desk,  an  ofifice  to  which  he  was  appointed  by 
Collector  Hiram  Barney,  and  which  he  filled  with 
satisfaction    for    two    years.     Resigning  his  posi- 


AU     q).   /foKuAAA 


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BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  uAI.I.ERV. 


339 


tion,  he  went  into  the  office  of  a  Wall  street 
broker,  but  his  health  failed  and  he  returned  to 
his  home  in  Rochester,  where  he  soon  grew  strong 
again.  In  i86S  his  business  instinct  led  him  to 
Chicago,  which  was  then  the  growing  cit)-  of  the 
West.  Although  without  friends  or  prospects  in 
his  new  home,  he  was  convinced  that  energy  and 
ability  would  be  recognized  and  rewarded.  His  first 
position  was  with  Messrs.  Da}%  Allen  and  Co.,  then 
the  largest  wholesale  grocers  in  Chicago,  as  book- 
keeper and  cashier.  After  the  fire  of  1871  the 
firm  was  dissolved  and  the  partners  retired  from 
business.  His  next  position  was  as  assistant  cash- 
ier with  the  firm  of  Messrs.  J.  V.  Harwell  and  Co. 
He  entered  on  the  duties  of  this  position  in  Decem- 
ber, 1 8" I.  Six  months  later  he  was  appointed 
assistant  to  Mr.  Simeon  Farwell,  who  had  charge 
of  the  credits  and  finances  of  the  firm,  and  whose 
illness  soon  afterward  threw  the  whole  responsi- 
bility of  that  department  on  Mr.  Chumasero.  In 
1879  '^c  became  a  partner  in  the  business,  and  in 
1880,  when  the  business  was  incorporated,  he 
was  chosen  secretary,  and  has  had  for  the  past 
nine  years  the  entire  management  of  the  credits 
and  finances  of  the  concern. 

Quiet    and  unassuming  in  manner,  reserved  but 
agreeable    in  conversation,  precise,  accurate  and 


methodical  in  business,  Mr.  Chumasero  stands  very 
high  among  the  business  men  of  this  country. 
Thoroughly  honorable  in  his  treatment  of  others 
and  of  irreproachable  integrity,  he  is  a  leader 
among  leading  business  men. 

Mr.  Chumasero  was  married  in  1863  to  Eva  C. 
Young,  daughter  of  Mr.  Benjamin  T.  Young,  of 
Brooklyn.  They  have  two  children,  Kenneth  P. 
and  Emily  C.  For  a  number  of  years  Mrs. 
Chumasero  has  been  an  invalid,  and  her  daugh- 
ter, an  accomplished  young  lady,  has  acted  the 
hostess,  presiding  over  the  home  with  ease,  grace 
and  dignity.  To  surround  his  wife  and  children 
with  every  comfort  and  lu-xurj-  has  been  the  great- 
est pleasure  of  Mr.  Chumasero's  life.  In  social 
circles  Mr.  Chumasero  is  very  popular.  He  was 
one  of  the  first  members  of  the  Union  League, 
Chicago,  Washington  Park,  Calumet  and  Chicago 
Athletic  clubs.  He  is  a  vestryman  of  Trinity 
Episcopal  church,  and  president  of  the  Illinois 
Industrial  School  for  boys,  and  a  member  of 
Custer  Post,  G.  A.  R.,  and  a  director  in  the  Atlas 
National  bank. 

Mr.  Chumasero  is  a  man  of  extensive  reading 
and  culture  and  his  literary  taste  has  been  culti- 
vated and  improved  by  extensive  travel  both  in 
this  country  and  in  Europe. 


WARREN    GRAFTON    PURDY, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


WARREN  G.  PURDY  is  a  native  of  Balti- 
more, Maryland.  He  was  born  on  May 
20,  1843,  to  John  H.  and  Louisa  A.  Purdy.  From 
his  early  boyhood  he  attended  the  public  schools 
of  his  native  city,  graduating  from  the  High 
School,  now  known  as  the  Baltimore  City  College, 
in  1859.  The  same  year,  when  but  si.xteen  years 
of  age,  he  removed  to  Chicago  and  took  a  position 
as  clerk  in  the  storeroom  of  the  Illinois  Central 
Railroad  shops.  He  resigned  his  position  in  the 
early  part  of  1863  to  accept  a  position  with  the 
Ohio  &  Mississippi  Railroad  Company  at  St. 
Louis,  Missouri.  A  year  later  he  returned  to 
Chicago  and  became  connected  with  the  Quarter- 
master's Department  of  the  U.  S.  Army,  serving 
as  Chief  Clerk  at  Camp  Douglas  and  in  the  city 
until  the  latter  part  of  1865,  when  he  was  ordered 


to  Texas,  and  served  as  Chief  Clerk  of  the  west- 
ern district  of  that  State,  with  headquarters  at 
Brownsville,  until  the  latter  part  of  that  year.  In 
January,  1867,  he  became  general  bookkeeper  for 
the  Chicago,  Rock  Island  &  Pacific  Railway  Com- 
pany, at  Chicago.  In  December,  1867,  he  was 
promoted  to  the  position  of  cashier,  and  ten 
years  later,  in  April,  1877,  he  became  local  Treas- 
urer. On  June  2,  1885,  he  was  elected  Treasurer 
and  Secretary  of  the  same  company,  and  in  Sep- 
tember, 1887,  was  elected  Vice-President,  while 
still  retaining  the  offices  of  Treasurer  and  Secre- 
tary. 

His  Masonic  record  is  a  history  by  itself;  he 
became  a  Mason  in  Blair  Lodge,  A.  F.  and  A.  M., 
in  1864,  and  was  elected  Secretary  of  the  lodge 
the  same  year.     In    1867  was  elected   First    Lien- 


340 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


tenant-Commander  of  Chicago  (afterward  Orien- 
tal) Consistor>-,  S.  P.  R.  S.,  and  in  1871  received 
the  thirty-third  degree  of  Masonry,  being  at  that 
time  probably  the  youngest  thirty-third  degree 
Mason  in  the  United  States.  In  1876  he  served 
as  Worshipful  Master  of  Landmark  Lodge,  No. 
422,  A.  F.  and  A.  M.,  and  subsequently  as  an  ofifi- 
cer  in  Fairview  Chapter,  R.  A.  M. ;  in  1879  he 
was  elected  Treasurer  of  Apollo  Commandery, 
No.  I,  Knights  Templar,  of  Chicago,  and  in  1880 
took  an  active  part  in  the  triennial  conclave  of 
that  Order  held  in  Chicago.  During  the  conclave 
he  was  a  member  of  the  Executive  Committee, 
and  also  Adjutant-General.  Subsequent  to  this 
conclave,  Montjoie  (mounted)  Commandery,  No. 
53,  Knights  Templar,  was  organized.  Of  this 
Commandery  Mr.  Purdy  was  one  of  the  charter 
members,  and  for  the  first  three  years  was  its 
Eminent   Commander.     In   1885  he  was  elected 


and  commissioned  Lieutenant-Colonel  of  the  Sec- 
ond Regiment  Illinois  National  Guards,  which 
ofifice  he  held  until  1889,  when  he  resigned. 

Politically,  Mr.  Purdy  has  been  affiliated  with 
the  Democratic  party,  although  his  actions  have 
always  been  independent  and  not  bound  by 
party  ties. 

On  March  13,  1865,  he  was  married  to  Miss 
Acca  L.  Colby,  of  Chicago,  by  whom  he  has  four 
children,  viz.:  William  A.  (at  present  Paymaster 
of  the  Chicago,  Rock  Island  &  Pacific  Railway), 
Ella  F.,  Warren,  Fred  and  Bertha  A. 

The  residence  of  Mr.  Purdy  and  family  is  in 
Kenwood,  where,  in  the  circle  of  his  fireside,  sur- 
rounded by  his  family,  he  passes  the  happiest 
moments  of  his  life.  Socially,  Mr.  Purdy  is  an 
active  member  of  the  Kenwood  Social  Club,  and 
one  of  the  earliest  members  of  the  Union  League 
Club  of  Chicago. 


HENRY  T.  BYFORD,   M.D. 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


THERE  are  few  men,  whatever  be  their  tal- 
ents or  profession,  whose  efforts  and  achieve- 
ments Chicago  watches  with  more  interest  than 
she  gives  to  Henr>'  Turman  Byford.  Nor  is  this 
interest  felt  simply  because  he  is  the  son  of  a 
great  man,  but  because,  by  his  own  worth,  he  has 
won  a  place  in  the  hearts  of  his  fellow-citizens. 
The  late  William  H.  Byford,  M.  D.,  L.L.  D.,  was, 
at  the  time  of  his  decease,  one  of  Chicago's  most 
famous  surgeons,  and  it  is  by  individual  endow- 
ment of  the  highest  order  that  the  son  is  advanc- 
ing to  fill  the  father's  place. 

The  Byford  family  came  originally  to  America 
many  generations  ago,  from  Suffolk,  England. 
The  branch  of  the  family  in  which  we  are  inter- 
ested gradually  drifted  towards  the  interior  of  the 
country,  and  William  H.  Byford  was  born  in 
Eaton,  Ohio.  His  wife,  Mary  Anne  Holland,  was 
the  daughter  of  Hezekiah  Holland,  a  noted  phy- 
sician of  Kentucky.  Five  children  were  the 
result  of  this  union.  Henry  T.  Byford,  who  is 
the  only  surviving  son,  was  born  in  1853,  in 
Evansville,  Indiana.  His  brother.  Dr.  William 
H.  Byford,  Jr.,  who  died  in  1883,  was,  in  his 
specialty,  the   foremost  surgeon  of   Minneapolis. 


Three  sisters  are  referred  to  in  the  sketch  of  Dr. 
W.  H.  Byford,  Sr.,  found  in  another  part  of  this 
volume. 

In  the  matter  of  education  Dr.  Byford  has  been 
the  recipient  of  superior  advantages.  The  early 
years  of  his  school-life  were  spent  in  Chicago,  in 
the  public  schools  and  in  the  private  academy  of 
Dr.  Quackenboss.  When  he  was  eleven  years  of 
age  he  was  placed  in  school  in  Germany,  taking  a 
classical  course.  At  the  end  of  three  years  he  was 
graduated,  receiving  the  prize  for  the  best  compo- 
sition (German)  in  the  highest  class  of  a  high  school 
in  Berlin.  Returning  to  this  city,  he  spent  one 
term  in  the  University  of  Chicago.  In  the  fall  of 
1868  he  began  a  course  of  very  earnest  study  at 
Willaston  Seminary,  graduating  from  the  scientific 
department  with  high  honors  in  1 870.  The  same 
year  he  matriculated  at  the  Chicago  Medical  Col- 
lege, and  was  graduated  in  1873.  He  was  elected 
valedictorian  of  his  class,  and  in  the  examinations 
ranked  perfect  in  all  branches  except  one.  Extra- 
ordinary as  was  this  record,  it  was  rendered  even 
more  so  by  his  extreme  youth.  Dr.  Byford,  at 
the  time  of  his  graduation,  was  but  nineteen 
years  of  age,  and  accordingly  not  entitled  to  the 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


343 


privileges  of  the  diploma  for  nearly  two  years  to 
come. 

While  yet  a  student,  he  had,  by  competitive 
examination,  secured  the  position  of  interne  at 
Mercy  Hospital.  He  was,  however,  obliged  by 
the  illness  of  his  brother  to  forego  the  benefits  of 
a  full  term  in  this  capacity,  as  well  as  the  pleas- 
ure of  attending  the  graduating  exercises  of  his 
class  and  of  delivering  his  valedictory  address. 
Dr.  William  H.  Byford,  Jr.,  whose  later  career  in 
Minneapolis  was  at  once  so  brilliant  and  so 
pathetic,  was,  at  this  time,  suffering  from  lung 
trouble,  for  which  he  sought  relief  in  southern 
travel.  There  had  always  been  a  very  affectionate 
relationship  between  the  brothers,  and  now  that  a 
nurse  and  companion  was  needed  for  the  elder,  it 
was  with  unhesitating  devotion  that  the  younger 
relinquished  his  studies  to  accompany  him.  They 
traveled  for  some  months  in  the  South,  spent  a 
year  in  Denver,  and  our  subject  returned  to 
Chicago  in    1874. 

Seventeen  years  have  passed,  and  to-day  Dr. 
Byford  stands  in  the  front  ranks  of  his  profession. 
Recognized  not  only  as  a  most  skillful  practi- 
tioner, but  as  a  man  of  advanced,  original 
thought  and  wide  research,  the  number  of  his 
public  engagements  is  limited  only  by  the  de- 
mands of  an  enormous  practice.  Dr.  Byford  was 
one  of  the  founders  of  the  Chicago  Post-Graduate 
School,  in  which,  from  its  inception,  he  has  occu- 
pied the  chair  of  Gynecology.  He  is  Clinical 
Professor  of  Gynaecology  in  the  Woman's  Medical 
College ;  Gynjecologist  to  St.  Luke's  Hospital  and 
Surgeon  to  the  Woman's  Hospital ;  formerly 
Curator  of  the  Museum,  and  Lecturer  on  diseases 
of  children  in  the  Chicago  Medical  College,  as 
well  as  Lecturer  on  obstetrics  in  Rush  Medical 
College.  He  has  been  obliged  to  resign  both  of 
these  trusts  owing  to  the  pressure  of  private 
work.  As  a  clinical  lecturer.  Dr.  Byford  has  won 
well-merited  reputation — reports  of  his  lectures 
being  solicited  by  the  leading  medical  periodicals 
of  the  country.  His  contributions  to  medical 
journals  are  numerous,  and  are  characterized  by 
their  original  matter  and  practical  interest,  some 
of  them  having  been  published  in  Europe.  He 
wa.s  co-editor  with  his  father,  the  late  Dr.  William 
H.  Byford,  Sr.,  of  the  last  edition  of  "  Byford's 
Diseases  of  Women."  He  is  a  charter  member 
and   ey-nn-iifJont  of   the  Chicago  Gyna-cological 


Society,  active  member  of  the  American  Gynae- 
cological Society,  of  the  Chicago  Medical  Society, 
the  Chicago  Medico-Legal  Society,  the  Illinois 
State  Medical  Society  and  the  American  Medical 
Association. 

Dr.  Byford  has  twice  visited  Europe,  first  in 
1865-68,  and  again  in  1879-80.  He  has  made  an 
exhaustive  study  of  nervous  diseases,  in  connec- 
tion with  gynaecological  practice,  in  the  hospi- 
tals of  London,  Edinburgh,  Heidelberg  and 
Paris. 

Not  satisfied  with  the  fulfillment  of  the  many 
duties  which  come  to  him  in  the  regular  practice 
of  his  profession.  Dr.  Byford  has  added  to  it 
another  and  a  very  valuable  and  important  form 
of  activity,  which  has  gained  him  imperishable 
renown — that  of  invention.  He  has  invented 
numerous  new  methods  of  operation,  many  of 
which  are  associated  in  medical  literature  with  his 
name.  Thus  he  was  the  first  to  advise  and  per- 
form operations  for  shortening  the  sacro-uterine 
ligaments  for  retroversion  of  the  uterus ;  inguinal 
suspension  of  the  bladder  for  cystocele ;  vaginal 
fixation  of  the  stump  in  abdominal  hysterot- 
omy; bilateral  denudations  for  anterior  colpocele 
and  cystocele ;  subcutaneous  perinseotomy,  etc. 
He  has  also  brought  to  its  present  state  of  perfec- 
tion the  operations  called  vaginal  oophorectomy 
and  vaginal  ovariotomy,  having  reported,  in  1890, 
eighteen  operations  without  a  death.  We  have 
further  evidence  of  his  originality  and  ingenuity 
as  an  inventor  in  a  multitude  of  instruments  de- 
vised by  him,  the  most  important  of  which  are 
his  broad  ligament  forceps  for  the  removal  of  the 
uterus  through  the  vagina,  his  hysterotomy 
clamp  forceps,  trocar  for  vaginal  ovariotomy, 
probe-pointed  fascia  scissors,  perinaeotomy  tene- 
tome,  uterine  elevator,  improved  needle  forceps, 
retroversion  pessary,  uterine  hook,  uterine  cu- 
rettes, various  forms  of  haemostatic  forceps  for 
use  in  vaginal  section,  etc.,  etc.  "  He  possesses" 
(quoting  the  words  of  one  eminently  qualified  to 
speak  with  authority  on  the  subject),  "a  degree  of 
mechanical  ability  not  often  found  among  those 
who  have  chosen  to  follow  the  practice  of  medi- 
cine as  a  profession.  He  may  justly  be  proud  as 
the  author  of  a  large  list  of  surgical  instruments 
that  have  not  only  been  an  assistance  to  his  fel- 
low-practitioners, but  a  great  benefit  to  the  public 
as  well."     And   further:    "  We  feel  safe  in  saying 


344 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  A\D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


that  but  few  men  engaged  in  the  practice  of  any 
trade  or  profession,  in  this  or  any  other  age, 
have  obeyed  the  dictates  of  conscience  or  felt  the 
weight  of  their  duties  and  responsibilities  more 
fully  than  has  Dr.  Henry  T.  Byford." 

He  is  a  Republican,  though  not  a  politician, 
subordinating  everything  to  his  chosen  work.  He 
is  a  member  of  the  Methodist  church,  and  has, 
throughout  his  life,  been  strongly  influenced  by 
the  teachings  of  his  mother,  a  woman  of  deep 
religious  sensibilities. 

Dr.  Byford  is  a  man  of  fine  physical  propor- 
tions, a  thorough  athlete  and  a  great  pedestrian. 
He  has  explored  on  foot  the  Hartz  Mountains, 
the  English  lake  country.  Northern  Wales,  the 
Black  Forest  of  Germany  and  the  mountains  of 
Switzerland,  as  well  as  the  mountain  regions  of 
his  own  country. 

From  early  youth  Dr.  Byford  has  evinced  great 
artistic  ability.  He  spent  some  time,  during  his 
residence  at  Paris,  in  the  famous  Julien  studio, 
doing  good  work  in  drawing  and  crayon.  It  is, 
however,  as  a  water-color  artist  that  he  excels. 

Blessed  in  so   many    waj-s,   it  only   needs   the 


addition  of  a  happy  home  to  make  his  life  com- 
plete, and  this  is  not  denied  him.  Mrs.  Byford, 
whose  maiden  name  was  Miss  Lucy  Larned,  is  the 
daughter  of  Frederick  Sylvester  Larned,  who  was 
Assistant  Paymaster-General  of  the  United  States 
Army  during  the  late  civil  war.  Colonel  Larned, 
who  was  a  graduate  of  West  Point,  is  an  accom- 
plished linguist,  a  man  of  superior  education,  and 
has  traveled  twice  around  the  world.  Mrs.  Byford 
is  a  lady  of  most  admirable  and  pleasing  qualities. 
She  is  domestic  in  her  tastes,  a  devoted  mother, 
and  to  her  husband  a  great  source  of  cheer  and 
inspiration  in  his  work.  Amiable,  talented  and 
exceedingly  winning  and  gracious  in  her  manner, 
she  is  verj'  popular  in  social  circles,  and  is  the 
ruling  spirit  in  the  cordial  influence  that  pervades 
her  home.  Their  four  children  are :  Miss  Gene- 
vieve Larned  Byford,  a  very  graceful  and  attrac- 
tive girl  and  a  musician  of  rare  gifts;  Mary  Lina 
Byford,  aged  six  years.  Heath,  a  little  boy,  aged 
four,  who  bears  a  marked  resemblance  to  his 
distinguished  grandfather,  the  late  Dr.  William 
H.  Byford,  and  William  Holland  Byford,  born 
March  5,  1 891,  at  Chicago. 


REV.  JEREMIAH    PORTER,   D.D. 


CHICAGO,  ILL. 


THE  distinguished  honor  of  laying  the  foun- 
dations, in  Chicago,  of  the  great  work  of  the 
Presbyterian  Church,  belongs  to  the  subject  of 
this  sketch.  As  a  missionary  of  the  American 
Home  Missionary  Society  (now  Congregational), 
he  was  sent  in  1831  to  Fort  Brady,  at  Sault  Ste. 
Marie.  Mich.  Thence  with  the  troops  under  Major 
John  F"owle  he  reached  old  Fort  Dearborn  May 
13,  1833.  The  next  Sabbath  (19th),  he  preached 
in  the  carpenter's  shop  at  the  Fort,  from  John  xv, 
8.  In  the  afternoon,  at  "Father  Walker's"  log 
house,  west  side,  near  the  forks  of  the  river.  In 
the  evening  (six  o'clock),  held  a  prayer  meeting  in 
the  Fort.  Of  that  day's  early  morning  experience, 
his  journal  says:  "The  first  dreadful  spectacle 
that  met  my  eyes  on  going  to  church  was  a  group 
of  Indians  sitting  on  the  ground  before  a  miser- 
able French  dramhouse  playing  cards,  and  as 
many  trifling  white  men  standing  around  to  wit- 
ness the  game." 


June  26.  1833,  Mr.  Porter  organized  the  First 
Presbyterian  Church,  with  twenty-seven  members. 
Seventeen  of  them  had  come  with  him  from  his 
Fort  Brady  church  and  nine  were  citizens  of  the 
little  village  of  Chicago.  Most  remarkable  is  the 
fact  that  all  of  these  charter  members  were  Con- 
gregationalists,  except  Philo  Carpenter,  and  sub- 
sequently he  became  a  leading  Congregationalist, 
whose  devotion  and  beneficence  are  honored  in 
Carpenter  Hall  and  Chapel  of  the  Congregational 
Seminary,  Union  Park.  Among  the  Congrega- 
tional successors  to  Dr.  Porter  in  the  First  Presby- 
terian pastorate  were  the  sainted  Flavel  Bascom, 
D.  D.,  for  ten  years,  and  the  present  gifted  pastor. 
Rev.  J.  H.  Barrows,  D.  D.,  whose  biography  ap- 
pears in  this  volume. 

Rev.  Dr.  Porter  was  born  in  1804,  in  Hadlcy, 
Mass.  Samuel  Porter  had  settled  in  Hadley  in 
1639,  and  the  house  he  built  is  still  owned  by 
his  descendants.     Samuel   Porter  of  a  subsequent 


<^^7    ^.^<^^^k^      dPc 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AA'D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


347 


generation  and  grandfather  of  Jeremiah,  married 
Susanna  Edwards,  daughter  of  the  eminent  theo- 
logian, President  Jonathan  Edwards.  Jeremiaii's 
father  was  Dr.  William  Porter,  who  ."served  in  the 
army  of  the  United  States  as  surgeon  during  the 
war  of  i8i2,  and  died  in  Hadley  at  the  age  of 
eight)'-four.  The  mother  of  Jeremiah  was  Char- 
lotte, daughter  of  the  Hon.  William  Williams,  of 
Hatfield,  Mass.  Of  twelve  children,  Jeremiah  was 
the  youngest  of  the  six  who  reached  their  major- 
ity. His  preparatory  education  was  at  Hopkins 
Academy  under  Rew  Dr.  Dan.  Huntington,  father 
of  Bishop  Y.  D.  Huntington  (N.  Y.),  and  in  the 
family  of  Rev.  Ahan  Hyde,  D.  D.,  at  Lee,  Mass. 
At  seventeen  he  entered  Williams  College  (Mass.), 
and  graduated  at  the  age  of  twenty-one.  The 
same  year,  1825,  he  entered  the  Theological  Sem- 
inary at  Andover,  Mass.  Though  undecided  as  to 
his  future  calling,  he  completed  two  years  of 
study,  then  remained  with  his  father  until  the 
spring  of  1828,  when,  through  the  advice  of  Presi- 
dent Grififin,  of  Williams  College,  he  became  prin- 
cipal of  the  Monitorial  High  School  in  Troy,  N.  Y. 
After  two  successful  years  he  accompanied  the 
late  Henry  A.  Boardman,  D.  D.,  of  Philadelphia, 
to  Princeton  Theological  Seminary  and  graduated 
in  1831.  During  the  previous  spring  he  had  been 
licensed  to  preach  by  the  Hampshire  (Mass.)  Con- 
gregational Association,  and  was  ordained  after 
his  graduation  by  the  same  body.  By  direction 
of  Rev.  Dr.  Absalom  Peters,  Secretary  of  the 
American  Home  Missionary  Society  (N.Y.),  he  left 
at  once  for  Sault  Ste.  Marie.  By  stage  to  Albany, 
thence  by  the  new  New  York  &  Erie  Canal  —  stop- 
ping over  for  the  Sabbath  with  a  brother  at  Au- 
burn—  he  reached  Buffalo,  having  3,000  people. 
By  steamer  to  Cleveland  and  Detroit,  he  found 
passage  from  the  latter  to  Mackinac  on  the  last 
schooner  which  made  the  trip  that  fall. 

At  Mackinac  he  was  welcomed  to  hospitable 
entertainment  in  the  Christian  family  of  Robert 
Stuart,  of  the  Astor  Fur  Co.  He  preached  one 
evening  at  Rev.  Wm.  M.  Ferry's  church.  Novem- 
ber 24,  Thanksgiving  Day,  a  small  bafk  canoe 
arrived  from  the  Sault  with  orders  "  not  to  return 
without  Mr.  Porter."  Three  French  voyagers 
manned  it.  With  the  United  States  mail,  last  for 
the  season,  a  mess  basket  from  his  hostess,  and  a 
negro  bound  for  Fort  Brady,  they  set  out  at  once. 
Forty-five  miles  along  the  lake  shore  and  forty-five 


up'  St.  Mary's  river,  camping  by  night  on  shore, 
once  in  snow,  were  accomplished  on  the  fourth 
day,  breaking  the  ice  to  land.  Mr.  Porter  was  wel- 
comed to  the  beautiful  home  of  Mr.  Schoolcraft, 
the  United  States  Indian  Agent.  Sunday,  De- 
cember 4,  1 83 1,  Mr.  Porter  preached  in  the  school- 
room of  Rev.  Mr.  Bingham's  Baptist  Mission  to 
the  Indians.  Soon  a  store  was  fitted  up  for  serv- 
ices, and  a  Presbyterian  Church  formed  with 
seven  members — three  men.  The  two  ministers 
heartily  co-operated.  A  revival  followed,  and 
all  the  officers  and  their  wives,  except  a  lieu- 
tenant and  wife,  expressed  conversion  to  Christ 
before  spring,  and  the  membership  of  the  new 
church  was  increased  to  thirty-three.  The  next 
year,  1833,  these  troops  were  ordered  to  Fort 
Dearborn,  and  Mr.  Schoolcraft  transferred  to 
Mackinac.  Finding  his  church  broken  up,  the 
shepherd  would  not  leave  his  flock;  and  so  May 
4,  1833,  embarked  with  Major  Fowle  and  his 
command.  Passing  a  day  at  Mackinac,  they  pro- 
ceeded along  the  west  shore  of  Lake  Michigan. 
No  sign  of  human  habitation  was  seen  except 
the  Indian  trader's,  Juneau,  with  his  squaw  wife, 
at  Milwaukee  River.  May  II,  the  schooner  an- 
chored near  the  mouth  of  the  Chicago  River — 
nearly  a  mile  south  of  the  present  channel.  Being 
too  rough  to  land,  it  was  May  13  when  the  ship's 
longboat  was  rowed  into  and  up  the  river  and 
around  to  the  junction  of  the  North  and  South 
branches.  At  Wattles  tavern  Mr.  Porter  met 
leading  men  of  the  300  people  in  the  village,  and 
was  invited  by  P.  F.  W.  Peck  to  take  quarters  in 
the  unfinished  loft  of  his  two-story  store,  south- 
west corner  of  La  Salle  and  South  Water  streets. 
His  organization  of  the  First  Presbyterian 
Church  has  been  stated.  He  remained  pastor  un- 
til the  autumn  of  1835,  when  the  membership  was 
109.  The  previous  spring  he  was  the  first  dele- 
gate from  the  Ottawa  Presbytery  to  the  General 
Assembly.  At  the  close  of  its  sessions,  in  Pitts- 
burg, Pa.,  Mr.  Porter  went  to  Rochester,  N.  Y., 
and  married  Miss  Eliza  Chappel,  late  from  Fort 
Dearborn.  They  visited  his  parents  in  Massa- 
chusetts, then  went  to  Chicago,  and  in  Septem- 
ber removed  to  the  Main-Street  Church  in  Peoria. 
Two  years  later,  Mr.  Porter  preached  the  opening 
sermon — Anti-Slavery — before  the  Synod  of  Illi- 
nois, at  Springfield.  Though  threatened  by  a 
pro-slavery  mob,  he  and  others  rode  horseback  to 


348 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Alton  and  held  a  convention  in  support  of-  the 
famous  Lovejoy,  for  the  freedom  of  the  slave  and 
of  the  press.  A  few  days  after  they  left,  Lovejoy 
was  murdered. 

From  Peoria  to  Farmington,  early  in  1838, 
thence  to  Green  Bay,  Wis.,  in  1840,  he  continued 
in  happy  and  successful  pastorates  until  1858. 
That  year  he  attended  the  General  Assembly  at 
Chicago,  and  accepted  the  pastorate  of  the  Ed- 
wards Congregational  Church — returning  to  his 
own  denomination  after  27  years  of  frontier  serv- 
ice with  Presbyterian  Churches.  In  1859  he  de- 
picted the  "  First  twenty-five  years  of  Chicago," 
in  a  lecture  before  the  Historical  Society. 

In  March,  1861,  Mr.  Porter  began  his  most 
memorable,  self-denying,  laborious  and  fruitful 
army  chaplaincy — its  hardships  and  loving  labors 
shared  largely  by  his  heroic  and  efficient  w^ife. 
He  was  chaplain  of  the  "  First  Illinois  Light 
Artiller}%"  in  which  his  son,  James  W.,  and  a 
nephew  had  enlisted.  At  Cairo,  Mrs.  Porter 
joined  her  husband  in  administering  to  the  sick 
and  wounded  from  the  battles  of  Forts  Donelson 
and  Henry,  Pittsburg  Landing  and  Shiloh. 
Thence  followed  to  Paducah,  Corinth  and  Mem- 
phis. A  "  convalescent  camp  "  at  Memphis  was 
fruitful  in  desired  religious  interest  in  winter  and 
spring  of  1863.  The  first  school  for  frecdmen 
was  established  there  by  them.  Dr.  Edmund 
Andrews,  surgeon  of  the  "  First  Illinois  Light 
Artillery,'"  endorsed  the  effort.  At  Vicksburg, 
Mr.  Porter  was  installed  chaplain  in  the  city  hos- 
pital and  preached  in  the  Presbyterian  Church 
until  the  spring  of  1864.  Thence  he  followed 
Gen.  Sherman  toward  Atlanta.  Mrs.  Porter  had 
preceded  him  with  sanitary  stores.  From  Kene- 
saw  Mountain,  both  went  with  the  wounded  to 
Marietta,  Ga.,  remaining  until  after  the  fall  of 
Atlanta,  where  his  own  son,  James  W.,  now  in 
Chicago,  did  valiant  service.  After  returning  to 
Chicago  for  a  respite,  Chaplain  and  Mrs.  Porter 
went  to  Washington  in  the  winter  of  1864-5,  and 
interceded  with  President  Lincoln  for  the  return 
North  of  the  sick  and  wounded  soldiers  in  South- 
ern hospitals.  They  bore  testimonials  from 
"  Confederates  "  of  their  kindness  to  the  enemy. 
Sailing  from  New  York,  they  reached  Savannah 
ten  days  after  its  capture  by  Gen.  Sherman. 
Thence,  by  water,  with  their  colonel,  now  Gen.  J. 
D.   Webster,   to  Wilmington,   N.  C,  and  joined 


Gen.  Sherman's  army  at  Goldsborough.  At  the 
surrender  of  Lee  they  were  both  attending  the 
sick  in  a  hospital  at  Newbern.  Returning  via 
Norfolk,  Alexandria  and  Washington,  they  fol- 
lowed Gen.  Logan's  corps  to  Louisville,  Ky. 
Thence  the  chaplain  was  honorably  mustered  out 
at  Springfield,  July  31,  1865. 

In  the  autumn  they  were  both  sent  by  the  San- 
itary and  Christian  Commissions  with  stores  to 
three  regiments  on  the  Rio  Grande,  watching  the 
French  movements  under  IMaximilian.  After 
perils  by  sea,  the  ladies  being  carried  ashore  on 
the  backs  of  sailors  at  Bagdad,  Mexico,  they 
finally  reached  Brownsville,  Texas.  They  went 
into  camp  at  the  "  Soldiers'  hospital."  Besides 
their  sanitary  work,  Mr.  Porter  preached,  and 
Mrs.  Porter,  with  Miss  Lizzie  Garey,  of  Galesburg, 
taught  the  colored  soldiers  and  opened  the  "  Rio 
Grande  Seminary"  for  boys  and  girls.  The  spring 
of  1866  closed  the  field  work  of  the  Commissions, 
and  so  brought  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Porter  back  to 
Chicago,  and  a  reception  was  given  them  at  the 
Sherman  House. 

After  visits  and  labors  at  Green  Bay  and  Prairie 
du  Chien,  Mr.  Porter  accepted  an  invitation  to 
return  to  Brownsville,  Texas,  in  1868,  to  succeed 
Rev.  Hiram  Chamberlain,  deceased,  in  1867,  and 
rebuild  the  church  demolished  by  a  tornado.  The 
new  brick  church  was  dedicated  in  1869.  In  1870 
he  was  appointed  Post  Chaplain,  U.  S.  A.,  and 
assigned  to  Fort  Brown.  He  also  organized  a 
church  of  colored  people  and  preached  to  them. 
Mrs.  Porter  resumed  her  teaching  until  Texas 
public  schools  were  organized.  Chaplain  Porter 
was  changed  to  Fort  Sill,  I.  T.,  in  1873,  and  to 
Fort  D.  A.  Russell,  Wy.,  in  i876.  After  four 
years  more  of  active  service  he  was  given  leave 
of  absence  until  retired,  June  30,  1882.  Fourteen 
months  of  this  time  were  spent  in  California  to  see 
their  son,  Rev.  Henry  D.  Porter,  M.  D.,  depart  as 
a  missionary  to  China,  and  in  doing  good  Chris- 
tian work  at  Santa  Barbara  and  Sonoma.  They 
were  present  at  the  semi-centennial  anniversary  of 
the  First  Presbyterian  Church,  Chicago,  which 
they  both  helped  to  organize  in  1833.  They  have 
since  resided  with  their  children  in  Detroit  and 
Beloit. 

After  much  suffering,  in  great  patience,  Mrs. 
Porter  died  in  Santa  Barbara,  January  i,  1888. 
Dr.  Porter  still  enjoys  a  good   old  age  at   Beloit, 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOSARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


349 


Wis.,  with  his  daughter,  Mary  H.  Porter,  who  was 
for  eighteen  years  a  missionary  in  China.  Uni- 
versally esteemed,  he  is  held  in  high  honor  for 
his  spotless  character.  Christian  works  and  faith- 
ful stewardship.  None  deserve  higher  reward. 
In  acknowledgement   of   his  wisdom  and  worth 


he  received  the  degree  of  D.  D.  from  Williams 
College,  Mass. 

Of  nine  children,  four  survive — James  W.,  of 
Chicago:  Edwards  W.,  of  Detroit,  Mich.;  Rev. 
Henry  D.,  M.  D.  and  D.  D.,  N.  China;  and  Miss 
Mary  H.  Porter,  Beloit,  Wis. 


MARK    KIMBALL, 


CHICACO,   ILL. 


THERE  are  perhaps  few  among  those  who 
were  at  one  time  prominent  and  respected 
citizens  of  Chicago  whose  memory  is  more  re- 
spected, and  whose  genuine  worth  more  widely 
recognized,  than  that  of  the  late  Mark  Kimball. 
He  was  born  at  Pembroke  (now  Darien),  Genesee 
county.  New  York.  May  5.  1821,  the  son  of  John 
and  Ruth  (^Huckman)  Kimball.  Reared  on  his 
father's  homestead,  his  early  life  was  occupied  by 
attendance  at  the  district  schools  and  farm  work. 

When  he  was  thirteen  years  old,  in  June,  1834, 
the  family  started  for  the  West,  overland,  with 
two  teams  and  covered  wagons.  At  Buffalo  they 
placed  all  on  board  a  boat  for  Detroit,  whence 
they  proceeded  again  overland,  camping  at  night 
on  the  prairie,  and  soon  reached  Door  Prairie, 
Indiana,  where  they  remained  six  weeks.  Re- 
suming their  journey,  they  crossed  the  deep  river 
to  Yankee  Settlement  and  Joliet,  and  thence  to 
Bristol,  on  the  Fo.x  River.  Remaining  there  a 
week,  they  returned  to  Naper\'ille — then  in  Cook 
county — and  here  Mr.  Kimball's  father  bought  the 
farm  where  the  Chicago,  Burlington  &  Quincy 
Railroad  now  crosses  Du  Page  River.  Here 
young  Kimball  attended  .school  and  worked  on 
the  farm.  In  1836  he  engaged  in  the  grocery-  bus- 
iness with  his  brother,  John  J.  Kimball,  and  sub- 
sequently went  into  business  at  Naperville,  and 
made  several  investments  in  real  estate. 

In  1839  he  became  a  clerk  at  the  Illinois  Ex- 
change hotel,  Chicago.  A  year  later  he  entered 
the  employ  of  Botsford  &  Beers,  hardware  mer- 
chants. In  1847  'it-'  established  a  general  store  at 
Naper\ille,  placing  his  brother  John  J.  in  charge 
of  it.  but  disposed  of  it  two  years  later.  In  1852 
he  became  financially  interested  in  the  wholesale 
hardware  business  of  Mr.  Botsford,  before  referred 
to.  the  firm  being  known  as  J.  K.  Botsford  &  Co. 


In  1863  Mr.  Kimball  was  elected  one  of  the 
directors  of  the  Mutual  Security  Insurance  Com- 
pany, and  afterward  became  its  secretary. 

In  1865  he  retired  from  the  firm,  then  known 
as  Botsford,  Kimball  &  Co.  In  February  of  that 
year  he  became  one  of  the  incorporators  of  the 
Old  Ladies'  (now  known  as  the  Old  People's) 
Home  of  Chicago.  One  of  the  original  members 
of  the  Calumet  Club,  he  remained  a  member  up 
to  the  time  of  his  death,  although  not  a  club  man 
in  any  sense  of  the  word. 

In  1 866  he  organized  and  became  president  of 
the  Citizens'  Insurance  Company,  of  Chicago,  of 
which  he  was  manager  one  year,  but  finding  that 
it  did  not  pay  over  ten  per  cent  on  the  capital  in- 
vested he  closed  out  the  company  and  repaid  the 
.stockholders  the  amount  of  their  stock  with  a 
dividend  of  ten  per  cent  thereon. 

In  1867,  Mr.  Kimball  with  A.  G.  Burley  and 
Samuel  Brown  were  appointed  trustees  of  Oriental 
Lodge  No.  33,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,. which  office  he  re- 
tained until  1872. 

After  the  fire  of  1871  he  was  elected  assignee 
in  bankruptcy  of  the  Mutual  Security  Insurance 
Company.  Subsequently  he  settled  the  affairs  of 
a  number  of  mercantile  and  banking  institutions. 

In  July,  1876,  Mr.  Kimball  was  a  candidate  for 
the  mayoralty  of  Chicago,  but  was  defeated  by  a 
small  majority  by  the  Honorable  Monroe  Heath. 
His  modesty  was  such  that  he  repeatedly  refused 
to  allow  himself  to  become  a  candidate  for  any 
political  office,  and  it  was  wholly  against  his 
wishes  that  he  was  nominated  for  the  mayoralty. 

About  that  time  he  served  two  terms  as  col- 
lector of  the  town  of  South  Chicago.  ■  His  bond 
for  the  second  term  was  for  nearly  Si4.000'000> 
and  was  signed  by  all  the  then  leading  capital- 
ists  and    merchants  of  Chicago.      He,  with    Mr. 


350 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  A.XD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Robert  T.  Lincoln  and  others,  were  the  first  to 
insist  that  the  law  requiring  town  collectors  to 
turn  the  surplus  of  the  two-per-cent  commission 
on  collections  above  $i,500over tothe town  board 
should  be  enforced. 

In  1879,  ^^'  with  Messrs.  Enos  Ayres  and  John 
G.  Shortall  were  appointed  appraisers  of  school 
lands.  He  was  a  shrewd  business  man,  and  his 
investments,  especially  those  in  real  estate,  were 
successful.  He  held  on  to  those  which  were  good 
and  made  an  early  disposal  of  those  which  were  of 
questionable  soundness.  Thus  he  sustained  but 
few  losses  and  acquired  considerable  wealth. 

On  February  20,  1848,  he  married  Miss  Eliza- 
beth Judson,  daughter  of  the  Rev.  Philo  Judson 
(who  performed  the  marriage  ceremony  in  the 
Clark  Street  Methodist  Episcopal  Church).  Mrs. 
Kimball,  his  son,  Eugene  S.  Kimball,  and  his 
daughter,  Mrs.  Helen  M.  Galloway,  survive  him. 

In  matters  of  religion  Mr.  Kimball  held  liberal 
views,  and  was  a  regular  attendant  upon  the  serv- 


ices at  the  Central  Church  under  the  charge  of 
Prof.  David  Swing. 

In  politics  he  was  a  Democrat,  though  in  no 
sense  a  politician. 

His  death  occurred  in  this  city  on  the  29th  day 
of  May,  1 89 1.  At  the  funeral,  attended  as  it  was 
by  a  large  circle  of  his  friends  and  acquaintances, 
members  of  his  family — as  had  always  been  a 
family  custom — acted  as  pall-bearers,  while  Prof. 
Swing  officiated. 

His  life  was  an  example  of  the  power  of  patient 
purpose,  resolute  working  and  steadfast  integrity. 
His  success  in  life  was  the  natural  result  of  his 
own  persevering  energy,  indomitable  courage  and 
genuine  worth.  In  his  character  he  combined 
qualities  of  mind  and  heart  that  rendered  him  de- 
servedly popular,  and  secured  to  him  the  warm 
friendship  of  all  who  enjoyed  his  acquaintance. 

By  his  death  the  city  of  Chicago  lost  one  of  its 
most  prominent  and  respected  citizens,  a  man  be- 
loved and  esteemed  by  all  who  knew  him. 


CALVIN    DEWOLF. 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


CALVIN  DEWOLF  was  born  February  18, 
181 5,  at  Braintrim,  Luzerne  county,  Penn- 
sylvania, being  the  oldest  son,  who  survived  in- 
fancy, of  a  family  of  thirteen  children.  His 
father,  Giles  M.  De  Wolf,  was  born  in  Pomfret, 
Connecticut,  in  1782.  His  grandfather  was  also  a 
1  ative  of  the  same  town.  The  ancestors  of  this 
family  of  De  Wolfs  came  from  Holland  and  settled 
in  Lyme,  Connecticut,  about  1650,  but  were 
originally  Huguenots  from  France,  and  were 
driven  to  Holland  by  religious  persecution.  His 
mother,  Anna  Spaulding,  was  born  in  Cavendish. 
Vermont,  in  1786,  and  was  a  descendant  of  Ed- 
ward Spaulding,  who  settled  in  Chelmsford,  Massa- 
chusetts, about  the  year  1633.  The  De  Wolf 
family  removed  to  Vermont  in  1817,  but  returned 
after  a  few  years  to  Braintrim,  in  1821,  and  in 
1824  settled  in  Pike,  Bradford  County,  Pennsyl- 
vania. Here  a  home  was  "  cleared "  in  the 
"  beech  woods,"  and  support  secured.  Calvin 
worked  on  the  farm,  and  made  muscle,  if  not 
money,  in  removing  the  timber  from  the  soil. 
He  improved  such  opportunities  for  study  as  he 


had,  with  three  months  of  winter  school  each  year 
during  his  minority.  His  father  and  a  private 
tutor  had  aided  him  to  considerable  proficiency 
in  Latin,  the  higher  mathematics  and  surveying. 
He  had  taught  school  previous  to  1836,  when  he 
went  to  the  Grand  River  Institute,  a  manual 
labor  school  in  Ashtabula  county,  Ohio.  For 
one  and  a  half  years  he  sustained  himself  well  in 
his  studies,  and  in  securing  a  livelihood.  Then, 
by  taking  charge  of  a  shipment  of  fruit,  he 
'•  worked  his  way  "  to  his  future  home. 

On  the  31st  of  October,  1837,  he  reached 
Chicago,  with  no  capital  except  his  own  brain 
and  brawn,  and  no  friend  in  the  city.  After 
unsuccessful  efforts,  traveling  as  far  as  the  Fox 
River  on  foot,  he  finally  secured  employment  as 
teacher  at  Hadley,  Will  county,  Illinois,  having 
only  a  "York  shilling"  left  for  pressing  needs. 
He  returned  to  Chicago  in  the  spring  of  1838, 
and  took  a  hand  at  various  occupations  before 
getting  an  opening  to  study  law  with  Messrs. 
Spring  &  Goodrich.  Two  years  more  were 
spent   in   teaching   during  his  law   studies  before 


BiocKAniicAi.  n/CT/dwiKV  .ixn  roRTR.i/r  c.aijjiry. 


353 


his  admission  to  the  bar  in  1S43.  His  close 
attention  to  duties  for  eleven  years  gave  him  a 
successful  practice  and  plenty  of  friends. 

In  1854  Mr.  De  Wolf  was  elected  justice  of 
the  peace,  and  for  a  quarter  of  a  century,  by 
re-elections  and  appointment,  administered  that 
office  with  marked  abilit\-.  Over  ninety  thou- 
sand cases  came  before  him  for  decision.  Some 
of  these  became  of  great  interest  and  importance 
through  appeal  to  the  higher  courts.  One  be- 
came of  national  repute,  being  carried  to  the 
Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States.  "Judge" 
De  Wolf's  warrant  took  into  custody  a  slave- 
hunter,  S.  K.  Nuckolls,  and  meanwhile  "Eliza" 
escaped.  In  1856  he  was  elected  alderman  and 
made  chairman  of  the  committee  which  revised 
the  city  ordinances.  He  was  alderman  also  from 
1866  to  1868,  and  had  a  large  share  in  improving 
the  city  government.  He  was  twice  a  member  of 
the  Board  of  Supervisors  of  Cook  county.  From 
earl\-  manhood  he  was  a  zealous  and  consistent 
Abolitionist ;  was  secretary'  of  the  first  society 
formed  in  Chicago  by  that  body  of  philanthro- 
pists. The  Rev.  Flavel  Hascom,  D.  D.,  of  hal- 
lowed memory,  was  president.  He  was  also  one 
of  the  founders  of  the  Western  Citizen,  estab- 
lished b\-  the  State  society  as  an  anti-slavery 
organ. 

In  i860  Mr.  De  Wolf,  for  his  action  as  magis- 
trate already  noted,  was  indicted  by  the  United 
States  District  Court  for  "  aiding  a  negro  slave, 
called  Eliza,  to  escape  from  her  master,  one  Ste- 
phen S.  Nuckolls,  of  Nebraska."  A  part  of  one 
of  the  counts  of  the  indictment  is  inserted  here, 
as  a  relic  of  Charles  Sumner's  "  barbarism  " 
inflicted  on  young  Chicago,  to  wit : 

The  grand  jurors  of  the  United  States  of  America  chosen, 
selected  and  sworn,  and  charged  to  enquire  of  crimes  and 
offenses  within  and  for  the  Northern  District  of  Illinois,  upon 
their  oaths  present  :  That  heretofore,  to  wit,  on  the  first 
day  of  September,  A.  fJ.  1858.  a  certain  negro  female  slave 
called  Kliza.  a  person  lawfully  held  to  service  or  labor  in  the 
Territory  of  Nebraska,  bemg  the  property  of  one  Stephen  K. 
Nuckolls,  of  the  s;»id  Territory  of  Nebraska,  the  person  to 
whom  such  service  or  labor  was  then  due,  did  escape  into 
Illinois,  and  was  pursued,  claimed,  seized  and  arrested  by  the 
said  Nuckolls,  and  said  slave  was  lawfully  under  the  control 
of  said  .Nuckolls,  etc.,  and  that  one  Calvin  I)e  Wolf,  late  of 
said  district,  together  with  divers  ;  to  wit,  one  hundred  other 
persons  to  the  jurors  afores.'iid  as  yet  unknown  and  with  force 
and  arms  unlawfully,  knowingly  and  willingly  did  rescue  the 
said  negro  slave  Eliza,  etc.,  he,  the  said  Calvin  De  Wolf  then 
and  there  well  knowing,  etc.  (the  alleged  facts  as  set  forth), 


and  against    the   peace  ami  dignity  of  the  United  States  of 
America  and  of  the  people  thereof. 

(Signed)        H.  S.  Frrcn, 

U.  S.  District  Attorney. 
(Endorsed)  "A  True  Bill." 

(Signed)        W.  I..  Nkwhf.rrv,  Foreman. 
Filed  November  19th,  1S60. 

(Signed)        W.  H.  Bkadi.kv,    Clerk. 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  Mr.  De  Wolf  states  that  he 
was  not  present  at  the  time  Eliza  was  rescued  ; 
but  the  grand  jury,  knowing  his  sentiments, 
found  the  indictment  on  general  principles.  They 
knew  that  he  was  an  uncompromising  Abolitionist 
and  had  the  will  to  do  the  act.  He  was  held  to 
bail  with  five  or  six  others  in  the  sum  of  twenty- 
five  hundred  dollars  each.  He  filed  a  motion  to 
quash  the  indictment,  on  the  ground  that  slavery 
did  not  exist  in  Nebraska.  The  South,  and  pro- 
slavery  Northerners,  claimed  that  the  repeal  of 
the  Missouri  Compromise  carried  slavery  into  all 
the  Territories  by  virtue  of  the  Federal  Constitu- 
tion. The  motion  never  reached  a  hearing.  The 
case  never  reached  a  trial,  but  was  dismissed  in 
December,  1861,  by  E.  C.  Earned,  U.  S.  District 
Attorney. 

When  Eliza  was  taken  from  her  master,  the 
police  interfered  and  took  both  to  the  "  lock-up  " 
for  disturbance  of  the  peace.  While  Nuckolls 
was  in  the  "lock-up"  Mr.  De  Wolf  issued  a  war- 
rant, on  the  affidavit  of  George  Anderson,  against 
Nuckolls  for  an  attempt  to  kidnap.  The  war- 
rant was  never  served,  and  Mr.  De  Wolf  never 
saw  Nuckolls  or  Eliza. 

In  1879,  after  closing  his  long  service  as  justice 
of  the  peace,  Mr.  De  Wolf  resumed  the  practice 
of  law,  and  has  continued  in  professional  work, 
but  spends  most  of  his  time  in  the  management 
of  his  private  business. 

In  June,  1841,  he  married  PVances  Kimball,  of 
Chicago,  a  native  of  Preston,  Connecticut.  Five 
children  were  born  to  them — Ellen  L.,  now  Mrs. 
R.  H.  Hell,  of  Normalville,  Cook  county,  Illinois; 
Anna  Spaulding,  who  went  in  1877  to  New 
Orleans  as  a  missionary  teacher  of  the  colored 
children,  and  died  at  Hay  St.  Eouis,  Mississippi, 
in  September,  1878;  Mary  Frances,  now  Mrs. 
Milo  G.  Kellogg,  of  Chicago;  Wallace  E.,  now 
secretary  of  the  Metropolitan  Investment  Com- 
pany of  Chicago,  and  dealing  in  real  estate,  and 
Alice,  who  married  Mr.  E.  D.  Kneeland,  and 
died  in  March,  1882,  at  Kokomo,  Colorado. 


354 


B/Odh'.U'H/CA/.   /UCT/OX.U^y  AXD  I'ORTK.UT  CALLERV. 


Mr.    De   Wolf  and   wife    are    members    of   the  early  years.     Now  in  the  rijjcncss  of  his  wisdom. 

Sixth     Presbyterian     Church    of    Chicago.       For  and   in   affluence,    lie   enjoys   the  confidence  and 

some   years,  as  an   elder,    he  has  nobly  rounded  high  regard  of  all  with  whom  he  has  business  or 

out  a  Christian   life,  bcsjinnin''   actively   with  his  social  relations. 


GEORCxE   WILLARD, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


MR.  WILLARD  graduated  from  the  Union 
College  of  Law  in  1865;  was  soon  after 
admitted  to  the  bar  and  is  now  in  the  twcnty- 
si.xth  year  of  a  continuous  practice  in  Chicago. 
At  the  present  time  he  is  attorney  for  the  Penn- 
sylvania Railroad  Company  and  its  two  Chicago 
connections  known  as  the  "Fort  Wayne"  and 
"Pan  Handle"  lines.  Also  for  the  New  York, 
Lake  Erie  and  Western  and  the  Northern  Pacific 
Railroad  companies  and  the  American  and  Red 
Star  steamship  lines.  In  1870  he  was  appointed 
attorney  for  the  North  Chicago  Rolling-^Iill 
Company,  and  local  attorney  for  the  Chicago  and 
North-W'estern  Railway  Company,  holding  the 
latter  until  1875,  and  the  former  until  1889.  He 
served  one  term  as  attorney  and  two  terms  as 
treasurer  of  the  village  of  Hyde  Park  :  was  six- 
years  master  in  chancery  of  the  Circuit  Court  of 
Cook  county,  and  five  years  secretary  and  treas- 
urer of  the  Western  Railroad  Association. 


Mr.  Willard  is  known  as  a  modest,  kind-hearted, 
charitable  gentleman,  but  firm  of  purpose  and 
conviction.  His  capacity  for  hard,  continuous 
work  is  very  great,  as  is  his  zeal  and  ambition  for 
success.  Few  lawyers  now  at  the  Chicago  bar 
have  tried,  unaided,  a  greater  number  of  cases 
than  Mr.  Willard. 

Mr.  Willard  in  1864  enlisted  as  a  pri\ate  in  the 
ninety-day  service  and  ser\cd  as  a  member  of 
Company  B,  One  Hundred  and  Thirty-second 
Regiment  Illinois  Volunteers,  for  a  period  of 
about  six  months,  and  until  the  regiment  w-as 
mustered  out  of  the  service  in  the  fall  of  that 
year. 

Mr.  Willard  is  a  native  of  the  village  of  Natural 
Bridge,  Jefferson  county.  New  York,  and  a  direct 
descendant  of  Major  Simon  -Willard,  who  was 
born  in  Horsmonden,  Kent  count}-,  England,  and 
emigrated  therefrom  to  Boston.  Massachusetts,  in 
1634. 


COL.   LOREN    H.  WHITNEY, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


THE  gciitk-man  whose  name  heads  this  article 
is  widely  known  as  an  able  lawyer,  a  brave 
and  gallant  soldier,  and  an  author  of  considerable 
repute.  He  is  a  native  of  Ohio,  and  is  a  fair  type 
(if  the  men  who  have  so  ably  and  honorably  rep- 
resented that  great  commonwealth  wherever  men 
of  learning,  elociuence  and  scientific  attainments 
were  needed,  or  the  tented  field  required  them. 
He  was  born  in  Berlin.  I'.iic  County,  Ohio,  Sep- 
tember IJ,  1839,  the  eldest  son  of  James  W.  Whit- 
ney, who  came  from  Yates  County,  New  York, 
and  settled  in  Berlin  in  18:35,  '"^^l  married  Miss 
Betsey  Harper,  a  young  hidy  of  fine  natural 
abilities,  a  relative  of   the  famous  Harper   Broth- 


ers, New  York.  In  1S4S  the  family  mo\eil  to 
DeKalb  Count}-,  Illinois,  where  Loren  attended 
school  until  he  was  about  sixteen  years  old,  when, 
lured  by  the  glowing  accounts  of  Mississippi,  he 
joined  a  number  of  young  men  of  his  neighbor- 
hood in  a  resolution  to  go  to  that  State  and  seek 
a  fortvnie;  but  when  the  time  came  to  go  all 
changed  their  purpose,  excepting  young  Whitney, 
who  started  on  foot,  with  staff  in  hand  and  car- 
pet-bag, alone,  and  with  but  one  dollar  and  sev- 
enty-five cents  in  his  pocket.  His  father  refused 
him  assistance,  hoping  to  deter  him  from  going. 
but  he  was  not  made  of  the  .stuff  that  }ield>.  In 
two  and  a  half  davs  he   walked    to    I'cru,  seventy 


i^Jr^^f'  ^Sk 


BIOCRAPHICAI.  IIICTIOXARV  AXD  PORTRAIT  CA/.f.FRV. 


357 


miles  from  home,  and  after  |)ayiiiij  for  a  meal 
lie  balanced  his  cash  account,  and  found  but  ten 
cents  in  his  favor.  Something  had  to  be  done. 
He  offered  his  services  to  the  enj;incer  of  a  little 
steamer  iyinjj  at  tlic  wharf,  and  about  to  mt)ve 
out.  He  represented  that  he  could  do  anj'thing 
and  everything;,  and  was  engaged  as  boy  of  all 
work,  with  the  stipulation  that  he  would  be  paid 
whatever  his  services  were  considered  worth.  He 
continued  in  this  employment  five  weeks,  and  was 
paid  twenty-eight  dollars,  and  promised  fift_\'  dol- 
lars per  month  to  continue,  but  declined  the  offer 
and  went  to  Bolivia  county,  Mississippi,  where  he 
passed  the  winter.  He  contracted  with  a  planter 
to  throw  up  a  levee  on  the  banks  of  the  Missis- 
sippi and  made  a  handsome  profit  on  his  con- 
tract. He  went  across  the  plains  to  California  in 
1 85 5,  with  a  company  of  gold-hunters,  and  there 
worked  a  gold  mine  and  made  money  enough  to 
enable  him  to  return  and  gratify  his  young  ambi- 
tion to  pursue  a  college  course  of  study,  complet- 
ing a  four-years'  course  in  two  years.  He  was  a 
bright  and  apt  student,  always  among  the  fore- 
most in  his  class.  He  then  entered  the  law  office 
of  the  late  Gen.  Stephen  A.  Hurlbut,  at  Helvi- 
dere,  Illinois,  and  subsequently  attended  Asbury 
University,  Indiana,  and  still  later  was  admitted 
to  the  bar,  the  committee  that  examined  him  com- 
I^limenting  him  highly  on  his  proficiency,  though 
he  had  read  law  but  one  year.  When  the  war 
broke  out  he  was  practicing  his  profession,  but 
entered  the  army  as  captain  in  the  Kighth  Regi- 
ment, Illinois  Volunteer  Cavalry,  one  of  the  best 
regiments  in  the  Army  of  the  Potomac.  When 
Gen.  McClellan  advanced  on  Manassas  Gap,  Capt. 
Whitney,  at  the  head  of  Sumner's  Cavalry,  led 
the  way.  While  sitting  on  a  "  Quaker  cannon  " 
at  Manassas  he  conceived  the  idea  of  writing  for 
the  press,  but  before  an  hour's  thought  concluded 
to  write  a  full  historj'  of  the  war,  and  carried  that 
purpose  into  execution,  and  his  first  volume  was 
published  in  1863.  He  served  with  valor  in  the 
I'eninsula  campaign,  and  in  the  battles  around 
Richmond,  ;ind  was  offered  the  position  of  major 
on  Gen.  Sumner's  staff,  but  declined  it  to  accept 
a  colonelcj",  as  he  sup|)oscd,  of  one  of  the  new 
regiments  from  his  state;  but  when  he  returned  it 
proved  to  be  a  lieutenant-colonelcy  that  was  in- 
tended, and  he  declined  it,  but  was  instrumental 
afterward  in  organizing  two  more  regiments  which 


went  to  the  field.  During  this  time  he  wrote  and 
published  the  first  volume  of  his  history  of  the 
War  of  the  Rebellion,  a  work  which  will  compare 
favorably  with  the  best  of  the  many  histories  of 
that  great  conflict.  It  is  a  clear  setting-forth  of 
the  inciting  causes  and  philosophy  of  the  Rebel- 
lion, and  an  accurate  and  full  history  of  the  facts 
and  incidents  attending  its  ])rosccution  and  cul- 
mination. 

Governor  Yates  requested  him  to  organize  an- 
other regiment  of  infantr)-,  which  he  did  in  three 
weeks'  time,  and  being  made  its  colonel,  led  it  to 
the  front  in  Mississippi.  In  1864  he  was  put  in 
command  of  a  force  sent  out  to  intercept  and 
drive  away  Gen.  Forrest,  who,  at  the  head  of  a 
large  force  of  cavalry,  was  committing  depreda- 
tions on  our  railroad  and  telegraph  lines  and  de- 
stroying our  communications,  and  Col.  Whitney 
was  not  defeated  in  a  single  contest  with  that 
noted  rebel  leader,  though  he  had  many  fights 
and  skirmishes,  and  succeeded  in  driving  him 
away.  Thence  he  went  to  Missouri  with  his  com- 
mand and  was  engaged  against  Gen.  Price  in 
1864.  During  his  service  he  participated  in  twelve 
great  battles  and  forty  skirmishes,  and  was 
wounded  twice.  As  an  evidence  of  the  appreci- 
ation of  his  bravery,  and  of  the  esteem  in  which  he 
was  held  as  an  officer  and  man,  his  officers  and 
men  presented  him  with  an  elegant  sword,  case 
of  pistols  and  a  field  glass.  The  sword,  blood- 
stained, is  still  retained  as  a  reminder  of  the  great 
conflict. 

In  1866,  when  returning  from  Washington, 
where  he  had  been  to  settle  his  accounts,  he  be- 
came acquainted  with  Miss  Mary  Munson,  who 
was  on  her  way  home  from  college,  and  a  year 
later  married  her. 

After  leaving  the  service  he  settled  at  Chicago 
in  the  practice  of  his  profession,  and  has  been 
successful,  standing  well  at  the"  bar  as  an  honor- 
able and  faithful  attorney  and  counselor. 

In  1875  he  went  to  Topeka,  Kansas,  and  while 
there  wrote  a  compendium  of  Kansas  Rejjorts, 
making  an  octavo  volume  of  nine  hundred  pages, 
which  added  to  his  reputation  as  an  able  and 
thorough  lawyer,  lie  was  solicited  to  run  for 
congress  while  there,  but  declined,  and  returned 
to  Chicago  in  1877,  and  renewed  the  practice  of 
the  law,  ami  is  now  ( 1S92)  so  engageil. 

Uf  Col.  Whitney  the  Betich  and  Bar  of  Chicago 


358 


BIOGRArillCAI.  DICTIONARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  iiALLERY. 


says:  "He  is  a  stalwart  Republican,  a  fluent. 
ready,  graceful  speaker,  and  his  voice  is  heard 
in  advocacy  of  the  principles  and  platform  of  that 
party  in  all  important  campaigns.  He  has  a  com- 
manding presence,  is  six  feet  two  inches  in  height, 
the  regulation  height  of  a  genuine  Buckeye,  and 
is  one  who,  even  on  first  sight,  leaves  the  impres- 
sion of  being  more  than  an  ordinary  man  in  all 
respects.  He  stands  well  in  the  community  and 
has  the  confidence  and  esteem  of  all  who  know 
him  intimately.     He  is  yet  a  young  man,  but  his 


life  work  up  to  the  present  time,  in  so  far  as  it  is 
known  and  read  of  men,  is  to  his  credit." 

In  July,  1882.  he  presided  at  the  Cook  County 
Convention  which  elected  delegates  to  the  Repub- 
lican State  Convention,  and  in  the  following  fall 
was  nominated  for  the  legislature  from  the  Twelfth 
Ward,  but  declined  to  be  a  candidate,  although 
he  received  the  largest  majorit\-  of  anyone  ever 
nominated  in  that  ward. 

Col.  Whitney  is  prominent  in  Grand  Army  cir- 
cles, and  is  a  true  friend  of  every  worthy  cause. 


JAMES    H.   WALKER, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


THE  subject  of  this  sketch,  James  H.  Walker, 
was  born  in  New  York  City,  March  23, 
1844.  His  father  was  the  son  of  a  British  officer, 
his  mother  the  daughter  of  an  Irish  squire.  His 
brothers  all  had  liberal  educations.  The  oldest  is 
the  Episcopal  bishop  of  North  Dakota,  and  the 
other  two  are  lawyers  in  the  city  of  New  York. 
His  sisters  graduated  with  high  honors  at  the 
Packer  Institute,  Brooklyn. 

At  the  age  of  fourteen,  Mr.  Walker  left  Trinity 
school,  after  having  qualified  for  Columbia  College, 
and  entered  the  employ  of  A.  T.  Stewart  &  Co., 
New  York,  at  a  salary  of  S50  per  annum.  That 
great  house  was  then  the  foremost  mercantile  in- 
stitution of  the  land,  and  was  distinguished  by 
the  high  integrity  of  its  founder,  and  the  strict 
business  methods  of  its  organization.  To  be  in 
its  employ  was  considered  an  honor,  and  to  have 
been  educated  in  its  methods  was  considered  a 
guarantee  of  correct  and  thorough  business  prin- 
ciples. On  entering  that  house,  James  II.  Walker, 
the  boy,  found  himself  in  the  lowest  and  poorest 
position,  and  at  the  "  beck  and  call  "  of  all  above 
him.  1 1  is  duties  commenced  at  half-past  seven 
ill  the  morning,  and  continued  with  but  half  an 
hour's  intermission  for  dinner,  till  the  close  of 
business,  which  was  from  six  to  twelve  o'clock  at 
night,  according  to  the  necessities  of  the  season; 
for  in  those  days  the  busy  seasons  were  short, 
and  the  rush  of  business,  of  necessity,  compelled 
very  long  hours  while  it  lasted.  Besides,  the 
facilities  which  render  business  so  easy  now  were 
then  wanting.     There  were  no   elevators,  no  tele- 


phones, and  the  telegraph  was  but  little  used. 
By  tireless  energy  and  attention  to  his  duties,  the 
boy  soon  became  noticed  as  reliable  and  always 
on  hand.  He  adopted  the  habit  of  taking  his 
lunch  with  him  to  the  store  and  eating  it  in  his 
department,  so  as  to  be  available  w-hen  needed. 

In  the  fall  of  that  year  the  panic  of  1857  swept 
over  the  country  and  destroyed  a  large  number 
of  the  commercial  houses  in  New  York.  Economy 
became  the  order  of  the  day  among  those  which 
stood.  Mr.  Stewart  thinned  out  his  force  as  largely 
and  as  expeditiously  as  po.ssible,  but  Jas.  H .  Walker 
was  retained,  under  the  impression  that  his  serv- 
ices would  be  useful  even  at  such  a  time  as  that. 
The  boy  worked  his  way  up  gradually  to  be  stock 
clerk,  assistant  salesman,  salesman  on  the  road, 
and  finally,  in  1863,  he  became  a  general  sales- 
man. He  speedily  became  the  largest  salesman 
in  the  house,  and,  in  1865  was  placed  in  charge 
of  a  department.  This  department  was  managed 
so  satisfactorily  that  in  1868  another  department 
was  added,  and  he  went  abroad  as  European 
buyer  for  the  house.  He  conducted  his  depart- 
ments with  conspicuous  profit  and  success,  and  in 
1874  Mr.  Stewart,  acknowledging  his  large  and 
critical  experience  in  all  the  European  markets, 
desired  him  to  take  charge  of  his  Manchester 
house,  under  power  of  attorney,  on  the  retirement 
of  one  of  his  partners. 

In  September,  1876,  A.  T.  Stewart  &  Co.  hav- 
ing decided  to  open  a  large  wholesale  house  in 
Chicago.  Mr.  Walker  was  selected  to  take  charge 
of  that  house,  acting  under  their  full  power  of  at- 


IrpUr  (}4^iA^ 


£^L4^^t^m^ 


BIOCRAnilCAI.  niCTlOXAKV  .I.XP  I'ORTKAIT  CAI.I.ERV. 


361 


torncy.  This  business  he  conducted  for  tlieni  for 
four  and  one-half  years,  successfully  and  satisfac- 
torily, and  then  foreseeing;  the  retirement  of  A. 
T.  Stewart  &  Co.  (Mr.  Stewart  havin-j  died),  Mr. 
Walker  decided  to  go  into  business  for  himself, 
starting  his  present  house  January  i,  1882.  The 
firm  of  James  H.  Walker  &  Co.  has  been  a  suc- 
cess from  the  start,  and  is  the  first  instance  cm 
record  in  this  country  of  a  house  starting  new 
and  fresh,  on  a  large  scale,  and  doing  a  business 
the  first  year  of  over  five  million  dollars.  The 
history  of  all  other  houses  has  been  that  of  a 
small  beginning  and  gradual  growth.  This  house 
started  on  a  large  and  broad  scale  from  the  first, 
and  has  steadily  grown  year  by  year,  l^esides 
the  ver\'  large  wholesale  house,  it  has  a  retail 
house  doing  a  business  of  millions  of  dollars  per 
annum.  Its  employes  number  altogether  over 
twelve    hundred.     It    has    offices    in    New   York, 


Manchester  and  Paris,  and  connections  with  all 
parts  of  the  world. 

Mr.  James  11.  Walker  is  an  acti\e  member  of 
many  clubs  and  other  organizations ;  among 
others,  the  Chicago  Commercial  Club,  the  Chi- 
cago Club,  the  Chicago  .Athletic  Club,  the  Union 
Club  the  Twentieth  Ceiiturj-  Club,  the  Reform 
Club  of  New  York,  governing  member  of  the 
.\rt  Institute,  and  several  others.  He  has  long 
had  a  large  collection  of  paintings,  which  is  of 
high  merit,  and  his  librar)'  is  rich  in  historical 
works  and  books  of  literature  and  the  fine  arts. 

In  1865  he  was  married  to  Miss  Emeline  Tate, 
of  New  London,  Conn.,  the  descendant  of  an  old 
colonial  family,  prominent  in  the  Revolutionary 
\\  ar.  The  homestead  in  New  London  has  been 
the  residence  of  her  famil)-  for  over  one  hundred 
and  fifty  years.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  James  H.  Walker 
have  three  children,  two  sons  and  a  daughter. 


GEORGE   SAWIN, 


CHICAC.O.    ILL. 


THE  subject  of  this  biography  is  a  native  of 
Hoston,  Massachusetts,  and  was  born  April 
14,  1834.  He  is  the  fourth  son  of  John  and  Char- 
lotte ( Lash)  Sawin,  and  is  of  Scotch  ancestry  upon 
his  father's  and  of  Welsh  upon  his  mother's  side. 

Lrom  his  father  he  inherited  a  sturdy  phj-sique, 
and  the  industry  and  integrity  of  the  Scotch,  and 
from  his  mother  the  fine  conscientiousness  and  up- 
rightness of  spirit  for  which  the  Welch  are  noted. 

During  his  boyhood  George  attended  school 
in  the  little  town  of  Chelsea,  Massachusetts,  where 
his  parents  resided  for  many  years.  After  leaving 
this  school,  he  attended  an  institution  under  the 
charge  of  one  William  D.  Swan,  and  was  gradu- 
ated therefrom.  With  a  predilection  for  study  and 
books,  he  was  not  long  in  making  the  choice  of  a 
profession,  deciding  upon  the  law  as  being  most 
congenial  to  his  tastes.  Accordingly,  when  about 
eighteen  years  old,  he  entered  the  office  of  Mr. 
Samuel  E.  (iuild  and  Hon.  Geo.  S.  Hilliard,  both 
l)r(>minent  lawyers  at  the  Hoston  bar.  He  studied 
under  their  preceptorship  about  two  years,  but 
just  before  finishing  his  course  he  was  com[)elle(l 
bv  failing  health  to  relinquish  his  .studies.  He 
thereupon    made   an   e.\tensive  trip  thrf>ugh   the 


Southern  ami  Western  States.  In  1854  he  settled 
in  Chicago. 

In  1855  he  took  a  position  in  the  mercantile 
house  of  Messrs.  W.  and  S.  L.  Mills,  as  credit-man 
for  the  States  of  Wisconsin,  Iowa  and  Minnesota. 

In  1856  he  associated  himself  with  Adam  Car- 
lyle  in  a  real  estate  enterprise,  and  laid  out  the 
town  of  De  Soto,  on  the  Mississippi  river,  in  Bad- 
axe  county,  Wisconsin,  where  he  invested  all  his 
possessions  in  a  sawmill,  warehouse,  icehouse  and 
other  impro\ements.  All  was  lost  during  the 
financial  panic  that  swept  over  the  country  in 
1857,  and  Mr.  Sawin  found  himself  penniless. 
Returning  to  Chicago,  he  took  employment  in  the 
dry  goods  house  of  Messrs.  Stac\-  &  Thomas, 
with  whom  he  remained  until  1S51J,  when  they 
went  into  liquidation.  He  then  became  a  clerk 
in  the  postoffice  under  Hon.  Isaac  Cook,  post- 
master, and  being  on  the  night  service,  he  had 
some  time  each  day  for  study,  which  he  improved 
in  the  law  office  of  Hon.  James  V.  Root,  and  by 
indomitable  energy  and  close  application,  fitted 
himself  for  examination  and  was  admitted  to 
practice  in  both  the  State  and  Federal  courts. 

He  first  formed  a  partnershij)   with   Gilbert   C. 


362 


BIOuRAPIIICAL  DICTIOXARV  A.\D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Walker,  who  was  the  first  i,ai\'crnor  of  Virginia 
after  the  war,  and  the  Hon  James  P.  Root,  under 
the  firm  name  of  Root,  Walker  &  Sawin.  He 
was  afterwards  succesively  in  the  firms  of  Sawin 
&  Mattocks,  Storrs,  Kellogt;  &  Sawin,  and  Chase, 
Munson  &  Sawin. 

At  the  opening  of  the  civil  war  he  enlisted  in 
the  Fifty-eighth  Regiment,  Illinois  Volunteer  In- 
fantry, and  in  December,  1861,  left  Chicago  for 
Fort  Henry  as  quartermaster  of  that  regiment. 
Except  a  short  time  spent  in  Springfield,  upon 
the  reorganization  of  his  regiment,  after  being 
liberated  from  Libby  prison,  he  was  constantly  in 
the  field,  serving  a  great  portion  of  the  time  on 
the  staffs  of  Generals  Smith,  Morrow,  Dodge  and 
Sweeney.  He  was  in  the  Sixteenth  Corps  of  the 
Army  of  the  Tennessee,  and  was  in  the  Red  River 
expedition  as  acting  Major  on   the  staff   of  Gen- 


eral Morrow.  In  the  bloody  battle  of  I'leasant 
Hill  he  led  a  brigade  antl  had  two  horses  killed 
under  him.  He  was  with  Gen.  Sherman  in  the 
celebrated  "  Meridian  Raid."  During  his  whole 
service  Mr.  Sawin  was  noted  for  his  bravery,  and 
received  the  sobriquet  of  "The  Fighting  Quarter- 
master." After  the  war  he  resumed  his  profession 
at  Chicago,  and  has  since  continued  it  uninterrupt- 
edly and  achie\'ed  satisfactory  success. 

Mr.  Sawin  marrit'd,  in  1855,  a  most  estimable 
lady.  Miss  Caroline  L.  Rust,  daughter  of  Elijah 
C.  Rust,  of  Jamesville,  Onondaga  county,  N.  Y. 

In  politics  he  has  always  been  a  Democrat.  In 
religious  belief  he  is  an  Episcopalian.  He  is  a 
Past  Eminent  Commander  of  Knights  Templar. 

As  a  business  man  he  enjoys  the  confidence  of 
all  with  whom  he  has  to  do,  and  for  honest  and 
manly  dealing  bears  a  character  above   reproach. 


AARON    BENEDICT    MEAD, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


AARON  BENEDICT  MEAD  was  born  No- 
vember 7,  1838,  in  Franklinville,  Cattar- 
augus county.  New  York,  the  son  of  Merlin  and 
Polly  (Clark)  Mead.  His  father,  an  enterprising 
farmer,  was  an  elder  for  fifty  years  in  the  Presb)'- 
terian  Church,  being  one  of  the  original  members, 
and  prominent  in  all  the  affairs  of  the  town.  A 
"true  blue"  Abolitionist,  his  house  was  one  of  the 
stations  of  the  famous  "  Underground  Railway." 
Mr.  Mead  was  brought  up  on  the  farm,  received 
his  early  education  in  the  district  schools  and 
local  academy  until  seventeen  years  of  age,  when, 
by  invitation  of  an  uncle,  he  went  to  Waterbury, 
Conn.,  and  entered  its  high  school,  standing  No. 
1  in  his  class. 

Upon  leaving  school  he  became  a  clerk  in  a 
dry  goods  store  in  Waterbury,  receiving  a  salary 
of  one  hundred  and  seventy-six  dollars  per  year. 
Determined  to  succeed,  however,  young  Mead, 
by  being  economical  in  his  habits,  managed  to 
save  out  of  his  salary  twenty-five  dollars  the  first 
year.  But  the  firm  failed.  He  next  became  a 
clerk  in  a  crockery  store  in  Hartford,  Conn.,  at 
which  place  he  remained  until  the  breaking  out 
of  the  late  civil  war. 

In    June,    1861,    he    enlisted    in    Company     A, 


Fourth  Regiment,  Connecticut  Volunteers,  in- 
fantry, which  afterwards  was  changed  to  the 
First  Connecticut  Heavy  Artillery.  The  original 
enlistment  for  three  months  was  changed  to  three 
years'  service,  the  Government  having  all  the 
three-months  men  it  required. 

This  regiment  was  the  first  one  filled,  equipped 
and  accepted  for  three  years'  service.  Mr.  Mead 
was  with  the  regiment  stationed  around  Washing- 
ton one  year,  when  discharged  on  account  of 
])neumonia,  the  discharge  taking  place  at  Coal 
Harbor.  After  recovering  from  his  illness  suffi- 
ciently to  allow  of  his  engaging  in  business  again, 
he  entered  the  real  estate  office  of  his  uncle, 
Abner  L.  Ely,  who  at  that  time  had,  probably, 
the  largest  real  estate  agency  in  the  city  of 
New  \'ork.  There  Mr.  Mead  gained  a  thorough 
knowledge  of  the  various  details  connected  with 
the  transfer  and  sale  of  real  estate.  In  Januar\-, 
1867,  he  removed  to  Chicago,  which  then  gave 
considerable  promise  of  a  bright  future,  and 
opened  a  real  estate  office  ujion  his  arrival.  His 
first  fee  was  two  dollars,  which  he  rccciveil  for 
drawing  a  contract  for  the  sale  of  a  farm,  and 
this  fee  he  donated  to  Fisk  University.  Nashville, 
Tenn. 


lUOCRArmCAI.   IIICTIOXMJV  A.\I>  rORTRAir  i.AI.I.ERV. 


365 


In  January,  1868,  Mr.  Mead  formed  a  partner- 
ship with  Albert  L.  Coe  under  the  firm  name  of 
Mead  &  Coe,  which  partnership  has  continued 
to  the  present  day  (1892),  being  the  oldest  real 
estate  firm  in  the  city,  and  their  business  is  one 
of  the  most  successful  and  flourishing  in  this  par- 
ticular line  in  Chicago.  Carefully  built  up  and 
under  judicious  management,  it  has  grown  rapidly 
from  the  commencement.  Their  clientage  is  of  an 
extensive  and  substantial  nature,  no  firm  luuing  a 
higher  reputation  than  that  of  Meat!  &  Coe. 

.Mr.  Mead  was  married  in  September,  1868,  to 
Miss  Mary  E.  Packard,  daughter  of  James  H.  and 
Sarah  C.  Packard.     The\-  have  four  children. 

Mr.  Mead  is  a  member  and  deacon  of  the   First 


Congregational  Church.  ;\lso  treasurer  of  the 
Illinois  Home  Missionary  Society,  and  a  trustee 
of  Illinois  College  at  Jacksonville.  In  politics  he 
is  an  ardent  Republican.  In  the  days  of  the  war 
he  was  an  Abolitionist,  as  was  his  father  before 
him.  Mr.  Mead  is  a  member  of  Geo.  H.  Thomas 
Post.  No.  5.  G.  A.  R. 

He  is  a  m;#i  of  nu-tiiuni  lu-ight,  dark  complex- 
ion and  full  beard,  and  in  manner  is  genial  and 
extremely  affable  and  of  a  generous  disposition. 
An  energetic  and  enterprising  business  man,  he  is 
another  of  those  w  Im  ha\c  contributed  so  largely 
to  the  building  up  the  reputation  which  the  Citj- 
of  Chicago  to-day  so  ahiy  sustains.  As  a  public- 
spirited  citi/.en,  he  is  well  known  and  esteemed. 


MARTIX    HOWARD, 

ClllC.XCO,  ILL. 


THF,  career  of  Martin  Howard  fairly  illus- 
trates what  one  may  accomplish  who  is 
actuated  by  an  honest,  manly  purpose  and  a 
determination  to  make  the  most  of  his  opportun- 
ities and  abilities.  Mr.  Howard  has  made  his 
business  life  successful  because  he  has  been  will- 
ing to  pay  the  price  of  success  in  whatever  posi- 
tion he  has  been  placed.  He  has,  by  earnest, 
honest  effort,  earned  the  favorable  result  that  has 
come  as  his  reward,  and  whenever  special  trusts 
have  been  imposed  on  him,  he  has  proved  true  to 
them.  When  difficulties  ha\e  arisen,  he  has  stood 
steadfast,  and  with  firm  confidence  in  the  right, 
worked  till  he  has  mastered  them.  Through  the 
many  difficult  business  problems  that  have  come 
to  his  professional  and  business  life,  he  has  presseil 
steadily  on,  and  by  his  straightforward  course 
has  won  the  respect  and  confidence  of  hi.,  asso- 
ciates and  acquaintances.  Added  to  his  high 
social  and  moral  qualities  is  an  energy  aiul  force 
of  character  indispensable  to  him  who  would  make 
for  himself  an  honored  name,  and  of  him  may 
truthfully  be  said,  "  he  is  the  architect  of  his  own 
fortunes." 

Mr.  Howard  was  born  in  1S40,  at  Rochester, 
New  York,  and  when  eleven  years  old  removed, 
with  his  parents,  Josiah  and  Eunice  Howard,  to 
Rock  county,  Wisconsin.  Having  early  formed 
studious  and  industrious  habits,  he  soon  mastered 


the  lower  branches  of  learning,  and  entered  on  a 
course  of  study  in  Wayland  Uni\ersity,  graduat- 
ing therefrom  with  honor  in  1858,  after  which  he 
began  the  study  of  law.  Heforc  he  hail  completed 
his  law  course,  the  war  of  the  Rebellion  began, 
and  in  1863  he  laid  aside  his  books  and  enlisted 
in  the  Fourteenth  Regiment  Iowa  Volunteer  In- 
fantry, and  went  to  the  front  to  take  part  in  the 
great  struggle  for  liberty.  He  was  captured  near 
Holl}-  Springs,  Mississippi,  in  the  summer  of  1864, 
and  remained  a  prisoner  until  nearly  the  close  of 
the  war,  when  he  was  exchanged  at  Black  Ri\er. 
Returning  to  Iowa,  he  was  mustered  out  and  hon- 
orably discharged,  after  which  he  went  back  to 
his  old  home  in  Wisconsin,  and  resumed  his  legal 
studies,  and  in  1866  was  admitted  to  the  bar.  He 
continued  his  practice  with  success  until  1873, 
when  he  removed  to  Chicago. 

His  practice  in  Chicago  was  \ery  satisfactor\-, 
and  he  soon  attracted  to  himself  a  good  clientage 
and  became  attorney  for  several  wholesale  firms. 
As  a  lawyer  he  was  careful,  prompt  and  reliable, 
deliberate  in  his  judgment  and  true  to  the  inter- 
ests of  his  clients,  proving  himself  a  good  student 
of  human  nature  as  well  as  of  legal  lore.  It  was 
these  and  kindreil  characteristics  that  brought 
him  prominentl\-  to  the  attention  of  those  whose 
legal  business  he  managed,  among  whom  was  the 
firm   of    Messrs.   C.   .M.  Henderson   and    Co..  and 


366 


lUOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARV  AXD  PORTRAIT  CAI.LERY. 


ulun,  in  1881,  Mr.  Edmund  Burke  (who  had 
been  the  financial  manager  of  the  firm)  associated 
himself  with  Mr.  James  II.  Walker,  under  the 
firm  name  of  Burke,  Walker  and  Co.,  Mr.  Howard 
was  tendered  and  accepted  the  position  in  the 
house  of  Messrs.  C.  M.  Henderson  and  Co.  made 
vacant  by  the  withdrawal  of  Mr.  Burke. 

The  position  is  one  for  which  his  qualifications 
eminently  fit  him,  and  during  the  eleven  years 
that  he  has  filled  it  his  services  have  been  of  the 
highest  order,  and  he  ranks  among  the  ablest 
commercial  financiers  of    Chicago. 

Mr.  Howard  is  prominently  identified  with  the 
Masonic  fraternity,  having  become  a  member  of 
that  order  in  1874.  For  two  successive  terms  he 
was  Illustrious  Grand  Potentate  of  Medinah  Tem- 
ple, Ancient  Order  Nobles  of  the  Mystic  Shrine. 
He  is  a  member  of  Home  Lodge,  A.  F.  and  A. 
M.,  Chevalier  Bayard  Commandery  and  Oriental 


Consi.story,  and  a  member  of  the  Grand  Army  of 
the  Republic.  Some  twelve  years  ago  he  was 
quite  prominent  in  politics.  Has  been  a  member 
of  the  township,  city,  county  and  State  Central 
Committees  (Republican),  and  was  a  member  of 
the  State  E.xecutive  Committee  during  the  cam- 
paign wherein  President  Hayes  was  elected.  He 
has  always  been  a  devoted  worker  for  what  he 
believed  to  be  right  in  politics,  but  business  and 
its  cares  has  made  it  impossible  for  him  to  be  as 
actively  engaged  in  such  matters  as  heretofore. 

Mr.  Howard  has  always  a  kindly  word  of  en- 
couragement for  those  who  are  ambitious  and 
worthy,  and  many  a  young  man  will  testify  that 
the  encouragement  and  material  aid  given  him  by 
Mr.  Howard  has  added  much  to  his  own  de\'elop- 
ment  and  success.  He  is  a  man  of  good  e.xecu- 
tive  attainments,  a  forcible  speaker,  a  genial 
companion  and  a  faithful  friend. 


ALBERT    LYMAN    COE, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


ALBERT  L.  COE  is  a  member  of  the  well- 
known  firm  of  Mead  &  Coe,  one  of  the 
oldest  established  real  estate  firms  in  the  city  of 
Chicago.  Their  business  was  organized  as  early 
as  1868,  since  which  time  it  has  grown  and 
developed  immensely,  being  to-day  one  of  the 
most  prominent  and  favorably  known  houses  in 
its  line  in  Chicago. 

Mr.  Coe  was  born  at  Talmage,  Ohio,  about 
thirty-five  miles  south  east  of  the  city  of  Cleve- 
land, and  is  the  son  of  the  Rev.  David  Lyman 
Coe,  who  came  to  the  Western  Reserve  in  1818, 
soon  after  graduating  from  Williams  College, 
Massachusetts,  and  Polly  (Hayes)  Coe,  the 
daughter  of  Colonel  Richard  Hayes,  who,  with 
his  family,  left  llartland,  Connecticut,  in  tiie 
spring  of  1804.  Colonel  Hayes  led  a  colon)'  of 
some  twelve  families,  who  located  in  Hartford, 
Trumbull  county,  Ohio,  which  town,  together 
with  a  number  of  surrounding  ones,  they  named 
after  the  various  New  England  towns  from  which 
they  came.  The  Colonel  recruited  a  regiment  of 
infantry  from  the  very  sparsely  settled  countr)-  of 
Northern  Ohio,  and  took  part  in  the  War  of  i8i3  ; 
afterward   became  a  prosperous  merchant,  owned 


a  large  store,  mills,  stage  line  and  other  industries. 
He  died  about  1840,  leaving  quite  a  large  fortune 
for  those  days.  His  family  and  that  of  President 
Hayes  were  distantly  related,  being,  in  fact,  of 
the  same  blood.  In  1836  occurred  the  death  of 
Rev.  David  L.  Coe,  and  in  1838  Mrs.  Coe  was 
married  to  Dr.  Oresty  K.  Hawley. 

Receiving  his  early  education  in  the  district 
school,  young  Coe  subsequently  attended  the 
academy  at  Painesville,  Ohio,  for  some  two  years, 
and  at  Grand  River  Institution,  in  Austinburg, 
Ashtabula  county,  Ohio,  leaving  here  at  the  age 
of  seventeen  to  engage  in  the  business  of  life. 

Our  subject's  stepfather  was  a  noted  Abolition- 
ist, and  his  house  was  one  of  the  stations  along  the 
celebrated  "  Underground  Railway,"  and  young 
Coe  drove  many  a  load  of  runaway  slaves  up  to 
the  different  points  on  Lake  Erie,  at  an'd  near 
Ashtabula,  securing  passage  for  them  to  the 
Canadian  shore,  the  trips  being  oftentimes  made 
at  night.  His  selection  for  this  position  was 
owing  to  the  good  qualities  he  possessed  as  a 
horseman,  and  on  account  of  his  well-known  fear- 
lessness and  bravery,  unusual  for  a  boy  of  his  age, 
as  in  those  days  threats  of   personal  violence  were 


^^^ 


B/OGRAFHICAl.  DICTIOXARV  AXD  POKTKA/T  CALLER V. 


369 


freely  made  by  ihc  pro-slavciy  element  uiuler 
])rotcction  of  the  infamous  "  Kujjitive-Slave  Law."' 
This  service  continued  from  his  ninth  to  his  four- 
teenth year.  Joshua  R.  Giddini;;s  and  Benjamin 
F.  Wade,  both  of  abolition  fame,  were  residents 
of  the  same  county,  and  in  the  same  circle  of 
friends.  It  is  therefore  not  surprising  that  young 
Coe  took  delight  in  visiting  them,  and  naturally 
derived  much  patriotic  inspiration  therefrom. 

When  about  eighteen  years  old  he  decidctl  to 
seek  a  wider  field  for  his  energies,  and  eventually 
settled  in  Chicago  in  1853.  In  February,  1854, 
he  entered  into  the  coal  business,  under  the  firm 
name  of  T.  R.  Clarke  and  Co..  the  firm  consisting 
of  Thos.  R.  Clarke,  Benjamin  Carpenter  and 
Albert  L.  Coe.  Three  years  later  Mr.  Clarke 
retired,  and  the  firm  name  was  then  changed  to 
that  of  Coe  &  Carpenter,  which  firm  was  con- 
tinned  until  the  beginning  of  the  War  of  the 
Rebellion. 

In  September,  1S61,  Mr.  Coe,  aroused  by  that 
patriotism  which  has  characterized  even  his  early 
boyhood,  enlisted  in  the  Fifty-first  Illinois  Infantry 
(raised  in  Chicago)  as  a  private,  serving  over  four 
years,  or  during  the  war.  But  before  leaving  camp 
he  was  commissioned  second  lieutenant,  serving 
most  of  the  time  with  the  Army  of  the  Cumber- 
land. He  was  under  Generals  Pope,  Rosecrans, 
Sheridan,  Thomas,  Grant  and  Sherman,  and 
did  detachment  service  at  the  headquarters  of  the 
First  Brigade,  Fourteenth  Army  Corps,  and  also 
of  the  second  division  of  the  Fourteenth  Army 
Corps;  participated  in  the  capture  of  Island  No. 
10,  was  at  I'ittsburg  Landing,  the  Siege  of 
Corinth,  the  campaigns  from  Nashville  to  Chatta- 
nooga, battle  of  Mission  Ridge,  taking  part  in  the 
Atlanta  campaign,  and  was  one  of  those  who 
marched  with  Sherman  to  the  sea ;  also  on  the 
march  from  Savannah,  through  the  Carolinas,  to 
Washington,  and  was  in  the  grand  review  at  the 
close  of  the  war.  He  received  a  captain's  com- 
mission, but  was  never  regularly  mustered  in  that 
rank  owing  to  the  continued  active  operati(»ns  in 
the  field  of  the  14th  Corps.  He  was  mustered 
out  of  service  in  November,  1865,  at  .Springfield, 
Illinois.  Subsequently  he  became  a  member  of 
and  helped  to  organize  the  Illinois  National 
Guards,  and  from  1875  to  1880  served  as  major 
and  quartermaster  on  Gen.  A.  C.  Ducat's  staff,  and 
was  on  duty  during  the  riots  in  this  city  in  1877. 


Upon  returning  to  civil  life  Mr.  Coe  decided  to 
engage  in  the  real  estate  business.  He  had 
previously,  and  while  in  the  coal  business,  become 
considerably  interested  in  real  estate  matters, 
having  received  numerous  commissions  to  execute 
ill  real  estate  from  friciuls  in  the  East.  In  J.in- 
uar\-,  1S6S,  lu-  forniLil  a  partnership  with  Mr.  .\. 
H.  Mead,  under  the  hrni  name  of  Mead  &  Coe, 
which  firm  cnntiniiLS  one  of  the  most  enterprising 
and  best  known,  and  one  of  the  oldest  firms 
engaged  in  the  business  in  Chicago.  They  pos- 
sess an  extensive  clientage,  and,  in  fact,  do  an 
amount  of  business  equaled  by  few  firms. 

He  was  married  in  March,  1864,  to  Miss  Char- 
lotte PI.  Woodward,  a  daughter  of  Joseph  W'ood- 
ward.  a  prominent  merchant  of  .Mansfield,  C<jn- 
necticut. 

One  of  the  organizers  of  the  Union  League 
Club,  he  has  been  one  of  its  most  active  and 
efficient  members,  serving  as  director  or  officer 
for  a  number  of  years,  and  previous  to  1891  he 
was  its  vice-president  for  three  )-ears.  A  member 
of  the  Loyal  Legion  and  George  H.  Thomas 
Post,  G.  A.  R.,  he  is  also  an  active  member  of 
the  Citizens*  League,  and  has  been  a  director  of 
the  Auditorium  Association  since  the  first  year  of 
its  establishment.  He  has  been  for  five  years 
treasurer  of  the  City  Missionary  Society,  and  is 
still  a  member  of  its  directorate.  He  is  presi- 
dent and  one  of  the  incorporators  of  the  Royal 
Trust  Company,  one  of  the  substantial  financial 
institutions  of  Chicago.  He  has  also  been  for 
a  number  of  years  a  trustee  of  the  Young  Men's 
Christian  .Association  of  Chicago,  and  at  the  last 
election  was  elected  \ice-prcsident  of  its  Hoard 
of  Trustees. 

In  politics  he  is  a  Republican.  He  is  a  member 
of  the  New  England  Congregational  Church,  hav- 
ing been  identified  with  it  since  the  first  month 
of  its  organization,  and  has  attemled  same  since 
July,  1853. 

Personally.  Mr.  Coe  is  of  metlium  iieight  and  of 
commanding  address,  e.xtremely  genial  and 
affable  in  manner.  He  is  of  a  generous  disposi- 
tion and  very  popular.  It  would,  perhaps,  be 
difficult  to  name  anyone  who  has  a  more  just 
claim  to  the  honor  of  being  considered  one  of 
Chicago's  representative  business  men  than  Albert 
L\inan  Coe,  for  he  has  always  been  identified 
with  the  best  interests  of  the  city,  and  has  always 


370 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARV  A.\D  PORTRAIT  CALLFJiV. 


taken  an  acti\c  part   in  the  general  welfare  there-      or  more  hit^hh'  respected  citizens  of  Chicago  than 
of,  and    there    are,    perhaps,    few  more  esteemed      he. 


NICHOLAS    SKNN,    M.D..    PII.D. 


CHIC.ACO,   ILL. 


NICHOLAS  SENN  was  born  in  Buchs,  in 
the  Canton  of  St.  Gall,  Switzerland,  on 
October  31,  1844.  His  parents  were  industrious 
farmers,  whose  thrift"  and  respectability  were  the 
cardinal  gifts  they  bestowed  upon  their  children. 

Nicholas  was  the  second  youngest  member  of 
a  family  of  three  sons  and  one  daughter ;  one  of 
his  brothers  died  while  serving  in  the  Second 
Regiment  of  Wisconsin  Volunteers.  In  his  native 
canton  he  had  but  the  meager  advantages  of  the 
district  schools,  which  he  attended  until  nine 
years  of  age,  when  his  parents  immigrated  to 
America,  and  soon  after  settled  at  Ashford,  Fond 
du  Lac  Co.,  Wisconsin. 

Entering  the  grammar  school  of  the  city  of 
Fond  du  Lac,  he  pursued  his  studies  with  marked 
ability,  and  was  graduated  at  the  age  of  eighteen 
years.  Even  at  that  early  age  he  displayed  un- 
usual mental  power,  which  later  became  genius 
and  earned  the  applause  of  the  medical  and  sur- 
gical world.  Having  determined  upon  his  voca- 
tion, and  completed  his  studies  in  the  public 
.schools,  he  became  a  student  under  Dr.  Munk, 
and  pursued  with  keen  relish  the  studj-  of  Latin, 
botany,  pharmacy  and  the  natural  sciences,  antl 
then  entered  the  Chicago  Medical  College,  from 
which  he  was  graduated  in  1868.  He  was  awarded 
the  first  prize  for  a  thesis  on  the  modus  opcrajidi 
and  therapeutic  uses  of  Digitalis  purpurea.  His 
original  investigation  of  the  action  of  this  drug 
was  most  unique,  and  to  the  astonishment  of  the 
profession,  he  proved  that  instead  of  a  cardiac 
sedative,  as  Digitalis  hnil  been  ]ireviousl\- 
regarded,  it  was  a  cardiac  stimulant,  antl  this 
latter  opinion  has  since  universally  obtained. 
After  receiving  his  degree  of  .M.  1).,  Dr.  Senn  was 
appointed  house  surgeon  in  the  Cook  County 
Hospital  at  Chicago,  w  here  he  remained  ;i  year 
and  a  half. 

Returning  to  Fond  du  Lac  county,  he  began 
the  practice  of  his  profession  at  .Ashford,  and  was 
married    the    following    \-ear    to    Miss  Aurelia  S. 


Millhouser.  He  went  to  Milwaukee,  Wisconsin, 
in  the  spring  of  1874,  and  enjoj'ed  a  practice  that 
returned  him  ten  thousand  dollars  the  first  year. 
In  1878  he  attended  a  course  of  lectures  at  the 
Uni\ersity  of  Munich,  Germany,  and  was  grad- 
uated JMagna  Ciun  l.audc,  presenting  a  thesis  on 
the  surgical  treatment  of  varicocele  b\-  sub- 
cutaneous ligation.  He  was  appointed  attending 
surgeon  at  the  Milwaukee  Hospital  before  going 
abroad,  and  was  also  elected  president  of  the 
Wisconsin  State  Medical  Society,  and  delivered 
before  that  body  an  address  on  medical  legisla- 
tion, which  attracted  widespread  and  favorable 
comment.  At  that  time  surgical  pathology  was 
the  subject  of  universal  attention,  and  became 
infused  with  new  life,  due  to  the  investigations  of 
eminent  European  pathologists,  and  Dr.  Senn 
pursued  a  special  course  in  pathological  and 
microscopic  anatomy  under  Professor  Heitzmann, 
an  eminent  pathologist  of  New  York,  attending 
also  the  surgical  lectures  and  clinics  at  the  College 
of  I'hj-sicians  and  Surgeons  of  New  York  City. 

Returning  to  Milwaukee,  he  resumed  his  prac- 
tice, which  had  grown  to  immense  proportions, 
attracting  patients  from  all  parts  of  Wisconsin 
and  many  of  the  neighboring  States.  He  per- 
fected the  hospital  facilities  of  Milwaukee,  and, 
continuing  his  original  investigations  and  opera- 
tions in  surgery,  astonished  two  continents  by  his 
bold  and  successful  surgical  achiexements.  W'hen 
Professor  Von  Esmarch,  the  celebrated  German 
surgeon,  \isited  this  country,  he  made  a  special 
journc\-  to  Milwaukee  to  personally  greet  Dr. 
Senn.  whose  fame  had  crossed  the  Atlantic. 

In  all  the  details  of  intestinal  surgery,  Dr.  Senn 
became  the  recognized  authority  of  the  modern 
surgical  world,  and  his  methods  of  diagnosis  and 
treatment  in  this  specialty  were  both  original 
anil  scientific.  In  gunshot  wounds  of  the 
abdomen,  he  introduced  the  use  of  hydrogen  gas 
per  rectum  as  the  only  reliable  means  of  deter- 
mining a  perforation   of  the  bowel.      If  the  intes- 


lilOGnAI'HICAI.   niCriOXARY  ,l.\7>   l^iRTRAIT  i.AI.I.ERY. 


tines  were  perforated,  the  gas  escaped  throiiL^h  a 
small  glass  tube  inserted  in  the  wound,  anti 
would  burn  brightly  on  applying  a  liglited  match. 
The  same  test  was  also  available  in  wounds  of 
the  stomach.  He  was  tendered  fellowship  in 
the  most  distinguished  foreign  societies.  Among 
other  distinctions  he  was  elected  a  member  of 
the  Societe  Chevalier  Sauveteur.  In  1885  ho 
was  appointed  Professor  of  the  Principles  and 
Practice  of  Surgery  in  the  College  of  Physicians 
and  Surgeons  of  Chicago.  He,  howe\er,  con- 
tinued his  residence  and  labors  in  Milwaukee. 
Three  years  later,  on  the  death  of  Professor 
Gunn,  of  Rush  Medical  College,  Chicago,  Dr. 
Senn  resigned  from  the  faculty  of  the  College  of 
Physicians  and  Surgeons  and  accepted  the  chair  of 
the  Principles  of  Surger)-  and  .Surgical  Patlioldoy 
in  the  Rush   Medical  College. 

Soon  after  the  death  of  Ur.  Parkes,  the  ilis- 
tinguished  surgeon  of  Rush  Medical  College, 
Dr.  Senn  was  chosen  to  fill  his  place.  He 
removed  to  Chicago  in  the  spring  of  1891,  to 
the  great  grief  of  his  hosts  of  friends  and  patients 
in  Milwaukee,  where  his  practice  had  been  all 
that  the  highest  ambition  could  desire.  Gov. 
Peck  had  appointed  him  Surgeon  General  of 
Wisconsin,  and  he  had  begun  a  thorough  organi- 
zation of  the  surgical  corps  of  the  State.  So  great 
was  iiis  enthusiasm  in  this  work,  that  he  decided 
to  retain  his  commission  on  the  Go\ernor's  stafT 
and  perfect  the  work  which  he  had  undertaken. 
He  organized  the  Association  of  Military  Sur- 
geons of  the  National  Guard  of  Wisconsin  and 
the  Association  of  Military  Surgeons  of  the 
National  Guard  of  the  United  States,  and  is 
president  of  both  of  these  associations.  During 
the  early  part  of  the  present  year  (1892)  Dr.  Senn 
has  been  a  tireless  contributor  to  surgical  litera- 
ture, and  his  cajiacity  for  work  has  always  been 
a  source  of  amazement  to  his  confreres. 

During  his  last  visit  to  the  old  world  he  was 
asked  by  a  celebrated  Swiss  surgeon  how  he 
found  time  for  so  much  work,  and  if  the  dajs 
were  not  longer  in  America  than  in  ICurope. 
•'  No,"'  he  replied  with  a  sly  twinkle  in  his  eye, 
"our  days  are  not  longer.  Doctor,  but  our  nights 
are."  And  this  is  the  secret  of  his  prolific  pen. 
His  library  is  his  evening  workshop,  and  here  he 
labors  long  into  the  small  hours.  One  is  fairly 
bewildered  with  the  extent  of  his  library.     Books 


from  the  floor  to  the  ceiling,  filling  two  spacious 
rooms,  and  manuscript  that  must  be  compiled 
and  made  ready  for  the  publisher,  till  one  fairly 
shudders  at  the  thoughts  of  attempting  such  a 
task.  His  is  the  largest  and  most  select  pri\ate 
medical  library  in  the  world,  and  it  is  amid  such 
environments  that  Dr.  Senn  has  produced  his 
most  valuable  surgical  monographs  and  supplied 
the  surgical  conventions  of  the  world  with 
brilliant  flashes  from  his  cunning  scalpel.  Por 
the  past  five  years  he  has  recei\ed  an  annual 
invitation  to  present  an  original  paper  on  surgery 
before  the  International  Medical  Congress,  and  at 
the  convention  held  in  Washington,  D.  C,  in 
1887,  he  contributed  his  remarkable  monograph 
on  the  diagnosis  and  treatment  of  gunshot 
wounds  of  the  stomach  and  intestines.  It  marked 
the  dawn  of  a  new  era  upon  the  subject  of  gun- 
shot wounds  of  the  abdomen. 

Dr.  Senn  is  constantly  importuned  b\-  pub- 
lishers for  manuscript  long  in  advance  of  its 
preparation,  since  all  his  works  are  unique  and 
find  a  ready  market. 

Among  his  published  works  are  "The  Principles^ 
of  Surgery,  "  now  in  its  first  eilition  ;  "E.xperiment- 
al  Surger\-,"  and  ".Surgical  Bacterial,"  which  ha\e 
reached  their  second  edition  and  are  now  being 
translated  into  the  P'rench,  Italian  and  Polish 
languages;  "  Intestinal  Surger)-,"  which  has  been 
translated  into  the  German  language.  All  these 
works  are  original,  and  are  the  standard  te.xt 
books  on  their  respective  subjects.  Endless 
papers,  before  international,  national,  state  and 
local  societies ;  monographs  and  contributions  to 
surgical  and  medical  journals,  constitute  an 
amount  of  labor  that  seems  almost  impossible, 
when  one  recalls  tiie  duties  of  instructor,  operator 
and  private  surgeon.  Dr.  .Senn  has  been  invited 
to  co-ojierate  with  twehc  of  the  most  eminent 
surgeons  of  this  country  in  the  production  of  the 
"American  Te.xt-Book  of  .Surgery,"  and  he  will 
contribute  all  of  that  portion  relating  to  abdom- 
inal surgery.  This  work,  from  the  prominence  of 
the  collaborators,  promises  to  be  the  most  authen- 
tic surgical  work  of  the  present  century. 

In  1SS7  Dr.  Senn  visited  all  the  European  hos- 
l>itals,  and  wrote  a  book  entitled  "  Four  Months 
Among  the  .Surgeons  of  Euroiie,"  which  was  well 
received  by  the  profession.  In  1890  he  was 
invited  to  represent  America  at  the  International 


374 


lilOGRAFlllCAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Medical  Congress,  held  in  Berlin,  and  his  demon- 
stration of  original  methods  in  gunshot  wounds  of 
the  abdomen  before  this  con\ention  produced  a 
sensation  and  won  honors  and  decorations  for  him. 
Dr.  Senn  received  the  degree  of  I'h.  D.  from 
the  University  of  Wisconsin  on  returning  from 
his  second  trip  to  Europe.  He  is  professor  of 
surgery  in  Rush  Medical  College  and  attending  sur- 
geon to  the  Presbyterian  and  St.  Joseph's  Hospi- 
tals; professor  of  surgery  in  the  Chicago  Poljxlinic; 
fellow  of  the  American  Surgical  Association ; 
honorary-  fellow  of  the  College  of  Physicians  of 
Pennsylvania  ;  permanent  member  of  the  German 
Congress  of  Surgeons ;  honorary  member  of  La 
Academia  de  Medicina  de  Mexico,  of  the  D. 
Hayes  Agnew  Surgical  Society  of  Philadelphia ; 
corresponding  member  of  the  Harveian  Society  of 
London,  England ;  member  of  the  Ohio  State 
Medical  Society  and  the  Minnesota  State  Medical 
Society ;  member  of  the  American  Medical  Asso- 
ciation, the  British  Medical  Association,  the  Wis- 
consin State  Medical  Society,  the  Brainard  Med- 
ical Society,  etc.,  etc.,  etc. 


One  could  narrate  endless  incidents  in  the 
social  and  liumanitarian  life  of  Dr.  Senn  that 
would  prove  most  entertaining,  but  a  biographi- 
cal record  of  this  nature  deals  only  with  cold 
facts,  ami  forbids  the  use  of  a  narrator's  paint- 
brush. Courteous  and  affable.  Dr.  Senn  greets 
one  with  a  manner  that  is  full  of  cheerful  interest, 
and  before  one  is  able  to  swallow  the  diffidence 
one  naturally  feels  on  entering  his  sanctum,  he 
has  one  puffing  at  a  good  cigar  and  chatting 
with  all  the  ''esprit  de  corps"  of  old  classmates. 
His  home  life  is  cxtremel\-  domestic,  and, 
although  of  a  social  disposition,  he  finds  but  few 
moments  for  the  exchange  of  social  amenities. 
His  family  consists  of  his  estimable  wife  and  two 
sons,  aged  fourteen  and  twenty-one  years  respect- 
ively. The  elder  boy  is  a  student  in  the  Rush 
Medical  College,  and  if  he  but  realize  the  fond 
hopes  of  his  devoted  parents,  all  these  years  of 
accumulated  fame,  honor  and  material  posses- 
sions will  ha\e  been  indeed  "a  labor  of  love," 
when  the  mantle  of  an  illustrious  father  is  rever- 
entl)-  laid  upon  the  shoulders  of  a  worth)'  son. 


EGBERT   W.   GILLETT, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


TH  E  successful  man  is  he  who  chooses  his  voca- 
tion with  reference  to  his  natural  abilities 
and  inclinations,  and  adheres  strictly  to  the  busi- 
ness of  his  choice.  Among  the  successful  and 
representative  business  men  of  Chicago  must  be 
numbered  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  Egbert  W. 
(jiilett,  born   in    De.xter,  Jefferson  county,  N.  Y. 

He  is  the  son  of  Paul  W.  and  Caroline  11.  Gillett. 
both  nati\es  of  the  Empire  State-.  His  father 
died  at  the  age  of  si.xty-three  and  his  niotlui'  in 
her  fifty-eighth  year,  the  decease  of  both  occur- 
ring in  this  city,  where  the>'  had  remo\'ed  in  1S52 
from  New  York  .State.  Much  interested  in  tiie 
cause  of  temperance,  his  father  often  lectured  on 
the  subject. 

The  business  in  Chicago,  of  which  Mr.  Gillett  is 
the  owner  {  manufacturing  and  importing  of 
grocers'  specialties),  was  established  by  his  father 
many  years  ago. 

Arriving  in  this  cit)'  w  ith  his  parents  when  but 
three    yeaj"s    of  age,   yt)ung   Gillett    receixeti    his 


early  education  in  the  public  schools  of  Chicago 
and  finished  at  Wheaton  College.  Having  com- 
pleted his  education,  he  entered  business  with  his 
father  at  257  South  Clark  street.  They  were  located 
at  61  Michigan  avenue  at  the  time  of  the  great  fire 
(October  8,  1871),  and  their  entire  plant  was  swept 
away.  On  October  9  they  resumed  business  at  51 
West  Lake  street,  and  remained  there  until  the 
South  Side  was  partially  rebuilt,  when  they  re- 
moved to  Nos.  38  to  44  Michigan  avenue,  remain- 
ing there  eleven  years.  During  that  time,  in  the 
\'ear  1882,  E.  W.  Gillett  became  sole  proprietor  of 
the  business,  and  in  1887  (requiring  more  room  and 
enlarged  facilities)  he  erected  his  present  store  at 
Nos.  9,  II,  13  and  15  River  street,  67x100  feet,  six 
stories  and  basement,  which  he  now  occupies  :  thus 
making  one  of  the  finest  wholesale  buildings  in 
that  \icinit\-.  He  employs  in  this  business  about 
two  hundred  and  fifty  hands,  and  his  trade  ex- 
tends all  over  the  L'nited  States.  In  1887  Mr. 
Gillett    established    .1    factor)"   in    Toronto,   Ont., 


Vi^^j'^/-€e.^&~ 


BrOGRArillCAI.   niCTIOXAKY  A.Xn  rORTKAir  CAI.l.KKV. 


Ill 


locateil  at  .^J  and  34  West  l-"ioiU  street,  tn  supply 
his  Canadian  trade,  where  lie  employs  a  larqe 
number  of  operatives.  He  also  founded  the 
Champion  Chemical  Works  in  iSSj,  located  at 
38  and  40  Michigan  avenue,  Chicago,  and  is 
president  of  the  company,  which  does  a  large 
and  prosperous  chemical  business. 

He  was  one  of  the  founders  of  the  Lincoln 
National  Bank  ami  for  several  years  a  director. 
At  present  a  director  of  the  American  Exchange 
National  Bank  and  the  Chicago  Opera  House 
Company;    a  member  of  the  Union  League  Club, 


lUitKiis  Club,  Washington  I'.irk  Club,  and  other 
prominent  clubs,  corporations  and  associations. 
He  has  large  real  estate  interests  in  Chicago  and 
subdivisions  in  Ohio  to  which  lie  gives  some  at- 
tention. His  handsome  large  brownstone  resi- 
dence is  in  the  finest  part  of  the  city,  3334  Miclii- 
gan  avenue.  In  his  stables  are  complete  turnouts. 
He  is  an  attendant  and  trustee  of  Plymouth 
Congregational  Church.  Also  a  trustee  of  the  Illi- 
nois College,  h)catetl  at  Jacksonville,  111.  He  was 
married  Jul)'  25,  1868.  Their  children  are  Lillian 
May  and  Charley  W.  Ciillett. 


WILLIAM    PARKER    KI"rCHAM, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


TIIL  subject  of  this  sketch  was  born  .\pril  16, 
1844,  in  the  City  of  Brotherly  Love.  His 
father,  Samuel  Ketcham,  and  his  mother,  Rosc- 
annc,  nie  I'yott,  were  both  natives  of  I'hiladel- 
phia.  The  father  was  a  shoe  manufacturer  in 
that  cit\-. 

In  1832  the  family  removed  to  Muscatine, 
Iowa,  and  there  our  subject  attended  the  public 
schools  until  he  was  fourteen  years  old,  after 
which  he  attended  Stone's  Acatlemy  for  about 
two  years. 

In  i860  he  went  to  Marengo,  Iowa,  and  en- 
gaged with  his  brother,  J.  P.  Ketcham,  in  the 
lumber,  grain  and  agricultural-imi)lement  busi- 
ness. 

In  April,  1861,  he  returned  to  Muscatine,  anil 
took  charge  of  the  furniture  estahlishnient  of 
Messrs.  Uensmore  &  Chambers,  being  hut  se\cn- 
tecn  years  old. 

At  the  opening  of  the  war  of  the  Rebellion, 
filled  with  ])atriotism  and  lose  for  the  Union,  he 
at  once  enlisted  in  Company  .A,  Seventh  Regi- 
ment, Iowa  Volunteers,  infantr\-,  and  went  to  the 
front. 

During  the  year  that  he  was  with  this  regi- 
ment he  i)articii)ated  in  the  battles  of  l^'ort 
Henry,  I-'ort  Donaldson,  Shiloh  and  Corinth.  His 
regiment  was  a  part  of  Tuttle's  Brigade,  Wallace's 
divisi<jn.  and  it  was  this  brigade  which  held  the 
dangerous  position  of  the  Hornet's  Nest  on  that 
memorable  fJth  of  Ajjril,  1862.  Mr.  Ketcham  was 
in  the  battle  of  Holly  Springs,  when  the  Confeder- 


ate General,  Van  Dorn,  captured  that  place.  Of 
twenty-five  infantr\-men  who  escaped,  he  was 
one:  all  the  other  Union  soldiers,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  the  .Second  Regiment  Illinois  cax.ilrj-, 
were  captured. 

He  next  ser\ed  as  a  clerk  at  (ien.  (irant's  head- 
cjuarters  until  the  commander  was  placed  in 
charge  of  the  Army  of  the  Potomac,  when  he  was 
transferred  to  General  Sherman's  headquarters  at 
Nasliville.  There  he  served  the  remainder  t)f  his 
term  of  enlistment  anil  \vas  honorably  discharged 
August  17,  1864.  He  was  noted  for  devotion  to 
tlut)-  where\er  duties  called  him,  and  earned  the 
respect  and  love  of  his  superiors  b_\-  liis  conduct 
at  headquarters. 

Returning  to  Marengo,  low.i,  he  formetl  a  co- 
l)artnership  with  his  brother  in  the  lumber  and  grain 
business,  lie  remained  tlute  until  1885,  when, 
leaving  the  business  in  charge  ot  a  manager,  he 
removed  to  Chicago,  whither  his  brother  had  pre- 
ceded him  a  number  of  years,  and  the  present 
firm  of  J.  P.  Ketcham  &  Brother  was  formed. 
They  located  on  the  ccirner  of  Blue  Island  and 
I  loyne  avenues,  in  the  lumber  district  of  Chicago. 
They  have  extensive  yarils  aiul  works,  and  do 
an  immense  wholesale  business,  employing  over 
one  hundretl  and  twenty-five  men.  Owing  to 
the  death  of  J.  P.  Ketcham  on  February  15, 
l8y2,  the  business  was  incorporated  May  I,  1892, 
as  the  Ketcham  Lumber  Company — W.  P.  Ket- 
cham, president,  and  !■".  D.  Ketcham,  secretary 
and  treasurer. 


378 


R/OGR.irff/CAI-  DICT/OXARV  .l\n  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Mr.  Ketcham  was  married  at  State  Line,  Illi- 
nois, on  the  25th  of  December,  1866,  to  Miss  Mary 
J.  Parry,  daughter  of  Mr.  William  A.  Parry,  a 
well-known  hotel  proprietor  and  railroad  con- 
tractor. 

Mr.  Ketcham  was  president  of  the  Builders  and 
Traders'  Exchange,  during  1890,  and  is  a  mem- 
ber of  George  H.  Thomas  Post,  G.  A.  R.,  and 
also  of  Montjoie  Commandery  of  Knights  Tem- 
plar. 

He  is  a  prominent  member  of  the  Presbyterian 
Church. 


In  April.  1S91.  he  was  elected  a  director  of  the 
World's  Columbian  Exposition,  and  is  a  member 
of  the  Grounds  and  Building  Committee,  and  also 
the  Committee  on  Agriculture.  He  is  one  of  the 
most  influential  members  of  the  board,  repre- 
senting especially  the  building  and  lumber  in- 
terests. 

Mr.  Ketcham  is  of  light  complexion,  medium 
height,  but  of  a  robust  stature  and  commanding 
presence.  He  is  courteous,  genial  and  .self-reliant, 
and  commands  the  respect  of  all  who  are  ac- 
quainted with  him. 


JULIUS   WALES   BUTLER. 


CHICAGO,   ILL 


THERE  is.  in  the  laborious  and  honorable 
career  of  the  busy  business  man,  fighting 
the  every-day  battle  of  life,  but  little  to  attract 
the  idle  reader  in  search  of  a  sensational  chapter; 
but  for  the  mind  fully  awake  to  the  importance 
and  real  meaning  of  human  existence,  there  are 
immortal  lessons  in  the  life  of  the  man  who, 
without  other  means  than  a  clear  head  and  a  true 
heart,  begins  life  with  a  high  purpose,  and  who, 
ever  adhering  to  that  purpose!  conquers  adversity 
and  presses  on  through  the  ranks  of  the  many, 
and  becomes  one  of  the  few:  whose  toil  through 
the  work-a-day  years  of  a  long  and  arduous 
career  unfolds  an  evening  of  rest,  bles.sed  with 
a  solid  and  honorable  competence  and  a  good 
name.  Such  a  man  is  the  subject  of  this  bio- 
graphical sketch. 

J.  W.  Butler  was  born  at  Essex,  Chittenden 
county,  Vermont,  May  ;th.  1828.  His  father 
was  Zebediah  Butler,  and  his  mother  was  Betty 
(Morris)  Butler,  both  natives  of  Vermont.  Zebe- 
diah Butler  was  one  of  the  leading  men  of  his 
time  at  Roxbury.  Vermont,  being  engaged  in  the 
milling  business  and  also  for  a  long  period  post- 
master of  that  place.  Exemplary  parents,  rigid 
in  their  understanding  of  the  importance  of  fru- 
gality and  industry,  deemed  it  not  only  possible. 
but  proper  and  necessary  that  a  boy  should  be 
taught  the  virtues  of  labor,  and  that  his  "recess" 
and  vacation  should  be  supplemented  by  work. 
It  was  thus  that  the  subject  of  this  sketch  divided 
his  school  days  with  a  system  of  the  hardest  kind 


of  work,  to  the  end  that  the  earnings  therefrom 
would  add  that  much  more  to  his  education. 
His  schooling  was  limited  to  from  three  to  four 
months  of  each  year,  at  the  academy  of  Hines- 
burgh,  Vermont,  and  some  additional  study  in 
the  district  schools. 

Mr.  Butler's  first  employment,  and  which  was 
during  his  scholastic  years,  was  in  the  post-office 
at  Hinesburgh.  His  next  venture  was  in  a  sad- 
dler's shop,  but  this  work  did  not  meet  his  ideas 
of  a  future,  and  he  gave  it  up,  and  in  the  fall  of 
184S,  at  the  age  of  twenty,  he  packed  up  his  port- 
able property  and  removed  to  Chicago.  The  out- 
look in  the  Chicago  of  that  time  was  not  very- 
pleasing  to  an  eastern-bred  youth,  so  he  moved 
on  to  St.  Charles,  Illinois,  and  went  into  the  mer- 
cantile trade  at  that  place,  and  after  eight  years 
residence  and  business  there  he  removed  to  Chi- 
cago, and  in  1856  joined  his  brother,  O.  M.  Butler, 
who  had  established,  in  1844,  a  paper  warehouse 
and  paper  store,  the  new  firm  being  J.  W.  Butler 
&  Co.,  their  bu.siness  being  located  at  48  State 
.street.  Thus  came  into  existence  a  great  house, 
that  has  stood  up  against  war  and  two  disastrous 
fires,  and  is  to-day  the  leading  paper  house  in  the 
West. 

In  1862  the  firm  of  J.  W.  Butler  &  Co.  con- 
solidated with  the  G.  11.  &  L.  Laflin  paper  con- 
cern, the  new  firm  name  being  Laflin,  Butler  & 
Co.,  and  continued  as  such  until  1868,  when  J. 
W.  Butler  and  his  brother,  O.  M.,  bought  out  the 
Laflin  interest,  when  the  firm  name  changed  back 


/     X 


U'.AX^^t^^ 


BIOGRAPIUCAI.  niCTIOXARV  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


381 


to  its  original  st)lc.  In  1867  the  firm  were  at  114 
ami  116  Wabash  avoiuic — the  Dratc  block — and 
was  binned  out  there  in  August  of  that  year  with 
a  loss  of  fifty  thousand  dollars.  This  was  a  hard 
blow  to  the  brothers,  but  they  were  of  determined 
metal,  and  as  soon  as  the  building  could  be  pre- 
pared for  them  they  reopenetl  llieir  business  at 
12  and  14  Market  street,  and  later  removed  into 
larger  and  better  (|uarters  at  144  and  14'^)  iMonroc 
street,  where,  in  1S71.  the  great  tuc  found  them, 
and  their  business  was  aiUied  to  llie  list  of  "to- 
tally destroyed."  At  this  lime  their  business 
amounted  to  over  one  million  annually,  and  the 
loss  consequent  upon  carrying  a  stock  to  handle 
such  a  trade  was  vcr>'  heavy,  and  almost  crushed 
them  ;  in  fact,  the  great  loss  in  this  fire,  supple- 
mented by  the  burning  of  their  paper  mills  at  St. 
Charles,  so  prostrated  Mr.  J.  \V.  liutler's  brother 
that  he  soon  after  gave  up  the  business.  While 
the  walls  were  still  smoking,  Mr.  J.  W.  Hutler 
secured  and  moved  into  a  building  on  the  West 
side,  that  had  been  used  for  a  church  and  mission 
school,  and  here  again  opened  up  business  for  the 
temporary  accommodation  of  his  trade.  A  new 
building  being  built  for  him,  he  removed  hack 
to  the  South  side,  on  Monroe  street,  where,  in 
1S76,  the  business  was  incorporated  as  the  J.  W. 
Butler  Paper  Company,  with  J.  W.  Hutler  as  its 
treasurer.  In  1884  Mr.  Hutler  was  electctl  jjresi- 
dent  of  the  company,  and  has  filled  that  oltke 
ever  since. 

The  business  has  seen  many  struggles  in  its 
early  days,  but  it  was  favoretl  with  a  man  of 
brains  at  its  head,  who  knew  no  such  woril  as  fail, 
and  he  has  worked  and  lived  to  see  every  hope, 
every  ambition  realized  for  the  business;  and 
while  it  has  competitors  in  its  line,  has  none, 
absolutely  none,  in  its  class  in  the  West,  and 
none  superior  in  the   United  States. 

Few  wholesale  commercial  houses  anywhere 
can  show  a  proud  list  of  over  six  thousanil  select- 
ed customers,  many  of  them  more  than  a  c|uarter 
of  a  century  rild,  and  some  a])proaching  nearly 
the  half-century  line.  Their  business  covers  the 
entire  forty-eight  States  and  a  large  portion  of 
Mexico.  It  is  indeed  a  ty[)ical  American  institu- 
tion, honored  and  trusted. 

In  politics,  Mr.  Hutler  is  a  Republican,  but  has 
never  been  in  office,  nor  sought  one;  he  has,  how- 
ever, been  requested  to  permit  his  name  to  stand 


for  this  and  that  office  in  the  city  nuinieii)al  gov- 
ernment, i)ul  lias  steadfastly  refused.  He  is  a 
director  in  iIk  Royal  Trust  Savings  Bank,  and 
has  been  a  director  in  numerous  financial  institu- 
tions, lie  is  an  officer  in  the  Union  I'ark  Con- 
gregational Church,  and  is  deeply  interested  in 
the  building  up  and  Mistaining  of  the  mi.ssion 
schools. 

Mr.  lUitler  was  married,  M.i\-  28tli,  1836,  to 
Miss  Julia  A.  Osgood,  of  Bellows  Falls,  Vt.,  to 
whose  gentleness,  good  judgment  and  ready  sym- 
pathy Mr.  Hutler  ascribes  the  courage  and  inspi- 
ration of  his  dark  days,  and  the  true  and  highest 
enjci\nicnl  of  his  days  of  sunshine  and  plenty. 
Of  the  four  children  born  unto  this  good  father 
and  moliier,  two  sons,  l''rank  O.  and  J.  P>cd.,  are 
the  survivors,  the  former  being  first  vice-])resident 
and  the  latter  .second  vice-president  of  the  J.  W. 
Ikitlcr  Compan\-. 

Mr.  Hutler  takes  great  interest  in  ,ill  efforts 
tending  to  bring  the  tnkles  together,  believing 
that  all  such  efforts  result  in  general  good.  He 
was  in.strumcntal  in  organizing,  in  1881,  the  Chi- 
cago Paper  Dealers'  and  Manufacturers'  Associa- 
tion, and  was  its  first  president.  Mr.  Butler  is 
fi\e  feet  fi\e  inches  in  height,  .md  weighs  one 
hundred   anti   thirty  pounds. 

This  brief  \  iew  of  his  business  career  and  in- 
terests sliow  liini  to  he  eminently  fitted  for  the 
p.iges  of  a  histoi)-  of  men  whose  li\'es  are  pre- 
sented to  the  world  as  examples  of  high  regard 
and  excellence,  typical  of  that  intensified  en- 
ergy and  honorable  characteristic  of  represen- 
tative American  progress  that  has  made  the 
United  Stales  in  general,  anil  Chicago  in  par- 
ticular, the  wonder  and  admiration  of  the  whole 
civilized  world. 

Mr.  Butler's  personal  histor\-  exhibits  the  no- 
blest attributes  of  character;  his  life  has  been 
one  continuous  scene  of  activity  and  almost  un- 
interruijted  success.  His  achievements  justify  a 
stiid\-  of  the  man,  liis  character,  his  qualities,  his 
methods  of  action  and  acknowledged  ability  to 
gr.ipple  w  ith  the  higher  forces  of  life  around  him, 
and  to  govern  the  agencies  of  nature  and  human- 
ity that  are  so  essential  to  the  attainment  of 
eminence  and  success. 

He  is  strong  in  his  friendship.  ne\er  wilhngly 
abandoning  one  in  whom  he  has  trusted,  always 
willing  to  help  the  worthy,  but  sometimes  turning 


382 


niOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AND  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


a  deaf  ear  to  an  applicant  for  his  bounty  who  has 
not  learned  the  pathway  to  competency  by  indus- 
try and  economy;  stron^^  j,,  his  disUkes  of  men 
whom  he  does  not  beheve  in  as  honest  and 
worthy,;  strong  in  liis  convictions  of  right  and 
hatred  of  the  tricks  of  business  of  which  some 
even  boast.  His  sterhng  integrity  is  an  unques- 
tioned fact  in  his  liistory. 

Naturally  modest  and  diffident,  he  is  independ- 
ent in  thought,  but  does  not  reach  a  conclusion 
without  due  consideration,  and  when  once  a  con- 
clusion is  reached,  he  is  firm  but  not  arrogant. 
He  is  a  proud  man,  but  his  pride  is  a  worthy  and 
honest  consciousness  in,  and  appreciation  of,  the 


love  of  his  famil\-  and  friends,  and  the  profound 
respect  of  all  with  whuin  he  lias  business  or  social 
relations. 

lie  stands  today  in  his  mature  years  the  pio- 
neer of  a  great  industry  and  trade  in  the  We.st. 
For  nearly  half  a  hundred  years  his  honored 
name  has  been  synonymous  with  that  industry, 
and  such  has  been  the  consonance  of  the  connec- 
tion that  it  will  continue  for  all  time  in  American 
.social  records  and  business  heraldry  an  example 
for  young  men  to  pattern  after,  as  illustrative  of 
the  fruits  of  probity,  manliness  and  of  the  associ- 
ation of  the  higher  elements  of  Christian  fellow- 
ship with  business  dealing. 


HENRY   STEVENS  TUCKER,   M.D. 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


HENRY  S.  TUCKER  inherits  from  his 
father  the  clear  brain  and  practical  inge- 
nuity of  the  sturdy  sons  of  Vermont,  and  from  his 
mother  the  warm  heart  and  gracious  manner  of  the 
old  Virginian.  Early  in  the  present  century,  his 
father,  John  R.  Tucker,  left  his  native  home  in 
Vermont,  and  after  a  few  years'  sojourn  in  Vir- 
ginia, settled  in  Kane  county,  Illinois,  where  the 
subject  of  this  sketch  was  born  on  the  ist  of 
May,  1S53.  Henry  was  sent  to  the  common 
schools,  passed  successfully  through  the  different 
grades,  and  was  graduated  from  the  high  school, 
and  then  spent  two  vli\-  protitable  years  at 
Wheaton  College,  Illinois. 

He  early  developed  a  fondness  for  anatomical 
studie.s,  and  became  interestetl  in  all  mechanical 
contrivances  for  operating  upon  the  human  body, 
and  when  the  time  came  to  choose  a  profession,  he 
naturally  selected  surgery.  He  pur.sued  a  course 
of  study  at  Rennet  Medical  College,  Chicago,  from 
which  he  was  graduated  in  1879.  With  a  choice 
which  has  proved  a  very  wise  one,  he  located  in 
Chicago,  and  the  same  )ear  was  elected  demon- 
strator of  anatoni)-  by  his  nlniu  iiintcr.  He  re- 
tained this  position  until  1S83,  when  he  was  elect- 
ed professor  of  gener.il  anil  descrijjtive  anatomy. 
In  this  capacity  he  served  until  1889,  when  he  was 
elected  professor  of  surgery  in  Rennet  Medical 
College  and  attending  and  consulting  physician  in 
the  college  hospital,  at   the  same  time  being  ex- 


amining physician  in  several  mutual  benefit  asso- 
ciations. 

In  1S83  Dr.  Tucker  was  made  a  Mason  at  Clin- 
tonville  Lodge,  No.  5  1 1,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  from  \vhich 
he  has  since  transferred  his  membership  to  Ash- 
lar Lodge,  No.  308,  of  Chicago.  He  was  exalted 
to  the  Royal  Arch  degree,  R.  A.  M.,  Lafayette 
Chapter,  in  1889. 

Well  known  in  social  and  literary  circles.  Dr. 
Tucker  is  a  member  of  the  Grand  Roulevard  Club 
and  also  of  the  Evolution  Club  of  this  city.  He 
is  Republican  in  political  .sympathies,  though  pre- 
vented by  professional  duties  from  taking  an  ac- 
tive part  in  politics.  In  his  religious  belief  he  is 
a  Methodist. 

Dr.  Tucker  is  a  very  successful  physician,  and 
it  is  interesting  to  note  the  traits  of  character 
which  have  contributed  to  his  advancement. 
Calm  and  cool  in  demeanor,  he  impresses  one 
as  non-visionary  and  conservative,  while  at  the 
same  time  is  felt  the  underlying  strength  and 
positiveness  of  his  character.  One  of  his  most 
admirable  qualities  is  the  ability  to  judge  and 
to  speak  without  exaggeration  of  the  faults  and 
virtues  of  another. 

In  1884  Dr.  Tucker  married  Miss  Emma  Kro- 
nenberg,  a  daughter  of  Mr.  Joseph  Kronenberg, 
an  old  and  prominent  hardware  merchant  of 
Hamburgh,  New  York.  Mrs.  Tucker  is  a  lady 
of  much  artistic  culture,  and  delights  in  beautify- 


^ 


.^^'"'^^^^-'-^-^  J^  ^^L^^ 


BIOGRAI'HICAI.  DICTIOXARY  A.XP  J'ORTRA/T  C.AI.I.ERV. 


385 


int;    her    comfortable    home,  whose    happiness   is     year-old  daughter,  Inez,  a  l)right,  attractive  child 
heightened    by  the   presence   of    the    little   three-      of  unusual  intelligence. 


llJ'MrSTEAD   WASHBURNE. 


CllKAGO.    ILL. 


TH  K  true  measure  of  one's  success  is  w  hat  one 
has  accomplished,  and  he  best  fulfills  his 
mission  in  life  who  best  uses  his  abilities  and  op- 
portunities. When  measured  by  these  standards, 
Hempstead  Washburne,  though  he  has  scarce 
reached  the  meridian  of  life,  must  be  classed  with 
those  successful  men  who  have  made  the  most 
and  best  of  themselves.  He  is  a  native  of  Illi- 
nois, and  was  born  at  Galena,  on  November  11, 
r852. 

His  father,  the  Hon.  Elihu  15.  Washburne,  was 
a  man  of  extraordinary  ability,  whose  name  is 
enrolled  with  those  of  Illinois'  ablest  .statesmen 
and  most  honored  citizens.  He  was  a  lineal  de- 
scendant of  John  Washburne,  who  was  secretary 
of  the  Colony  of  Plymouth.  He  was  for  eighteen 
years  a  member  of  Congress  from  Illinois;  Secre- 
tary of  State  during  the  administration  of  Presi- 
dent Grant,  and  for  eight  years  Minister  to  I'rance. 
In  this  last-named  capacity  he  rendered  most 
praiseworthy  services  during  the  Franco-Prussian 
War  of  1871-1872. 

The  mother  of  our  subject  was,  before  her  mar- 
riage. Miss  Adele  Gratiot,  whose  immediate  an- 
cestors were  among  the  early  settlers  of  St.  Louis, 
Missouri.  Her  father,  Col.  Henry  Gratiot,  moved 
to  Galena,  Illinois,  when  it  was  first  opened  up  as 
a  mining  settlement.  Her  mother — our  subject's 
maternal  grandmother — was,  before  her  marriage, 
a  .Miss  Hempstead,  whose  father  was  a  revolu- 
tionarj-  soldier  and  a  companion  of  Capt.  Nathan 
Hale,  on  his  ill-fated  excursion  to  the  British 
lines,  when  he  (^Hale)  was  captured  by  the  Uritish 
and  hanged  as  a  spy. 

Hempstead  attended  the  public  sclujols  during 
his  boyhood,  and  prepared  for  college  at  Kent's 
Hill.  Maine,  where  he  was  graduated  in  1871.  In 
the  summer  of  that  year  he  visited  Europe  and 
pursued  a  two  years'  course  of  stud)-  in  the  Uni- 
versity of  Bonn,  Germany.  Upon  his  return  to 
this  country  in  1873,  he  became  a  student  in  the  law 
department  of  University   of  Wisconsin  at  Madi- 


son, and  was  graduated  therefrom  in  one  year,  after 
which  he  pursued  a  supplementary  law  course  in 
the  Union  College  of  Law  at  Chicago,  and  was 
graduated  in  1875.  He  began  the  practice  of  his 
profession  at  once,  opening  an  office  with  Mr. 
Henry  S.  Robins,  under  the  firm  name  of  W'ash- 
burne  &  Robins.  This  firm  afterwards  became 
associated  with  the  Hon.  Lyman  Trumbull,  the 
firm  name  changing  to  Trumbull,  Washburne  & 
Robins,  and  so  continued  until  1885.  During 
that  time  Mr.  Washburne  caine  to  be  recognized 
as  a  joung  lawyer  of  fine  abilities,  for  which,  with 
his  manly,  personal  qualities,  he  was  greatly 
esteemed.  He  was  appointed  a  Master  in  Chan- 
cery for  the  Superior  Court  in  1880,  and  held  that 
ofTfice  until  he  was  elected  City  Attorney  in  1885, 
whereupon  he  resigned  and  also  withdrew  from 
his  law  firm.  He  was  re-elected  City  Attorne)- 
in  1887,  and  at  the  end  of  his  second  term  de- 
clined to  stand  for  a  third  nomination  in  order 
that  he  might  resume  his  pri\ate  practice,  which 
he  did  in  connection  with  Mr.  Theodore  Bren- 
tano — now  a  Judge  of  the  Superior  Court — under 
the  firm  name  of  Washburne  &  Brentano.  In  1888 
he  was  candidate  for  Congressional  nomination, 
but  was  defeated  at  the  primarj-  election  by  an 
almost  tie  vote,  Hon.  George  E.  Adams  being  his 
successful  competitor.  In  March,  1891,  Mr. 
Washburne  was  nominated  by  acclamation  for 
the  ofifice  of  Mayor  of  Chicago,  and  in  April 
following,  after  a  most  e.vciting  campaign,  was 
elected.  His  term  of  office  will  e.xpire  in  the 
spring  of  1893. 

Asa  lawyer  Mr.  Washburne  maintained  a  high 
standing  among  his  a.ssociates  at  the  bar,  and 
was  esteemed  by  them,  not  onl\-  as  an  able  law- 
yer, but  also  as  a  high-minded  gentleman.  His 
success  as  City  Attorney  is  sufficiently  attested 
by  the  fact  that  he  voluntarily  declined  a  third 
nomination  for  that  office.  In  his  present  high 
and  responsible  office  he  has  shown  e.\ecuti\e 
ability  bejond   the    e.\pectation  of   his    warmest 


386 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  A.XI)  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


supporters.  He  has  called  about  himself,  as 
heads  of  the  various  departments  of  the  city  gov- 
ernment, men  of  well-known  high  standing,  and 
instituted  and  put  into  operation  many  needed 
reforms  ;  and  under  his  administration  the  affairs 
of  the  city  have  been  conducted  in  a  business- 
like manner,  that  challenges  the  admiration  of  all 
fair-minded  men.  In  all  his  varied  relations,  Mr. 
Washburne  has  maintained  a  manly  independence. 
He  is  a  man  of  strong  convictions,  firm  in  his  de- 
terminations, and  seldom  retreats  from  a  position 
once  taken.  He  thinks  for  himself  and  acts  in 
accordance  w'ith  what  he  believes  to  be  right  and 
best.  Under  all  circumstances  he  has  the  cour- 
age of  his  convictions,  and  is  frank  and  outspoken 
in  his  beliefs.  He  has  a  vigorous,  active  mind, 
and  his  public  utterances  are  terse,  forceful  and 
practical.  He  has  much  oratorical  ability,  and  in 
his  address  at  the  unveiling  of  the  Grant  monu- 
ment in  1891,  surprised   even    his  friends   in   this 


particular.  He  is  a  staunch  Republican,  and  has 
been  ever  since  he  was  old  enough  to  vote.  In 
religious  matters  he  is  thoroughly  independent  ; 
he  is  a  member  of  no  church  or  religious  denomi- 
nation. 

In  June,  1883,  Mr.  Washburne  married  Miss 
Annie  M.  Clarke,  daughter  of  Mr.  J.  V.  Clarke, 
president  of  the  Hibernian  Bank,  Chicago. 

Mr.  Washburne  has  a  rugged  physique,  is  of 
medium  height  and  somewhat  stout.  For  exer- 
cise he  is  much  given  to  horseback  riding  in  the 
early  morning.  He  has  black  hair  and  mous- 
tache, a  rather  swarthy  complexion,  and  bright, 
dark  brown  eyes.  He  has  a  courtly,  pleasing 
manner,  is  a  genial  companion,  loves  good  fellow- 
ship and  is  loyal  to  his  friends.  He  belongs  to 
several  of  Chicago's  prominent  clubs  and  social 
organizations ;  but  withal  is  a  man  of  domestic 
and  literary  tastes,  and  in  his  own  home  finds  his 
highest  enjoyment. 


LYMAN    EVERINGHAM, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


LYMAN  EVERINGHAM,  president  of  the 
Columbia  National  Bank  of  Chicago,  was 
born  at  Geneva,  New  York,  September  g,  1831,  and 
is  the  son  of  Rev.  J.  S.  Everingham,  a  Baptist  clerg>'- 
man,  widely  known  in  Central  and  Western  New 
York  as  one  of  the  most  progressive  and  strong- 
minded  preachers  of  the  day. 

His  early  life  was  passed  at  various  points  in 
the  Empire  State,  where  his  father  was  settled  as 
pastor.  He  is  the  oldest  of  eight  children,  four 
brothers  and  four  sisters,  all  of  whom  are  still  li\- 
ing.  At  the  age  of  twenty  he  left  school  to  take  a 
clerkship  in  the  general  office  of  the  Buffalo,  Corn- 
ing and  New  York  Railroad.  Feeling  conscious 
of  possessing  ability,  and  eager  to  begin  life  for 
himself,  he  performed  his  duties  with  the  same 
enthusiasm  which  has  characterized  his  entire  life. 
His  unflinching  perseverance  and  industry,  to- 
gether with  iron-clad  principle  and  sterling  worth, 
were  very  soon  recognized,  and  within  two  years 
he  was  promoted  to  the  position  of  auditor  of 
accounts  and  pay-master,  which  position  he  filled 
with  great  credit  to  himself  for  three  years.  Be- 
ing anxious  to   come  West  and  grow   up  with  it. 


he  resigned  his  position  in  March,  1856,  and  ac- 
cepted the  position  of  freight  agent  of  the  La 
Crosse  and  Milwaukee  Railroad,  with  his  office  at 
Milwaukee,  where  he  remained  for  nine  j-ears,  the 
line  of  road  mentioned  being  embraced  in  the 
Chicago,  Milwaukee  and  St.  Paul  system  during 
the  time.  He  was  known  as  the  "  model  agent," 
being  courteous  and  gentlemanly  under  all  cir- 
cumstances to  the  patrons  of  the  road ;  he  was 
e.xceedingl}'  popular  with  the  public,  and  when 
he  resigned,  in  1865,  he  was  urged  by  the  direct- 
ors to  remain  and  to  name  his  own  salary.  In 
1865,  he  entered  into  partnership  with  V..  P. 
Bacon,  who  resigned  as  general  ticket  agent  of 
the  same  road,  and  at  the  same  time  tt>  engage  in 
a  general  commission  business  at  Milwaukee, 
under  the  style  of  Bacon  &  Everingham,  L;rcat 
success  characterizing  their  business  from  the 
first.  In  1874,  Mr.  Bacon  retired  from  the  firm, 
and  Mr.  Everingham  has  since  continued  the 
business  under  the  name  of  L.  Everingham  and 
Company,  moving  to  Chicago  in  1880  to  take 
charge  of  their  rapiilly  increasing  business  in 
that  city. 


0 


BrOGRAl'UlCAL  D/CT/OX.IRV  AXD  rORTRAIT  GAI.I.ERY. 


3S9 


III  February,  1S91.  Mr.  Everingham  was  unani- 
mously elected  president  of  tlie  Columbia  Nation- 
al Bank  of  Chicago.  His  business  record  has 
been  one  that  any  man  would  be  proud  of  pos- 
sessing. Beginning  at  the  very  bottom  round  of 
the  ladder,  he  has  advanced  steadily,  step  by 
step,  until  he  is  now  occupying  a  position  of 
prominence  and  trust  reached  by  very  few  men. 
Through  his  entire  business  career  he  has  been 
looked  upon  as  a  model  of  integrity  and  honor, 
never  having  met  with  setbacks  or  making  any 
engagement  that   he  has  not  performed,  and  he 


stands  to-day  as  a  prominent  example  of  what 
determination  and  force,  combined  with  the 
highest  degree  of  honor  and  integrity,  can  ac- 
complish for  a  man  of  natural  ability  and  force 
of  character. 

He  is  a  man  of  cheerful  countenance  and  be- 
nignant appearance,  having  a  friendly  word,  a 
kindly  smile,  and  a  sympathetic  heart  for  all. 
He  is  highly  respected  by  the  community  at 
large,  honored  by  his  business  associates,  and 
admired  for  his  innate  honor  and  true  Christian 
spirit. 


JACOB    ROSENBERG, 


CHIC.AC.O,   ILL. 


JACOB  ROSENBERG  was  bom  at  Altcnmuhr, 
Bavaria,  March  25.  1819,  the  son  of  Bern- 
hardt and  Gidel  Rosenberg.  He  received  a  com- 
mon school  education  in  his  native  town,  and 
while  good  in  general  studies,  was  especially  so  in 
mathematics.  He  left  school  at  the  age  of  thir- 
teen, when  he  was  apprenticed  to  the  shoemaker's 
trade,  which  he  followed  in  his  native  place  five 
years,  and  in  1837  immigrated  to  the  United 
States,  landing  in  New  York,  August  1 8.  The 
first  six  months  he  applied  himself  to  his  trade,  but 
not  finding  it  lucrative,  he  determined  to  try  the 
fortunes  of  a  peddler.  Providing  himself  with  a 
stock  of  merchandise  he  set  out  for  the  far  North- 
west, going  first  to  Pittsburgh,  thence  by  steam- 
boat down  the  Ohio  and  up  the  Mississippi  to  the 
various  trading  posts  in  the  Northwest  country. 
At  that  time  only  a  military  post  occupied  the 
site  of  the  present  St.  Paul,  and  Minneapolis  had 
not  been  thought  of.  The  population  of  that  sec- 
tion was  composed  mostly  of  Indians,  trappers, 
traders  and  soldiers.  Our  enterprising  trader 
made  four  or  five  trips  between  New  York  and 
the  Northwest  between  1837  and  1842,  meeting 
with  numerous  adventures  incident  to  frontier  life. 
Having  accumulated  some  capital  and  desiring  a 
more  settled  life  and  occupation,  in  1843  he  went 
to  t'hicago,  then  a  small  frontier  town,  which  was 
attracting  some  attention,  and  embarked  in  the 
dry  goods  business  on  Lake  street,  in  company 
with  Mr.  Levi  Rosenfeld  under  the  style  of  Ro- 
senfeld    and    Rosenberg.     He    remainetl    in    this 


business  uninterruptedly  and  with  success  until 
1869,  when  he  sold  out. 

Mr.  Rosenberg  has  since  given  his  entire  per- 
sonal attention  to  his  large  and  increasing  prop- 
erty interests,  which  have  been  so  carefully  and 
judiciouslj'  managed  as  to  place  him  now  among 
the  wealthiest  citizens  of  Chicago.  Since  1873  he 
has  been  a  director,  and  a  part  of  that  time,  vice- 
President  of  the  Intor-State  Exposition  Com- 
pany. 

In  1876  he  was  elected  alderman  from  the  old 
second  ward  and  made  an  exceptionally  fine 
record.  Mr.  Rosenberg's  politics  have  always 
been  Republican.  He  has  been  connected  with 
the  Masonic  fraternity  since  1844,  and  was  a  mem- 
ber of  Lafayette  Lodge  of  Chicago,  now  disbanded, 
and  a  charter  member  of  Chicago  Lodge,  437,  in- 
stituted in  1864,  from  which  lodge  he  received  a 
life-membership  diploma,  January  i,  1890,  to 
which  only  members  of  twenty-five  \ears'  un- 
broken membership  are  entitled. 

Since  1847  Mr.  Rosenberg  has  been  an  active 
member  of  the  Jewish  congregation  Kehilath 
Anshe  Mayriv,  whose  beautiful  tem|)le  stands  at 
the  corner  of  Indiana  avenue  and  Thirty-third 
street.  He  is  a  trustee  and  also  the  Vice-Presi- 
dent of  the  congregation.  He  may  be  consid- 
ered as  belonging  to  the  more  conservative  ele- 
ment of  his  people  in  matters  relating  to  the 
church. 

Mr.  Rosenberg  has  also  been  active  in  benevo- 
lent affairs,  being  a  director  of  the   Michael    Rccs 


390 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Hospital  at  Twenty-ninth  street  and  Cottage 
Grove  avenue,  founded  by  the  generosity  of  the 
late  Michael  Rees ;  also  a  director  of  the  United 
Hebrew  Relief  Association  of  Chicago.  As  an  in- 
stance of  his  liberality  it  is  said  that  Mr.  Rosen- 
berg purchased,  a  few  years  ago,  at  Dunning 
Station,  in  the  town  of  Jefferson,  twenty  acres  of 
land  which  he  donated  as  a  cemetery  for  the 
members  of  his  congregation.  Mr.  Rosenberg 
gave  much  personal  attention  to  the  laying  out 
and  improving  of  the  grounds,  the  total  outlay 
for  which  was  about  fifty  thousand  dollars. 

On  the  lOth  of  October,  1847,  Mr.  Rosenberg 
was  united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Hannah  Rees, 
of  Chicago,  a  sister  of  the  late  Michael  Rees.  of 
whom  mention  has  been  made.  The  fruit  of  this 
marriage  was  three  sons  and  two  daughters. 
This  faithful  companion  in  marriage,  and  the 
sharer  of  his  joys  and  sorrows  for  so  many  years, 
was  suddenly  called  from  him  by  death,  in  Janu- 
ary,   i8go.     She     possessed     especially    vigorous 


traits  of  character  and  her  life  was  filled  with 
good  works. 

Mr.  Rosenberg  has  made  various  trips  to  Eu- 
rope for  recreation  and  pleasure.  He  has  a  lux- 
urious home  in  a  select  portion  of  the  South 
Division  of  Chicago,  where  he  enjoys  the  filial 
ministrations  of  a  daughter.  His  reputation  is 
that  of  a  sociable,  generous,  kindly-dispositioned 
man.  His  habits  of  life  are  simple  and  temper- 
ate to  a  high  degree,  and  his  character,  viewed  in 
any  aspect,  is  admired  by  all  who  know  him.  He 
is  tall  and  erect  and  of  commanding  figure  even  at 
his  advanced  age,  and  although  the  fingers  of 
Time  have  chiseled  a  few  lines  upon  his  face,  still 
they  have  not  effaced  the  signs  of  character 
which  mark  it  to  the  eye  of  the  observer. 

In  the  evening  of  a  well-rounded,  successful 
career,  Mr.  Rosenberg's  history  is  well  worthy  the 
study  of  all  w^ho  would  profit  by  a  noble  exam- 
ple of  success  in  life  by  perseverance,  fidelity  and 
strict  adherence  to  right. 


JAMES    B.   McFATRICH,   M.D.,   M.S. 


CHICAGO,    ILL 


DR.  JAMES  B.  McFATRICH,  who  has 
achieved  eminence  as  an  occulist,  aurist 
and  surgeon,  was  born  in  Lena,  Stephenson 
county,  Illinois,  on  the  fourth  day  of  April,  1862. 
He  attended  the  common  and  high  .schools  of  his 
native  town,  and  afterwards  entered  the  Upper 
Iowa  University,  from  which  he  received  the  de- 
gree of  Master  of  Science.  He  commenced  the 
study  of  medicine  in  1879,  attending  lectures  in 
both  the  Hahnemann  and  Bennett  Medical  Col- 
leges, graduating  from  the  latter  in  1884,  and 
from  the  former  in  1SS5.  He  also  spent  two 
years  in  the  Cook  County  Hospital,  regularly  at- 
tending lectures  all  the  time,  and  thus  enjoyed 
superior  advantages  for  perfecting  his  medical 
education  and  developing  a  well-defined  natural 
talent  for  the  practice  of  the  science  of  medicine. 
Dr.  McFatrich  commenced  the  practice  of  his 
profession  in  Chicago,  and  soon  entered  into  a  co- 
partnership with  the  late  Dr.  Henry  Olin,  one  of 
the  most  distinguished  occulists  and  aurists  that 
this  country  has  produced.  Two  years  later  the 
failing  health  of  Dr.  Olin  compelled   him  to  seek 


rest  and  a  change  of  climate,  and  the  large  practice 
was  entirely  assumed  by  Dr.  McFatrich.  Since 
the  death  of  Dr.  Olin  he  has  continued  in  the 
enjoyment  of  the  confidence  of  those  who  prized 
the  scientific  attainments  and  skill  of  that  noted 
physician,  and  has  largely  increased  the  immense 
business  which  Dr.  Olin  had  created  in  his  years 
of  successful  practice. 

Dr.  McFatrich  is  a  tireless  student  of  the  prin- 
ciples, progress  and  practice  of  his  profession,  and 
in  the  course  of  his  investigations  has  visited  all 
the  principal  hospitals  of  this  country,  and  there 
closely  observed  all  that  was  of  interest  and  bene- 
fit to  the  oculist,  aurist  and  surgeon.  Few  physi- 
cians have  their  time  so  thoroughly  occupied  by 
their  practice  and  in  matters  pertaining  to  their 
profession.  Besides  caring  for  his  large  list  of 
patients,  he  is  president  of  the  Eclectic  Staff  of 
Physicians  in  Cook  County  Hospital,  in  which 
institution  he  succeeded  in  securing  official  recog- 
nition of  eclectic  practice ;  surgeon-in-chief  for 
Illinois  of  the  Employers'  Liability  Assurance 
Corixnation,  of  London,  England:  surgeon-in-chief 


RIOCRArillCAI.  DICTIO.XARV  .I.V/)  PORTRAir  r.AI.I.ERY. 


393 


of  tlie  Fidelity  and  Casualty  Assurance  Compaii)-, 
of  New  York ;  Professor  of  Ophthalmology,  Otol- 
ogy and  Clinical  Surgery  in  Bennett  Medical 
College;  member  of  the  board  of  trustees  of  the 
same  institution,  and  is  also  one  of  the  attending 
staff  of  surgeons  in  the  Cook  County  Hospital. 

In  addition  to  all,  he  is  a  prominent,  active 
Freemason,  devoting  much  time  to  the  work  of 
the  order,  in  which  his  fidelity,  ability  and  powers 
of  oratory  are  widely  recognized.  He  was  made 
a  Mason  in  Ashlar  Lodge,  in  February,  i8S6,  anil 
served  as  its  Master  for  two  terms.  In  March, 
1 886,  he  was  raised  to  the  august  degree  of  the 
Holy  Royal  Arch,  in  Lafayette  Chapter,  R.  A.  M., 
No.  I,  and  has  occupied  the. position  of  High 
Priest  of  that  body.  He  received  his  degrees  in 
Palestine  Council.  No.  66,  and  was  knighted  in 
Montjoie  Commandery,  No.  53,  in  October,  1884, 
and  is  now  serving  as  its  Eminent  Commander. 
He  received  the  degree  of  Grand-Elect,  Perfect 
and  Sublime  Mason  in  Van  Rensselaer  Grand 
Lodge  of  Perfection,  fourteenth  degree,  P'ebruary 
3,  1887,  and  was  elected  its  Thrice-Potent  Grand 
Master,  and  is  now  filling  that  office  for  the  fourth 
term.  He  received  the  grades,  as  conferred  in 
Chicago  Council,  Princes  of  Jerusalem,  si.xteenth 
degree,  in  March,  1887,  and  the  grades,  as  con- 
ferred in  Gourgas  Chapter,  Rose  Croix,  eighteenth 
degree,  March,  1887,  in  which  he  is  serving  as  R. 
and  P.  K.  Master  of  Ceremonies.  He  received 
the  grades,  as  conferred  in  Oriental  Consistory,  S. 
P.  R.  S.,  thirty-second  degree,  April,  1887,  and  is 
now  serving  as  its  Master  of  Ceremonies.  Dr. 
McFatrich  is  also  a  Noble  of  the  Mystic  Shrine 
and  a  member  of  Medinah  Temple  (3asis,  of 
Chicago. 

A  monument  to  Dr.  McFatrich's  energy  of 
character,  love  of  Masonic  progress  and  public 
spirit  is  the  new  and  elegant  Masonic  Temple,  in 
Chicago.  He  was  one  of  the  originators  and  is  a 
director  of  this  great  enterprise,  and  his  time  and 
ability  have  been  freely  given  to  the  completion 
of  the  most  magnificent  home  of  Masonry  in  the 
world,  and  one  of  the  most  substantial  and  orna- 
mental pieces  of  architecture  of  which  any  city 
can  boast.  Noticeable  as  the  subject  of  our 
sketch  is  for  his  prominence  in  his  profession  and 
nobility  and  strength  of  character,  he  is  not  less 
remarkable  for  his  versatility  and  unflagging  in- 
dustry.    Dr.  McFatrich's  tribute  to  the  memory 


of  Ills  friend  and  brother,  Norman  T.  (iassette, 
was  tender,  touching  and  eloquent,  and  will  long 
be  remembered  by  those  who  heard  it.  His  ad- 
dress, as  Thrice-Potent  Grand  Master  of  Van 
Rensselaer  Grand  Lodge  of  Perfection,  F'ebruary 
5,  1891,  was  one  of  the  most  notable  of  its 
kind  in  the  history  of  Masonry.  He  received 
letters  of  congratulation  from  all  parts  of  the 
world  where  Masonry  exists.  Below  will  be 
found    the   address   in    full  : 

Have  the  achievements  of  the  past  two  years,  whose  record 
closes  to-night,  been  satisfactory  ?  The  answer  to  this  ques- 
tion will  depend  upon  what  we.  as  individuals,  think  of  the 
scope  and  meaning  of  Masonry.  If  the  work  of  the  lodge- 
room  is  a  brother  s  conception  of  the  full  significance  of  the 
mission  of  this  time-honored  and  time-tested  craft;  if  the  us- 
ual evidences  of  lodge  prosperity  are  all  that  he  wants,  I  sup- 
pose that  the  present  conditions  and  achievements  of  this 
lodge  would  be  worthy  of  commendation  and  a  source  of  sat- 
isfaction. No  other  result  than  general  international  prosper- 
ity would  be  expected  of  an  organiz;ition  whose  membership 
ranks  as  high  as  the  membership  of  Van  Rensselaer  Grand 
Lodge  of  Perfection.  But  there  is,  I  am  sure,  a  unanimity  of 
opinion  among  intelligent  Masons  that  Masonry  means  far 
more  and  far  better  than  anything  and  all  things  that  are  con- 
tined  to  the  secrecy  of  its  inner  work,  sublime  as  these  things 
are  m  truth  and  eloquence  of  sentiment.  We  have  been 
guided  through  the  mysteries  of  this  great  fraternity,  have 
drank  at  its  exhaustless,  sparkling  fountains  of  truth,  have 
been  charmed  by  its  splendors  and  knelt  at  its  altars  with 
open  hearts  and  open  souls  to  accept  its  obligations  for  the 
holy  purpose  of  better  fitting  us  as  ministers  of  mercy  and 
reflectors  of  light  in  the  world,  or  we  have  been  careless  in 
the  improvement  of  the  best  opportunities  men  will  ever 
enjoy  to  make  themselves  felt  in  the  uplifting  of  the  human 
race. 

A  miser  guarding  his  treasure,  even  from  himself,  while 
thousands  starve  and  shiver,  is  a  pitiable  spectacle  and  a  libel 
upon  his  race.  But  the  most  wretched  miser,  whose  pinched 
face  and  starved,  shrunken  soul,  whom  greed  and  selfishness 
ever  made  an  idolator,  kneeling  before  his  gold  and  clutching 
it  to  his  heart,  would  be  angelic  in  nature  and  generous  in 
inclinations  as  compared  to  him  whom  the  gods  had  led 
amidst  the  beauty  of  truth  and  glory  and  power  of  divme 
light,  who  should  hoard  the  virtues  that  he  had  absorbed  and 
the  light  which  filled  his  heart  and  life.  Masonry  offers  a 
grand  opportunity  and  imposes  a  solemn  responsibility. 
About  its  altars  and  at  every  step  through  its  impressive 
teachings  its  influences  are  uplifting,  and  it  seeks  the  devel- 
opment of  man's  nobler  nature  and  the  subordination  of  his 
selfishness  to  the  generous  impulses  of  his  heart.  It  means 
that  he  shall  be  a  light  in  the  darkness,  and  inspiration  to 
grander  human  achievements;  a  guide  to  the  wandering  and 
an  exponent  of  the  highest  truth,  the  brighest  hope  of  a  faith 
that  shall  bid  the  soul  be  calm  when  the  storms  rage  and 
man  is  helpless  in  the  hands  of  God.  .Masonry  points  no 
man  to  himself  except  to  reveal  to  him  his  need  of  light  and 
virtue.  It  points  him  away  from  himself;  it  charms  him  out 
of  himself,  and  lays  the  world  at   his  feet   for  his  pity  and 


BIOGRArillCAL  DICTIOXARV  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


394 

ministnition,  cultiv:iting  in  his  heart  the  sentiment  of  brother- 
hood; it  opens  his  ear  to  catch  the  cry  of  distress  that  comes 
so  steadily  from  human  hearts,  and  trains  him  to  utter  the 
word  of  sympathy  that  often  cools  the  hottest  tear  that 
glistens  and  boils  on  the  cheek.  Teaching  him  his  own 
dependence,  it  strives  to  make  him  a  help  to  the  helpless  and 
a  comfort  to  the  sorrowing,  and  painting  virtue  and  truth 
and  God  in  all  their  splendor  and  power  and  inspiration 
above  its  portals  and  on  its  altars,  it  leaves  him  to  carry  them 
into  the  hearts  and  homes  of  mankind. 

Genius  has  never  given  to  the  poet's  pen  or  the  artist's 
brush  or  to  eloquence  the  power  to  portray  the  grandeur  of 
Masonry  and  of  the  mission  of  Masonry,  and  the  Mason  who 
does  not  realize  that  fact,  or  the  fact  that  do  the  best  we  may, 
we  shall  come  far  short  of  the  ideal  of  Masonry,  ought  not  to 
be  satisfied  either  with  himself  or  the  record  his  lodge  had 
made.  The  world  is  groping  in  darkness.  The  thunders 
peal  even  from  the  clear  sky,  and  the  lightnings  in  the  midst 
of  the  sweetest  calms,  and  the  brightness  in  which  hearts 
have  delighted  and  bathed,  fade  into  a  starless  gloom  from 
which  is  ever  coming  the  pathetic  appeal  for  light.  Sublime 
as  are  the  probabilities  of  life,  imperious  as  are  the  thoughts 
of  manhood,  and  bright  and  majestic  as  are  the  exultations 
of  nature,  yet  man  becomes  lost  and  helpless  among  the 
fogs,  and  despairing  in  the  midst  of  deserts  into  which  he  has 
wandered.  His  Babylons,  with  their  magnificent  swinging 
gardens;  his  Romes,  with  their  wealth  of  art  and  splendors; 
his  elegant  temples  and  varied  charming  creations,  have  at 
all  times  appeared  to  him  like  the  child's  toys  which  charm 
for  a  moment  and  then  fail  to  please,  and  he  has  looked  out 
from  amidst  the  surrounding  splendors,  hither  and  thither, 
like  a  soul  in  the  night  longing  for  the  dawning  of  day,  for 
something  brighter,  something  better,  something  really  more 
substantial  than  wealth,  or  art,  or  genius  could  bestow.  The 
soul  of  man  cannot  be  filled  and  satisfied  with  the  things  that 
are  perishable.  The  landscape,  with  its  hills,  and  streams, 
and  flowers,  and  lields  of  green,  may  charm  the  eye  and 
fascinate  the  soul  for  a  moment,  and  the  meteor  that  flashes 
for  an  instant  and  goes  out  into  darkness  may  fill  us  with 
admiration;  but  restless  fancy  goes  beyond  magnificence  of 
the  landscape  and  the  fiery  flash  of  the  meteor,  and  a  restless 
spirit  of  inquiry  asks.  What  is  beyond  ?  It  is  light  and  truth, 
for  which  man  is  yearning,  for  which  he  is  striving.  And 
what  minister  of  light  and  truth  is  so  well  equipped  to  lead 
man  from  the  shadows  of  the  night  into  the  Hush  of  the 
mornmg  and  into  the  realms  of  sacred  truth  as  he  who  has 
knelt  at  the  shrines  of  Masonry  and  beheld  the  panorama  of 
truth  as  it  has  moved  before  his  eyes  and  left  its  splendors 
crayoned  upon  his  soul  ? 

We  cannot,  is  is  true,  open  Heaven  to  thi-  upturned  eyes, 
straining  to  catch  a  glimpse  of  the  source  of  truth,  or  lead 
man  to  a  veritable  stream  of  life,  in  its  crystal  beauty  and 
with  delightful  melody,  flowing  from  the  throne  of  God,  and 
laughing  through  the  Howers  and  meadows  and  hills  of  earth. 
l?ut  we  can  rellect  Heaven  in  our  lives  and  sympathies,  and 
by  living  our  belief  in  the  universal  brothorhood  of  man,  can 
cover  the  clouds  with  light,  inferentially  demonstrate  the 
fatherhood  of  God,  and  thus  tune  the  ear  to  catch  the  laugh- 
ter, and  the  eye  to  fancy  thai  it  could  see  the  rippling  of  the 
stream  of  life.  Universal  Masonry  would  make  universal 
peace,  universal  contentment  of  soul,  a  universal  belief  in 
God  and  a  universal  anticipation  of  life  eternal.     Masonry  is 


the  embodiment  of  all  truth.  It  is  ablaze  with  love  to  man 
and  a  love  to  God.  It  encircles  the  earth  with  a  golden 
chain  of  brotherhood,  and  the  incense  that  rises  from  its 
altars  bears  the  aspirations  of  the  heart  of  God.  But  Ma- 
sonry, independent  of  human  life  and  effort  that  it  absorbs 
and  directs,  is  dead  and  meaningless  to  the  world.  Our  sol- 
emn, beautiful  rites  are  nothing,  and  our  professions  are 
worse  than  nothing,  if  wx-  (ail  to  carry  Masonry  out  into  the 
world  and  gild  the  bleak  places  and  revive  the  drooping 
flowers  with  its  beauty  and  gentleness  and  warmth. 

There  arc  to-night  tears  boiling  in  the  hearts  that  Masonry 
should  cool;  there  arc  embers  dymg  on  the  hearthstone  that 
Masonry  should  rekmdle  ;  there  are  pillows  beneath  aching 
heads  that  Masonry  should  smooth ;  there  are  beds  of  the 
dying,  and  there  are  yawning  graves,  black  as  midnight  and 
damp  as  the  breath  of  death  to  bereaved  hearts,  that  Ma- 
sonry should  fill  with  the  light  of  sympathy  and  arch  with  the 
precious,  whispering  truth  of  immortality.  The  hungry  plead 
eloquently  for  bread;  the  friendless  are  asking  for  friendship; 
the  orphan  holds  up  its  feeble  hands  for  protection  ;  the  de- 
spairing are  gasping  in  the  very  agonies  of  death  and  looking 
into  the  impenetrable  darkness  for  a  single  ray  of  hope,  and 
the  whole  world  is  struggling,  and  surging,  and  throbbing 
in  error  and  pain,  while  Masonry  may  be  the  ministering 
angel  and  the  solution  of  the  most  perplexing  and  discourag- 
ing problem.  Is  it  fulfilling  its  mission?  Has  this  lodge 
done  its  duty  outside  of  the  lodgeroom  during  the  two  years 
that  ended  to-night?  As  a  lodge  it  has,  of  course,  attended 
to  whatever  has  come  in  the  regular  line  of  duty.  But  every 
member  must  answer  the  question  after  an  investigation  of 
his  own  personal  discharge  of  duty.  The  Mason  has  no  right 
to  wait  for  opportunity  to  force  itself  upon  him  ;  he  has  no 
right  to  fold  his  arms  and  slumber  until  informed  through 
official  channels  that  his  kindly  ministrations  are  needed. 
Human  life  is  crowded  with  opportunities  for  the  Mason  to 
show  the  world  that  the  brightest  banner  which  casts  a 
shadow  among  the  living  is  the  banner  of  Masonry,  and  that 
the  Masonic  fraternity  is  broad  with  sympathy  and  aglow 
with  fraternal  love.  While  the  vigor  of  manhood  is  ours, 
fidelity  to  the  principles  of  Masonry  will  burst  the  buds  and 
bloom  all  along  our  pathway;  and  when  at  last  we  lie  down  to 
sleep  with  the  millions  who  have  lived  ;ind  labored  and  died 
in  the  life  and  light  of  .Masonic  truth,  our  living  and  our 
dying  will  give  emphasis  to  the  words  of  our  ancient  breth- 
ren :  "  May  we  so  live,  that  when  we  come  to  die  we  may  lay 
down  in  our  graves  as  one  who  composes  himself  to  sleep, 
that  we  may  be  worthy  of  a  remembrance  in  the  memoria  of 
man." 

To  the  enjoyment  of  the  splendors  of  such  a  picture  as 
this,  to  a  realization  of  the  significance  of  this  social,  frater- 
nal, moral  fabric,  nature,  with  the  influences  of  the  centu- 
ries, and  to  the  responsibilities  and  ultimate  reward  of  such  a 
magnificent  work  among  men,  1  bid  you,  who,  during  the 
past  two  years,  have  been  admitted  to  these  sacred,  iqilifting 
mysteries  and  to  this  temple  of  truth,  a  cordial  welcome. 
Like  a  rainbow,  with  its  blended  beauties,  arching  the  world 
with  promise,  Masonry  will  always  be  attractive  to  your 
vision  and  intellect,  and  will  span  and  fill  your  souls  with 
a  bow  of  delightful  promise  for  the  future.  As  you  delve  into 
its  truths  and  uncover  its  beauties,  an  eagerness  to  see  more 
and  know  more  will  fill  the  heart  and  lead  you  to  a  kindly 
light,  and  mellowed  by  its  influence,  and  with  virtues  devel- 


lilOGRAPlllCAI.  J)/C770\.lh-y  .IX.n  I'ORTIiAlT  GAU.ERV. 


395 


upcd  and  strcriijthencd  by  its  power,  you  will  at  last  reap  the 
Mason's  reward  of  immortality,  the  better  and  brighter  and 
happier  for  having  been  a  part  of  this  beautiful  auxiliary  to 
the  pnicticc  of  religion. 

As  I  welcome  you  to-night ;  as  I  realize  to  what  grandeur  I 
bid  you  come  ;  as  I  contemplate  the  holy  mission  of  Masonry 
m  the  world  ;  as  I  feel  the  warmth  of  the  mutual  love  that 
Hows  from  these  hearts  and  makes  this  lodgeroom  such  a 
delightful  retreat,  I  join  with  you,  and  with  Masonry  all  over 
the  earth,  in  a  chant  or  praise  to  God  for  His  mercies,  and 
feel  that  the  soul  is  bathing  in  a  Hood  of  light  and  joy — and 
yet  across  the  brightness  of  the  hour  there  streams  a  shadow- 
that  chills  and  saddens.  We  are  not  all  here  to-night ;  there 
are  vacant  chairs  that,  like  the  withered  Hower  in  the  midst 
of  bloom,  breaks  the  blending  of  its  harmonies  and  touches 
life  with  the  skeleton  linger  of  decay.  V^oices,  once  com- 
manding and  melodious,  rich  in  tone  of  sympathy  and  elo- 
quent in  expression  of  truth,  have  been  hushed,  and  only 
their  sweet,  inspiring  echo  reaches  our  ear.  In  yonder 
cemetery  are  tombs  that  make  it  and  eternity  nearer  and 
dearer  to  our  hearts.  But  while  we  will  tread  softly  by  the 
graves  of  our  departed  comrades,  and  watch  the  snows  that 
fall  and  flowers  that  bloom  U(M)n  them,  with  tears  of  bereave- 
ment, we  will  rejoice  that  .Masonrj-  had  such  ornaments,  and 
that  what  is  our  loss  is  their  eternal  gain,  and  emulating 
their  example,  we  will  press  forward  and  endeavor  to  give,  by 
the  purity  of  our  lives,  additional  luster  to  the  order  which 
they  loved  and  ser\ed  and  honored. 

As  it  has  not  been  deemed  practicable  to  hold  a  lodge  of 
sorrow,  this  seems  a  fitting  place  to  again  record  the  names 
of  our  dead. 

[The  names  of  the  dead  were  then  read  by  F.  M.  Ram- 
say. J 

[Prayer  by  Dr.  DeWilt.j 

We  are  all  born  to  die.  We  begin  to  live,  and  with  the 
hnit  breath  that  tells  of  life  we  begin  to  die.  The  pendulum 
swings  back  and  forth  marking  the  steady  flght  of  the  mo- 
ments. An  American  orator  of  distinction  has  said  that  the 
tickmg  of  the  clock  is  the  blended  music  about  the  cradle 
and  the  dirge  alxiut  the  grave.  Birth,  death,  is  the  language 
of  the  time-piece  on  the  mantel.  Amidst  the  laughing  glow 
of  the  morning's  blushes  and  the  soft  shadows  of  the  evening 
twilight,  amidst  the  bloom  and  fragrance  of  springtime  and 
the  solemn  slumber  of  the  winter,  over  the  altar  and  the  bier, 
the  pendulun)  swings  with  the  same  solemn  steadiness,  the 
clock  ticks  olf  the  seconds,  time  moves  swiftly  into  the  past 
and  we  move  swiftly  towards  an  eternal  sleep.    And  decay. 


so  univers;il  and  so  relentless,  will  yet  fasten  itself  upon  the 
clock  whose  ticking  is  so  full  of  solemn,  elot|uent  suggestivc- 
ness.  The  clock  will  not  always  tick,  the  pendulum  will  not 
always  swing.  By  and  by,  we  shall  listen  for  the  tick- 
ing, but  the  clock  will  speak  not.  Like  the  heart  of  the 
deati,  the  pendului\i  will  sleep — sleep  in  wakeless  slumber; 
like  the  tomb,  the  old  clock  will  be  speechless  and  the  abode 
of  unending  silence  ;  like  the  stringless  harp  upon  the  wall, 
its  music  will  be  hushed — hushed  forever.  But  the  flight  of 
time  will  go  on  just  the  same.  It  w-ill  come  with  its  gray 
hairs  and  scatter  them  through  the  raven  locks  of  youth, 
with  its  yawning  graves  and  its  caskets,  its  funeral  trains  and 
its  tear-floods,  its  disappointments  and  its  heartaches. 

Dr.  McFatrich  is  a  member  of  the  Indiana  and 
Acacia  Clubs,  and  Chicago  Athletic  A.ssociation. 

Ho  was  married,  October,  1885,  ^o  Miss  Vesta 
R.  Putman,  of  Chicago.  They  have  two  bright 
little  girls — Vesta  and  Florence. 

A  splendid  physical  development  supports  the 
activity  of  an  active  brain  and  an  unusual  force 
of  character;  until  that  breaks — which  is  not 
likely  for  many  years — Ur.  McFatrich  will  con- 
tinue to  occupy  a  conspicuous  position  in  his 
profession,  as  a  student  of  science,  as  a  man  who, 
in  his  fraternal  alliances,  has  the  best  interests  of 
humanity  at  heart. 

In  every  position  in  his  eventful  life,  which  he 
has  been  called  to  fill.  Dr.  McFatrich  has  been 
successful  in  the  highest  sense  ;  in  his  profession, 
upright,  reliable  and  honorable.  In  all  places  and 
under  all  circumstances  he  is  loyal  to  truth,  honor 
and  right,  ju.stly  valuing  his  own  self-respect  and 
the  deserved  esteem  of  his  fellow-men  as  infi- 
nitely more  valuable  than  wealth,  fame  or  position. 
In  those  finer  traits  of  character  which  combine 
to  form  what  we  term  friendship,  which  endear 
and  attach  man  to  man  in  bonds  which  nothing 
but  the  stain  of  dishonor  can  sever,  which  trimnph 
over  disaster  and  misfortinie  and  shine  brightest 
in  the  hour  of  adversity,  he  is  royally  endowed. 


(.ORDON    W.    ALLKN. 


ALIU  KN,  N.  V. 


Tl  11-^    subject    of   this   sketch    is   one    of   the  Railway  ComiKiny  and  a  director  of  the  Cayuga 

commissioners-at-large  of    the    World's    Co-  County  National  Bank  of  Auburn.     He  has  had 

lumbian  F.\position.    He  is  a  man  of  great  execu-  extensive    business    relations    with    many    of    the 

live  ability  and  is  the  principal  man  in  the  great  leading  railroads  of  the  country  for  many  years, 

reaper  establishment  of  D.   M.  Osborne  &  Com-  and   is  on    intiinate   terms  with   railroad   officials 

pany.     He  is  also  pre.sident  of  the  Auburn  Street  from    the    Atlantic    to    the    Pacific.      He    is    pre- 


396 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


eminently  a  man  of  affairs  and  represents  a  wide 
range  of  interests.  He  was  formerly  a  resident  of 
Chicago,  and  during  recent  years  has  held  large 
real  estate  interests  tlurc.  Among  his  confi- 
dential advisers  is  tlic  Honorable  Chauncey  M. 
Depew. 

Although  he  is  in  no  sense  a  ])olitician,  Mr. 
Allen  is  an  uncompromising  Republican,  and 
glories  in  the  success  of  his  party. 

His  business  career  has  been  eminently  suc- 
cessful  and   he    numbers   among    his    friends  and 


accjuaintances  many  of  the  i)rominent  men  of  our 
country.  He  was  appointed  one  of  the  com- 
mi.ssioners-at-large  of  the  World's  Columbian 
E.xposition,  to  be  held  at  Chicago  in  1893.  His 
splendid  abilities,  successful  achievements,  cul- 
tivated tastes  and  wide  range  of  experience,  all 
serve  as  a  most  admirable  equipment  for  the 
duties  of  his  important  ofTice  and  make  him  the 
peer  of  his  distinguished  associates,  to  whom  is 
intrusted  the  work  of  carrying  to  a  successful 
issue  this  enormous,  world-wide  enterprise. 


T.  W.   HARVEY, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


TURT.INGTON  WALKER  HARVEY  was 
born  at  Siloam,  New  York  Stare,  March 
10,  1835,  to  Johnson  and  Paulina  (Walker) 
Harvey.  His  father  was  a  farmer  in  early  life, 
but  later  worked  at  carpentering,  at  Durhamville, 
New  York.  About  1851  he  established  a  sash, 
door  and  blind  factory  at  Oneida,  New  York, 
and  in  1866  removed  to  Sandwich,  Illinois,  where 
he  died  in  1880.  His  widow  died  in  iSgo.  Our 
subject's  educational  advantages  were  limited. 
From  his  eleventh  to  his  fourteenth  \-ear  he  was 
employed  in  a  store  at  Durhamville.  After  that 
he  learned  the  carpenter's  trade,  working  with  his 
father,  and  "  between  times  "  attended  the  public 
schools.  After  his  father  removed  to  Oneida,  he 
attended  the  Oneida  Academy  a  short  time,  but 
spent  most  of  his  time  in  the  factory,  and  at  the 
age  of  nineteen  had  mastered  the  .sash,  door  and 
blind  business.  That  was  in  1854.  Removing  to 
Chicago,  which  was  then  coming  into  prominence, 
he  first  secured  a  position  as  foreman  of  a  small 
.sash,  blind  and  tlcior  factor}-.  He  next  filled  a 
similar  position  in  the  same  line  of  business  with 
Messrs.  Abbott  &  Kingman  and  retained  it  five 
years,  and  during  that  time  familiarized  himself 
with  the  lumber  interests  and  trade  throughout 
the  Northwest. 

In  1859  he  joined  Mr.  Tcter  H.  Lamb,  and 
established  a  planing-mill  and  lumber-yard;  two 
years  later  they  were  obliged  to  enlarge  their 
plant  to  meet  the  demands  of  their  constantly 
growing  trade.  In  1865  Mr.  Harvey  bought  Mr. 
Lamb's  interest   in  the  business,  which  continued 


to  grow  beyond  the  capacity  of  the  increased 
facilities  of  1869.  It  was  then  that  he  moved  his 
business  to  Twenty-second  and  Morgan  streets, 
then  the  southern  limits  of  the  city,  where  he 
bought  land  and  put  up  the  first  fire-proof  builil- 
ing  erected  in  Chicago  for  a  planing-mill.  He  also 
bought  and  built  extensive  docks.  This  was  the 
beginning  of  that  which  afterwards  came  to  be  the 
largest  lumber  business  in  the  United  States, 
Mr.  Harvey  owning  and  operating  lumber-mills 
at  Menominee  and  Muskegon,  Michigan,  until 
1883,  when  the  T.  W.  Harvey  Lumber  Company 
succeeded  to  the  business,  which  continues  up  to 
this  time. 

.\t  one  time  his  Chicago  yards  handled  one 
luiiulred  and  twenty-five  million  feet  of  lumber 
.mnually.  In  1878  Mr.  Harvey  furnished  the 
money  to  build  the  first  logging-railroad  in  the 
United  States.  It  connected  Lake  George  with 
the  Muskegon  River,  and  was  for  transferring  his 
logs  from  the  lumber-camps  to  the  Mu.skegon 
River,  where  they  could  float  to  the  mills  at  the 
mouth  of  the  river.  In  1883  Mr.  Harvey,  asso- 
ciating with  himself  a  number  of  his  worth\- 
employes,  organized  the  T.  W.  Harvey  Lumber 
Companv,  and  has  been  at  its  head  as  president 
ever  since,  l^ul  Mr.  Harvey  has  not  confined  his 
attention  to  the  lumber  interests.  In  189O  he  laid 
out  the  town  of  Harvey,  a  suburb  of  Chicago, 
where  are  located  the  works  of  the  Harvey  Steel 
Car  Company,  and  twelve  other  manufactories. 
The  town  is  now  owned  by  the  Harvey  Steel  Car 
Company  and  the    Harvey   Land  Association,  of 


BiooRAPHiCAi.  nicrro.x.tRv  A.\n  roRTRAir  cai.li'.ry. 


399 


which  he  owns  the  most  of  the  stock,  and  is  tlic 
president  of  both  companies. 

He  is  also  a  director  of  tlie  Metroi)olitan  Na- 
tional Hank",  and  of  the  American  Trust  and  Sav- 
ings Bank,  of  Chicago.  In  1882  he  bought  two 
thousand  acres  of  land  in  Eastern  Nebraska, 
which  is  known  as  "  Turlington  "  and  is  one  of  the 
finest  stock  farms  in  the  Northwest. 

"  Hlack  I'rince,  of  Turlington,"  a  steer  who  car- 
ried off  nearly  three  thousand  dollars  in  prizes  in 
one  year,  was  bred  and  raised  on  this  farm. 

Mr.  Harvey  has  always  shown  commendable 
public-spiritediiessand  has  been  a  leader  in  benevo- 
lent and  charitable  work.  His  services  during 
and  after  the  great  fire  of  1871  can  never  be  over- 
estimated :  he  was  then  on  the  executive  com- 
mittee of  the  Chicago  Relief  and  Aid  Society, 
and  was  selected  to  serve  on  the  Shelter  commit- 
tee. The  chairman  of  that  committee  was  unable 
to  act,  and  his  duties  fell  to  Mr.  Harvey.  These 
so  completely  occupied  his  time  that  he  gave  to 
his  own  business  but  one  hour  during  the  six 
months  following  the  fire.  The  winter  of  1871-72 
was  a  severe  one,  and  but  for  the  timely  help 
of  this  society,  many  must  have  perished  from 
hunger  and  exposure.  One  hundred  thousand 
people  were  homeless.  For  a  portion,  temporary 
barracks  were  provided,  but  the  majority  were 
comfortably  housed.  Many  owned  their  lots  or 
had  leases  of  them  :  for  such,  houses  ready  for 
occupancy  were  furnished.  These  houses  cost 
one  hundred  and  twenty-five  dollars  each  ;  and  in 
one  month,  from  October  i8th  to  November  17th, 
fifty-two  hundred  and  twenty-six  houses  were 
erected,  which  number  was  afterwards  increased 
to  more  than  ei<,rht  thousand.  Foreseeing  that 
the  price  of  the  lumber  must  advance,  on  account 
of  the  millions  of  feet  destroyed  in  Chicago,  and 
by  the  extensive  forest  fires  in  Michigan  and  Wis- 
consin, which  raged  in  the  fall  of  1S71,  Mr. 
Harvey  bought  all  he  could  get  at  fourteen  dol- 
lars per  thousand  feet.  The  price  went  up  to 
twenty  dollars  per  thousand :  so  that  on  the 
thirty-five  million  feet  of  lumber  used  by  the 
shelter  committee,  there  was  a  saving  of  mure 
than  two  hundred  thousand  dollars  to  the  Relief 
I'und. 

During  the  same  winter  a  coal  famine  prevailed 
in  many  parts  of  Chicago,  and  under  the  personal 
supervision  of  Mr.   Harvey,   teams   and    wagons 


were  purchased,  and  although  many  streets  in 
destitute  parts  of  the  city  were  filled  with  eighteen 
inches  of  snow,  seven  hundred  tons  of  coal  were 
delivered  to  the  freezing  people  in  the  outskirts 
in  one  day.  These  are  given  as  illustrations  of 
the  more  public  of  Mr.  Harvey's  acts  of  benevo- 
lence. Others  might  be  given,  for  it  is  such  work 
as  that  of  the  Chicago  Relief  and  Aid  Society 
that  he  delights  in,  whose  charities  have  bright- 
ened many  a  cheerless  home,  lifted  the  load  from 
many  a  burdened  heart,  and  brought  gladness  to 
many  a  soul  ready  to  despair. 

For  many  years  Mr.  Harvey  has  been  an  aggres- 
sive spirit  in  religious  work,  and  wherever  known 
is  esteemed  for  his  manly,  Christian  character.  He 
was  president  of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Asso- 
ciation, of  Chicago,  from  1871  to  1873,  and  again 
from  187610  1879.  lie  is  also  vice-president  of 
the  Chicago  Evangelistic  Society,  whose  object  is 
the  promotion  of  evangelistic  work  and  Bible 
studj-.  The  head  of  this  society  is  Mr.  Dwight 
L.  Moody,  in  whose  absence  Mr.  Harvey  is  called 
to  act  as  executive.  In  1876  he  was  chairman  of 
the  executive  committee,  which  had  in  charge  the 
erection  of  the  "  Moody  Tabernacle  "  on  Monroe 
street. 

He  is  an  earnest  Sunday-school  worker,  and  for 
more  than  a  quarter  of  a  century  has  been  super- 
intendent of  a  Sunday-school  in  Chicago. 

Withal,  Mr.  Harvey  is  a  man  of  simple  habits, 
domestic  tastes,  and  fond  of  home,  and  is  never 
happier  than  in  the  midst  of  the  joys  of  his  own 
fireside.  His  is  a  refined,  attractive  Christian 
home,  whose  heart-cheering  influence  is  felt  by  all 
who  come  within  its  range,  and  who.se  inmates 
delight  in  dispensing  generous  hospitality. 

In  IS 59  Mr.  Harvey  married  Miss  Marie  Hard- 
man,  of  Louisville,  Kentucky,  whose  decease  oc- 
curred in  1870.  Their  four  sons,  Charles  A.,  John 
R.,  George  L.,  and  Robert  H.  still  survive.  Mr. 
Harvey  married  Miss  P.elle  S.  Badger,  of  Chicago, 
May  28th,  1873,  and  by  her  has  three  sons  and 
three  daughters.  Mrs.  Harvey  is  an  accomplished 
woman  of  literary  tastes  and  culture,  and  devoted 
to  her  family,  and  in  hearty  .sympathy  with  her 
husband  in  his  good  work.s.  She  presides  with 
tlignity  and  grace  over  their  luxurious  home,  and 
next  to  her  domestic  duties  prizes  the  privilege 
she  enjoys  of  engaging  in  charitable  and  philan- 
thropic work. 


400 


BIOGKAI'HICAL  DICTIONARY  A.\/>  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


When  measured  by  what  lie  is,  and  by  what   he      truest  and   best  sense  of  the  words,   a  successful 
lias  done,  Mr.  Harvej-  may  be  pronounced,  in  the      man. 


EDWIN    OSCAR    GALE, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


EDWIN  OSCAR  GALE,  the  eldest  son  of 
Abram  and  Sarah  (Silloway)Gale,  who  were 
natives  of  Massachusetts,  was  born  in  New  Y_ork 
City  on  the  7th  of  May,  1832.  His  family  left 
New  York  for  Chicago  April  20,  1835,  going  by 
boat  up  the  Hudson  to  Albany,  canal  to  Buffalo, 
and  boat  to  Chicago,  which  was  reached  Friday 
morning.  May  25. 

Chicago  having  no  harbor  at  that  time,  pas- 
sengers and  freight  were  landed  by  lighters.  Mrs. 
Gale,  who  had  brought  a  stock  of  millinery  with 
her,  opened  on  Lake  street  the  first  establish- 
ment of  the  kind  in  the  town.  Chicago  was  then 
a  trading-post  with  less  than  one  thousand  w  hite 
people  and  ten  thousand  Indians.  The  following 
year  the  Indians  received  their  last  payment  and 
were  transferred  to  Kansas.  The  fort  (Dearborn) 
was  a  military  post,  and  while  occupied  as  such, 
the  subject  of  this  sketch  attended  school  in  the 
barracks.  He  has  a  vivid  recollection  of  the 
Indians  and  soldiers,  while  the  old  fort  is  indelibly 
impressed  upon  his  memory.  His  father  the  fol- 
lowing year  purchased  from  the  government  the 
half-section  of  land  now  known  as  Galewood, 
which  is  still  mostly  held  by  the  family.  There 
Edwin  spent  his  holidays.  Chicago,  in  early 
days,  offered  few  educational  advantages;  but 
young  Gale  made  good  use  of  his  ojiportunities, 
and  having  a  decidedly  literary  tendency  he  has 
been  steadily  adding  to  his  information,  develop- 
ing his  taste  for  the  classics  ami  high  order  of 
literature.  Nor  is  he  a  reader  merely,  but  is  an 
easy  writer,  and  when  interested  in  his  subject 
an  earnest  and  fluent  speaker,  while  his  poetic 
temperament  has  expressed  itself  in  about  four 
hundred  pages  of  poems,  many  of  which  have 
been  published  in  the  Chicago  Journal  and  sev- 
eral magazines.  He  has  delivered  a  number  of 
orations,  lectures  and  poems  on  special  occasions, 
but  shrinks  from  notoriety.  When  a  young  man 
he  was  four  years  prominently  connected  with 
the  Chicago  Lyceum,  where  he  received  from  his 


fellow-member.  Colonel  Mulligan,  the  title  of 
"  The  Lisle  Smith  of  the  Lyceum."  Although 
having  a  strong  predilection  for  writing  and  speak- 
ing, Mr.  Gale  became  a  druggist  in  order  that  he 
might  engage  in  that  business  with  his  brother 
William.  He  served  one  year  with  Mr.  Henry 
Bowman,  then  was  in  the  employ  of  Messrs.  J.  H. 
Reed  &  Co.  at  144  Lake  street,  four  years,  till 
1856.  His  services  were  so  satisfactory  to  the 
house,  then  the  leading  one  in  the  West,  that  he 
was  offered  a  partnership,  but,  while  his  relations 
w'ith  his  employers  were  most  friendly  and  the 
offer  most  tempting,  he  declined  it,  preferring  to 
be  the  senior  partner  in  a  small  firm  rather  than 
the  junior  in  a  large  one.  He  felt  that  if  he  went 
into  business  on  his  own  account  he  would  be 
the  architect  of  his  own  fortune,  and  the  responsi- 
bilities would  develop  his  character  and  abilities 
if  he  had  any.  That  he  had  character  and  ability 
is  evinced  b\-  his  successful  business  career  of 
thirty-five  years.  His  father  had  built,  in  1847, 
the  first  brick  store  erected  on  Randolph  street, 
at  number  202,  which  was  occupied  by  a  German 
druggist  named  George  Bormann,  with  whom  the 
younger  Gale  served  his  time.  In  January,  1856, 
he  sold  out  to  the  young  man,  who  refurnished 
the  store  antl  continued  in  business  under  the 
name  of  Gale  Brothers,  until  1865.  when 
William,  who  had  served  through  the  war,  sold 
out  to  him.  lie  soon  afterward  admitted  to  the 
business,  as  a  partner,  Mr.  William  F.  Blocki,  who 
was  then  his  clerk,  and  subsequently  he  took  into 
the  firm  Mr.  J.  M.  Baker,  an  employe,  and  his 
own  son,  Walter  H.  Gale,  who  gives  his  attention 
principally  to  the  branch  stores  at  Austin  and 
Oak  Park.  In  the  latter  place  Mr.  Gale  has 
resided  since  1.S61,  and  has  an  ideal  home. 
The  house  was  built  and  occupied  by  Mr.  Gale 
several  years  before  the  great  fire,  and  he 
declined  a  very  tempting  offer,  immediately  after 
that  calamity,  to  rent  it  to  a  wealthy  Chicago 
gentleman  whose  residence    had  been  destroyed. 


BlOuK.irHlCAL  PICTIOXAKV    IXD  rORTKAIT  GALLERY. 


403 


His  wife  was  anxious  to  have  liini  do  so,  stating 
that  the  difTcrcMice  in  rent  between  the  homestead 
and  a  house  she  desired  to  live  in  would  support 
the  family.  Such  noble  devotion  was  appreciated 
by  the  husband,  who  would  not  listen  to  the 
proposition,  though  he  had  lost  his  entire 
business  and  was  burdened  with  a  thirty- 
thousand  dollar  de'bt,  assumed  for  real  estate  a 
few  days  before  the  fire.  The  plucky  firm  had  a 
store  rented  at  No.  57  West  Raiulolph  street 
before  eight  o'clock  Monday  morning,  and  were 
doing  business  Wednesday  of  that  week.  Here 
they  remained  until  the  burnt  district  was  rebuilt. 
Julia  E.  Gale,  tue  Hart,  who  for  thirty-four 
years  has  been  the  happy  wife  of  her  devoted 
husband,  was  born  in  New  York  State,  Septem- 
ber 5,  1833.  but  from  early  childhood  until  her 
marriage  lived  near  Relvidere,  Illinois.  There 
was  never  a  more  perfect  union  ;  an  unkind  word 
has  never  passed  between  them  ;  the  same  gentle 
courtesies  and  kind  attentions  are  shown  each 
other  as  are  expected  from  young  lovers  ;  in  fact, 
it  is  a  love  match  that  keeps  on  burning,  and 
some  of  Mr.  Gale's  finest  poems  have  been  sug- 
gested by  little  home  incidents  or  anniversaries. 
The  rebrushing  of  his  coat  suggested  the  follow- 
ing: 

She  was  brushing  my  coat,  that  wife  of  mine, 
A  task  I  thought  I  had  perfectly  done; 

She  said,  as  she  saw  the  particles  fine 
Float  in  its  beams:  "Turn  your  face  to  the  sun.'' 

I  placed  n>y  hands  on  her  soft,  wavy  hair, 
I,  smiling,  gazed  in  her  eyes  of  blue 

And  replied,  as  I  kissed  her  forehead  fair, 
"1  do,  dear  wife,  I  am  looking  at  you." 

One  Sunday  morning  as  he  was  going  to  the 
store  he  stooped  to  kiss  his  wife  as  is  his  invari- 
able custom  in  parting  or  meeting,  when  she. 
remarked:  "  Love  must  be  blind,  or  you  would 
not  think  so  much  of  your  old,  faded  wife." 
That  little  remark  suggested  the  following  poem  : 

IS   LOVK   BLIND  .' 

Think  you  my  love  for  thee  the  kind 

That  |K>ets  spoke  of  long  .igo. 
When  they  decLired  that  "I-ove  is  blind," 

Hence  I  must  be.  in  loving  you? 
Is  my  lovi-  blind,  when  1  can  see 

So  much  to  love  in  thy  dear  face. 
And  know  ihese  years,  thy  love  for  me, 

With  mine  for  thee  has  kept  ap.icc  ? 

Is  my  love  blind,  when  thy  true  life, 
A  constant  round  of  duty  done, 


I  see  in  thee  the  dearest  wife 
That  ever  blessed  a  mortal's  home  ? 

Where  precepts  w  ith  examples  wove. 
Our  children  learning  lx)th  from  thee, 

Are  comments  on  a  mother's  love, 
In  making  life  what  it  should  be? 

Then  speak  no  more  of  beauty  fled, 

Nor  charms  once  thine  now  passed  away  ; 
Whatso  I  loved  when  we  were  wed, 

In  thee,  dear  wife,  defies  decay. 
The  bud  that  blossoms  on  the  tree, 

Loading  the  air  with  perfume  sweet, 
Must  changed  become,  ere  we  can  see, 

On  bending  bough  the  ripened  fruit. 

But  if  perchance  thy  face  is  thin. 

Thy  cheeks  outgrown  their  early  bloom. 
And  in  thy  tresses  now  and  then 

A  silver  thread  runs  through  the  loom, 
I  prize  no  less  these  marks  of  time, 

Kor  1  am  older  growing  too  ; 
And  well  1  know  these  locks  of  mine 

Prove  I  am  older  still  than  you. 

I've  had  of  life  its  blessings  true, 

And  for  them  all  most  grateful  feel; 
The  source  of  most  I  trace  to  you. 

And  in  your  love  enjoy  them  still. 
If  love  be  blind,  we'll  bless  the  boy 

Who  blindly  led  us  in  his  fold. 
And  fills  our  hearts  with  so  much  joy. 

We  quite  forget  we're  growing  old. 

A  home  permeated  by  such  mutual  love  cannot 
but  be  a  happy  one. 

Mr.  Gale's  success  as  a  business  man  has  per- 
mitted him  to  gratify  his  promptings  to  kind  acts 
and  benevolent  deeds,  which  are  done  in  such  a 
manner  as  to  win  the  hearts  of  those  who  are  the 
recipients  of  his  favors.  Of  his  firm  it  is  said  that 
no  one  ever  failed  to  get  prescriptions  filled  be- 
cause they  could  not  pay  for  them.  He  believes 
that  to  be  happy  one  .should  be  employed  ;  that  it 
should  be  the  aim  of  a  business  man  to  be  the 
master  of  his  business,  not  a  slave  to  it,  delega- 
ting to  others  such  work  as  they  have  capacity  to 
succe.ssfully  carry  on,  never  aiming  to  amass  a  for- 
tune and  then  retire  from  business  to  enjoy  life — 
as  the  loss  of  health  and  comfort  this  course  is 
usually  attended  with  robs  life  of  its  charms  and 
opportunities;  while  the  penurious  disposition  it 
engenders  takes  from  noble  deeds  of  their  true 
enjoyment  and  mars  the  pleasure  that  should  go 
hand  in  hand  with  a  wise  and  noble  use  of 
money — that  happiness  is  not  secured  by  amas.s- 
ing  wealth,  but  in  using  it  for  the  good  of  others. 

Mr.  Gale,  like  his  father  before   him,   is  a   Uni- 


404 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


vcrsalist,  and  is  one  of  tlic  most  liberal  supporters 
of  Unity  Church,  at  Oak  i'ark.  A  Republican 
in  politics,  he  votes  that  ticket  unless  he  is  satis- 
fied that  an  opposin'j  candidate  would  be  a  better 
officer,  when  lie  usually  indorses  him.  Kxce])t- 
ing  holding  tlie  position  of  school  director  for 
twelve  years  and  school  trustee  three  years,  lie 
has  uniformly  declined  office. 

In  personal  appearance  Mr.  Gale  is  five  feet, 
fi\e  and  a  half  inches  tall,  and  rather  stout  ;  has 
light  complexion,  blue  eyes,  dark-brown,  curly 
hair,  well  mixed  with  gray,  and,  as  a  commentary 


upon  the  hcalthfulness  of  Chicago,  he  says  he  was 
never  sick  a  day  in  his  life.  He  is  of  strictly  tem- 
perate habits  antl  has  a  cheerful  disposition. 

Of  his  six  sons,  the  eldest,  Walter  H.,  is  one  of 
his  partners.  E.  Vincent,  a  practical  tanner,  is  in 
the  enii)loy  of  W.  \.  Eisendrath  &  Co.  Both  of 
these  arc  married.  Thomas  H.,  who  graduated  at 
the  University  of  Michigan  in  1888,  is  in  the  real 
estate  business,  .\bram  is  learning  business  with 
his  father,  while  the  two  younger,  Greenleaf  Whit- 
tier  and  Oliver  M.,  aged  respectively  fifteen  and 
thirteen,  are  still  attending  school  at  Oak  Park. 


JAMES    HOBART    MOORE, 


CHICA(;0,    ILL. 


IN  the  little  town  of  Berkshire,  Tioga  county. 
New  York,  the  subject  of  this  biography  was 
born,  June  14,  1852,  to  Nathaniel  V.  antl  Rachel 
A.  Moore,  being  the  second  of  a  family  of  two 
children,  lie  received  an  academical  education 
at  the  Cortland  Academy,  Homer,  N.  Y.,  and  at 
the  age  of  nineteen  entered  the  banking  office  of 
N.  F.  Moore,  his  father,  at  Greene,  N.  Y. 

In  1 87 1  he  entered  the  service  of  the  Susque- 
hanna Bank,  at  Binghamton,  N.  Y.,  where  he  re- 
mained with  much  credit  to  himself  for  two  \ears, 
when  he  determined  to  cast  his  lot  in  Chicago, 
removing  to  that  city  in  1873.  There  he  occu- 
pied positions  of  trust  with  se\cral  institutions 
until  1878,  when  he  took  up  the  stud}-  of  law  in 
the  office  of  Small  i^  Moore,  which  firm  was  com- 
posed of  Edward  A.  .Small,  formerly  of  Galena, 
111.,  and  William  II.  Moore,  the  latter  an  elder 
brother.  Having  pursued  his  studies  successfully, 
in  due  time  he  was  admitted  to  the  bar,  and  on 
the  death  of  Mr.  Small,  in  1881,  he  entered  into 
jiartnership  with  his  brotlier,  under  the  style  of 
\V.  11.  &  J.  II.  Mnnre.to  which  firm  Mr.  William 
A.  Purcell  was  subsequently  added.  While  this 
firm  has  enjoyed  an  extensive  and  increasing  gen- 
eral practice,  it  has  been  largely  occupied  in  or- 
ganizing corporative  enterprises,  the  princii>al 
among  them  being  the  Frazer  Lubricator  Co.,  the 
Price  Baking  Powder  Co.,  the  Diamond  Match 
Co.,  the  American  Strawboard  Co.,  and  the  New- 
York  Biscuit  Co.,  of  which  latter  Mr.  James 
M.   Moore   is   second   vice-president.      He   is  also 


second  vice-president  of  the  Diamond  Match 
Co.,  and  a  director  or  stockhokicr  in  each  of 
the  other  com]ianies  named.  Mr.  Moore's  firm 
also  numbers  among  its  clients  numerous  other 
large  and  well-known  Chicago  corporations  and 
business  firms. 

Mr.  Moore  is  a  Democrat,  though  not  acti\ely 
participating  in  political  affairs.  In  his  profession 
Mr.  Moore  is  primarily  a  counsellor,  having  a 
keen  legal  mind  and  strong  common  sense,  and  as 
such  he  stands  in  high  repute  among  his  associates 
anil  the  business  public.  The  ready  success  at- 
tending his  efforts  in  placing  large  amounts  of 
capital  stock  for  the  several  corporations  above 
named  annnig  the  leading  financial  institutions  of 
Chicago,  attest  their  confidence  alike  in  his  judg- 
ment and  integrity. 

He  is  a  man  of  unusually  clear  perception,  and 
a  good  reader  of  men.  ^^'hile  he  is  affable  and 
ap])roachable  to  a  degree,  he  at  the  same  time 
always  maintains  a  becoming  reserve  and  dignity. 

Mr.  Moore  is  a  man  of  most  generous  disposi- 
tion, and  more  than  one  young  man  in  Chicago 
now  prospering  and  on  the  road  to  fame  and  for- 
tune owes  his  condition  to  Mr.  Moore's  personal 
active  efforts  in  his  behalf  when  most  in  need  of 
a  heli)ing  frientl. 

"  l<"iilelity  to  his  friends"  is  a  marked  trait  in 
Mr.  Mcjore's  character.  While  he  has  risen  b\- 
his  own  merits  to  affluence,  his  earlier  as  well  as 
later  friends  have  retained  their  places  in  his  affec- 
tions.     He  is  in  the  fullest  sense  a  self-made  man. 


niouiiArmcAi.  nicrioxARY  axp  j'ortka/t  cai.i.ery. 


40/ 


As  will   be  seen  by  the  portrait  on  the  iireeeilint;  Mr.   Moore  was  married    in   Chicago,  April   26, 

page,    Mr.   Moore   is  of    a   robust    figure,    and   of  1883,  to  Lora  Josephine  Small,  daughter  of  the 

about  the  average  height.  late    Edward    A.    Small,   a  prominent   lawyer   to 

Mr.  Moore  is  now  in  the  very  prime  of  life,  and  whom    reference    has   already    been    made.     The 

judging    by    his  career  thus  far,  one    need    be  no  happy  union  has  been  blessed  with   one  child,  an 

prophet  to  foretell  for  him  much  additional  honor  unusually  interesting  and  handsome  boy  of  seven 

and  prosperity.  years,  on  whom  is  lavished  much  parental  affection. 


HENRV    McKEV. 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


WISCONSIN,  like  most  of  the  other  States, 
has  contributed  its  quota  to  Chicago's 
greatness.  Not  only  has  she  contributed  the 
product  of  factory  and  field,  but  she  has  also  sent 
men  who  have  achieved  success  in  every  industry 
and  profession.  Without  counting  the  crowd  of 
hardy  and  honest  toilers  who  people  Chicago's 
warehouses,  man  her  ships  and  run  her  factories, 
there  is  from  this  neighboring  State  a  galaxy  of 
talented  men  who  have  aided  greatly  her  pheno- 
menal growth  and  prosperity.  Prominent  among 
these  was  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  Henry 
McKey. 

He  was  born  in  Ireland  on  December  8, 
1846,  but  his  parents  immigrated  to  this  country 
and  settled  at  Janesville,  Wisconsin,  when  he  was 
less  than  a  year  old.  Henrys  was  the  eldest  son 
of  a  family  of  six.  His  father,  Edward  McKey, 
was  a  successful  merchant  and  banker,  and  could 
therefore  afford  his  children  a  liberal  education. 
Henry,  having  received  his  elementary  education 
at  the  public  s:hool,  was  sent  t<>  Racine  College, 
where  he  won  high  honor  and  was  graduated  with 
degree  of  Master  of  Arts. 

Having  a  desire  to  enter  the  legal  jjrofession, 
he  became  a  law  student  at  the  University  of 
Michigan,  where  his  course  was  marked  b_\- 
industry  and  success,  and  from  which  he  gradu- 
ated and  was  admitted  to  practice  in  1869.  He  at 
once  beg.m  the  practice  of  his  profession  and  con- 
tinued it  uninterruptedl)-  until  his  demise,  which 
occurred  in  January,  1892. 

Mr.  McKey  settled  in  Chicago  in  iSji.aml  rose 
to  a  prominent  place  at  the  Cook  county  bar.  In 
manner,  courteous  and  agreeable,  in  method,  busi- 
ness-like, and  in  everything  scrujjulously  honor- 
able, he  was  one  of  the  most  popular  men  in  his 


profession.  In  his  practice  he  gave  special  study 
and  attention  to  the  law  of  real  property  and  to 
chancery  and  probate  practice,  and  was  engaged 
in  some  of  the  most  important  litigation  that  has 
come  before  the  courts  within  the  past  twenty 
years.  He  was  painstaking  and  studious,  irre- 
proachable in  character  and  of  the  strictest  integ- 
rity. In  a  word,  he  was  a  high-minded  gentleman 
and  an  able  law\'er. 

Mr.  McKey's  political  sentiments  were  Demo- 
cratic, lie  was  liberal  and  tolerant  and  would 
not  willingly  enter  into  controversy,  but  when 
circumstances  required  him  to  give  a  reason  for 
his  political  faith  he  proved  himself  an  earnest 
and  able  exponent  thereof.  His  sincerity  and 
honesty  were  so  apparent  that  he  commanded 
the  respect  and  esteem  of  even  his  opponents. 
The  residents  of  Hyde  Park  unanimously  elected 
him  a  member  of  the  school  board  for  six  con- 
secutive years,  and  he  was  trustee  of  that  town  at 
the  time  of  its  annexation  to  Chicago.  The  bar, 
on  the  occasion  of  tlic  recent  election,  selected 
him  as  a  candiilate  f(ir  the  Circuit  Court  bench  and 
their  choice  was  unanimously  indorsed  by  the 
Democratic  convention.  Mr.  McKey  sought  no 
office  outside  his  profession,  and  although  many 
were  within  his  reach  he  in\ariably  declined  them. 
As  a  public  speaker,  Mr.  McKey  was  polisheii. 
fluent  and  logical;  his  statement  of  facts  simple, 
methodical  and  highlj'  interesting;  his  argument 
brief,  pl;un  and  convincing.  When  the  nature  of 
his  case  warranted,  or  an  emergency  required,  his 
style  was  forceful,  fervid  and  impassioned,  and  he 
was  able  to  use  the  art  and  ornaments  of  rhetoric 
with  great  power  and  good  effect. 

On  October  25,  1876,  Mr.  McKey  married 
Miss  Adella    S.   J'arkhurst,  a  daughter  of  W.  S. 


4o8 


BIUiiRAPIIICAI.  DICTIOXARY  A.XD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Parkhurst,  Esq.,  a  prominent  lawyer  of  Rome, 
New  York.  They  had  a  liappy  and  healthy 
family  of  six  children,  and  it  was  in  his  sunny 
home,  filled  with  comfort  and  good  cheer,  that  he 
spent  his  happiest  hours.  For  he  was  a  man  of 
domestic  tastes,  who  loved  his  home,  and  it  was 
there  lie  found  a  sweet  retreat  from  the  toils  and 


anxieties  and  cares  of  business  and  professional 
life.  He  was  an  affectionate  husband  and  an  in- 
dulgent father.  His  life  was  an  honor  to  the 
legal  profession  ;  in  his  death  the  bar  of  the  city 
of  Chicago  has  sustained  a  great  loss,  and  all  who 
knew  him  cannot  but  feel  poorer  on  account  of 
his  death. 


JOHN    M.   H.   BURGETT, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


THK  subject  of  this  memoir  stands  high  at 
the  Chicago  bar,  and  is  one  of  its  ablest 
members.  He  has  a  mind  strongly  logical  and 
great  powers  of  analysis;  is  quick  to  see  the 
turning-points  of  a  case,  and  is  one  of  the  most 
formidable  antagonists  to  be  found  in  his  profes- 
sion. To  great  and  accurate  knowledge  of  the 
law  he  adds  untiring  industry  and  methods  of 
work  and  study  thoroughly  systematic.  He  has 
an  unusually  strong  memory  of  decided  cases,  and 
in  the  trial  of  causes  has  always  at  hand  well 
selected  authorities  to  sustain  his  propositions. 
Be  always  prepared  for  strength  in  the  adversary 
and  lack  of  legal  knowledge  on  the  part  of  the 
court,  has  been  a  fixed  principle  of  conduct  with 
him.  He  prepares  his  briefs  with  great  care  and 
consummate  skill.  The  Judges  of  the  Appellate 
Court  for  the  First  District  of  Illinois  have  re- 
cently paid  Mr.  Hurgctt  a  high  compliment  in 
this:  At  the  present  term  (Marcli,  iSg_M,  the 
Judges  have  stated  that  the  abstracts  and  briefs 
received  by  the  Court  from  him  excel  all  others 
received  from  the  Chicago  bar  in  form,  method  of 
arrangement,  lucidity  and  all  that  facilitates  the 
correct  understanding  of  a  case;  and  the  Judges 
expressed  a  wish  that  the  bar  might  be  formed 
into  a  school  and  instructed  by  him  in  his  method 
of  preparing  abstracts  and  briefs. 

Mr.  ]5urgett  is  a  native  of  Vermont,  and  was 
born  at  Hartland,  April  28,  1850.  lie  is  the 
third  son  of  Daniel  A.  and  Adeline  (Myron)  Bur- 
gett,  descendants  of  early  settlers  of  New  Eng- 
land. In  1S54  his  parents  removed  from  Ver- 
mont to  l'"ulton  county,  Illinois,  and  for  many 
years  have  resided  at  Lcwistown  in  such  count)-, 
where  his  father  has  owned  a  flouring  mill,  lie 
atti'ntlcd    the    public   schools   at    I'crnadotte  and 


Lewistown  in  the  county  named,  and  in  1868  en- 
tered the  University  of  Michigan,  at  Ann  Arbor, 
from  which  institution  he  was  graduated  in  1872 
with  the  degree  of  Bachelor  of  Philosophy,  con- 
ferred upon  graduates  of  the  Latin  and  Scientific 
Course.  He  entered  college  with  the  intention 
of  taking  the  degree  of  Civil  Engineer  and  nearly 
completed  the  course  of  studies  prescribed  for 
such  degree,  when  he  broadened  his  studies  and 
included  the  studies  of  the  Scientific  and  Latin 
and  Scientific  Courses.  Much  of  his  success  in 
professional  work  he  attributes  to  the  mental 
training  derived  from  his  mathematical  studies. 
On  leaving  college  he  taught  school  for  a  year  at 
Vermont,  Illinois,  and  then  read  law  in  the  office 
of  the  Hon.  R.  B.  Stevenson,  at  Lewistown. 

In  June,  1875,  Mr.  Burgett  was  admitted  to  the 
bar  by  the  Supreme  Court  of  Illinois,  and  in  the 
following  September  settled  in  Chicago,  and  en 
tered  upon  the  practice  of  his  profession.  In 
April,  1877,  he  formed  a  partnership  with  .Miner 
Smith  under  the  firm  name  of  .Smith  iK:  Hurgett. 
which  partnership  continued  until  April,  1887. 
Immediately  upon  the  dissolution  of  such  partner- 
ship he  formed  a  partnership  with  Henr\'  .S. 
Osborne  and  hVank  S.  Osborne,  under  the  firm 
name  of  Osborne  Brothers  &  Burgett.  Into  this 
firm  Henry  R.  Pebbles  and  Nelson  D.  Parkhurst 
have  since  been  admitted  as  members;  Osborne 
Brothers  &  Burgett  is  one  of  the  strongest  law- 
firms  in  Chicago,  having  a  very  large  office  prac- 
tice as  w  ell  as  doing  an  extensive  business  in  all 
the  comts,  State  and  Federal. 

Beginning  with  the  case  of  Silverman  vs.  Chase 
in  the  goth  volume  of  the  Illinois  Supreme  Court 
Reports  there  are  found  in  the  last  forty-six 
volumes  of  such   reports  and  in  the  fortj'  \-olumes 


z 


t^^  (i 


niOGRAPIIICAL  DICTIOXAKV  AXn  /'(UCTRA/T  iiAlJJlRY. 


411 


of  the  Illinois  Appellate  Court  Reports  a  larsjc  (1892)  taken  part  arc  the  cases  involving  the  title 
number  of  cases  invoking  important  interests  to  Gore's  Hotel,  Chicago,  and  its  management, 
wherein  Mr.  Hurgett  was  counsel  and  wherein  wherein  he  won  victories  worth  several  hundred 
the  positions  taken  by  him  were  almost  without  thousand  dollars  to  his  client.  His  first  case  in  the 
exception  sustained  by  the  Courts.  Stime  of  the  United  States  Supreme  Court  was  Drury  vs.  Hay- 
most  important  cases  in   which   he   has  recently  den.  in   U.S.  Reports,  which  he  argued  in  1883. 


SYLVESTER    M.   MILLARD, 


CHICAGO.    ILL. 


SYLVESTER  M.  MILLARD  was  born  Au- 
gust  24,  1839,  '"  Shiawassee  county,  Mich- 
igan. His  father  was  a  birthright  Quaker  from 
the  Quaker  stock  of  New  England,  his  grand- 
father was  a  native  of  Rhode  Island.  His 
mother's  father  was  a  Hollander  whose  pnnni- 
nence  in  the  religious  contests  between  the  Catho- 
lics and  Protestants,  drove  him  from  Holland  to 
America  in  an  early  day.  On  the  maternal  side 
the  sturdy  Holland  character  asserted  itself  in  the, 
long  life  of  the  mother  of  Mr.  Millard,  who  died 
at  the  age  of  ninety,  and  whose  brother  and  sis- 
ter died  at  the  ages  of  ninety-six  and  one  hun- 
dred years  respectively.  The  early  life  of  our 
subject  was  spent  in  a  Michigan  pioneer  settle- 
ment, where  the  comforts  of  civilization  were 
unknown  in  the  struggle  for  existence.  Until 
the  age  of  twenty  years  he  was  compelled  to 
work  on  the  farm  to  help  support  the  family. 
His  schooling  was  entirely  neglected  and  no  fa- 
cilities were  afforded  him  for  reading  or  otherwise 
improving  his  mind.  At  the  age  of  twenty  he 
commenced  his  elementary  studies  (including 
English  grammar)  at  a  boarding-school  at  Lan- 
.sing,  Michigan.  After  one  winter  he  returned  to 
the  farm  and  worked  until  the  farm  work  was 
done  in  the  fall,  when  he  returned  to  his  board- 
ing-school for  another  winter.  Having  once  ac- 
quired a  taste  for  study  he  diligently  improved 
his  time  so  that  he  was  able  to  enter  the  Agricult- 
ural College  at  Lansing.  Hy  dint  of  labor  at 
college  and  teaching  school  during  the  winter,  he 
was  enabled  to  continue  his  .studies  until  he  was 
graduated  in  1864.  In  the  early  months  of  1865, 
he  entered  the  law  office  of  Hutler  &  Cottrell, 
one  of  the  leading  law  firms  of  Milwaukee,  Wis- 
consin, where  he  remained  until  1867,  when  he 
was    admitted    to    the    bar.      Owing    to    lack    of 


means  he  was  not  able  to  locate  in  the  practice  of 
his  profession  until  late  in  the  }-ear  1868,  when 
he  settled  in  Chicago  and  commenced  the  prac- 
tice of  law.  His  first  copartnership  was  of  short 
duration  as  the  great  fire  destroyed  his  entire 
office  outfit,  and  left  him  without  books,  clients 
or  means.     He,  however,  believed  in  Chicago. 

In  1870  he  was  married  to  Amelia  C.  Collins, 
of  Rochester,  New  York,  and  when  the  fire  had 
"  wiped  out"  his  worldly  effects  he  found  himself 
with  a  wife  as  his  sole  earthly  possession.  Re- 
newing his  struggle,  he  again  began  to  build  up  a 
practice.  In  a  dwelling,  far  out  on  the  South 
Side  of  Chicago,  and  in  an  office  that,  before  the 
fire,  served  as  a  bed-room,  for  a  year  Mr.  Millard 
worked  to  support  his  family  under  these  most 
discouraging  surroundings.  Perseverance,  how- 
ever, won,  and  gradually  clients  came,  increasing 
year  by  year.  Although  suffering  for  years  from 
poor  health,  the  one  predominant  trait  w^as  "  per- 
severance." His  years  of  labor  have  been  con- 
fined to  the  practice  of  the  law  in  its  legitimate 
field.  Many  young  lawyers,  impatient  and  rest- 
less, sought  speculations  for  sjiecdy  wealth,  but 
Mr.  Millard  made  his  profession  his  life  work.  In 
it  he  has  prospered. 

He  has  surrounded  himself  with  .1  lanTc 
wealthy  and  lucrative  clientage.  His  practice  has 
been  largely  on  the  chanceiy  side.  He  has  been 
engaged  in  many  large  will  contests  and  other 
controversies  involving  large  property-interests. 
\  modern  proverb  (and  one  which  Mr.  Millard  has 
followed)  says  "  to  be  a  successful  Lawyer  keep  out 
of  jjolitics."  Although  he  has  held  several  offices 
of  trust  and  has  given  much  attention  to  the  se- 
curing of  good  men  for  offices  of  his  city  and  State, 
he  has  steadily  refused  to  accept  any  political 
honors.     At  a  time  when  the  government  of  Hi-di- 


412 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


land  Park,  his  home,  was  dcmoraUzed,  and  w  as  in 
need  of  his  ability  to  aid  in  reforming  the  City 
Council  and  public  affairs,  he  was  unanimousK- 
elected  an  Alderman — an  ofifice  which  he  held  for 
two  years,  and  until  the  affairs  of  the  municipality 
were  placed  upon  a  good  footing,  largely  through 
his  efforts. 

Mr.  Millard  has  always  taken  a  lively  interest 
in  education.  In  1879  he  was  appointed  by  the 
Governor  of  the  State  (and  confirmed  by  the 
Senate)  to  the  office  of  Trustee  of  the  University 
of  Illinois,  located  at  Champaign,  which  office  he 
held  twelve  years,  being  reappointed.  During 
his  term  as  Trustee,  he  was  President  of  the 
Board  for  si.x  years,  and  was  instrumental  in  so 
shaping  the  government  of  the  University  and 
its  educational  work  that  it  became  under  his  ad- 
ministration one  of  the  leading  Universities  in 
the  West.  His  professional  duties,  however,  be- 
came so  great  that  he  declined  a  third  nomination 
to  the  office. 

Mr.  Millard  has  for  some  years  been  a  resident 


of  Highland  Park,  though  now  residing  in  the 
cit\-  of  Chicago.  His  business  has  been  in  Chi- 
cago during  his  entire  professional  life.  His 
family  consists  of  his  wife  and  three  children. 

In  iSiSj  he  traveled  in  Europe,  visiting  the 
chief  cities  and  studying  the  controlling  principles 
in  the  civic  and  public  life  in  kingdoms  and  em- 
pires. 

It  can  be  truly  said  of  him  that  he  has  fulfilled 
the  duties  of  a  citizen,  being  public-spirited,  and 
has  been  most  conscientious  and  fathful  to  aH  the 
trusts  which  he  has  been  called  upon  to  assume. 
He  is  an  active  member  of  the  Union  League  and 
other  clubs  of  Chicago.  He  has  frequently  been 
called  upon  to  assume  trusts  in  managing  large 
estates,  and  has  a  reputation  as  a  conservative  and 
reliable  man  in  managing  property  interests. 

He  is  in  the  prime  of  life  and  a  successful  and 
thorough  lawyer.  Retiring  in  disposition,  yet 
firm  and  energetic,  he  is  one  of  the  men  who  de- 
serves to  be  named  among  Chicago's  representa- 
tive men. 


THEODORE   SCHINTZ, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


THEODORE  SCHINTZ,  one  of  the  most 
substantial  and  hard-working  lawyers  in  the 
profession,  was  born  in  Zurich,  Switzerland,  May 
1st,  1830.  His  father,  Henry  Schintz,  was  a  law- 
yer of  life-long  practice  in  that  cit\-. 

His  early  education  was  obtained  in  the  com- 
mon schools  antl  the  ])ol)'technic  school  of  his 
native  place,   he  taking  a  full  scientific  course. 

lie  had,  liowever,  imbibed  the  prevailing  belief 
in  his  native  country  that  the  only  trul\-  noble 
pursuit  is  to  endea\'or  to  di'aw  one's  sustenance 
directly  from  the  soil,  \\hate\er  the  education  of 
the  individual  may  be.  With  this  idea  the  young 
Swiss,  well  educated,  ambitious  and  intellectually 
alert,  came  to  America,  in  1850,  and  went  to  work 
on  a  farm  near  Oconomowoc,  Wis.  He  after- 
ward worked  on  a  farm  in  Green  count)-,  later 
removing  to  New  Elm,  a  .Swiss  settlement  in 
Winnebago  county.  There  he  farmed  for  several 
years,  and  at  leisure  hours  industriously  exam- 
ined into  the  i)ulitical  institutions  of  his  adopteil 
countr\-. 


He  was  chosen  chairman  of  the  town  boani  of 
supervisors  of  New  Elm,  taught  school  one  year 
in  its  old  log  school  house,  and,  in  1854,  located 
in  Oshkosh,  Wisconsin,  where  he  commenced  the 
study  of  law,  and  was  admitted  to  the  bar  two 
\ears  later,  in  1856,  soon  acquiring  a  good  general 
[)ractice. 

In  iSfij  Mr.  Schintz  located  in  Chicago,  where 
he  has  since  resided,  honored  by  his  professional 
brethren  and  the  people  of  the  city,  whom  he  has 
served  in  several  important  positions. 

In  1867  Mr.  Schintz  was  elected  alderman,  and 
remained  a  member  of  the  board  for  five  years, 
and  in  1S69,  while  John  B.  Rice,  then  mayor  of 
the  city,  was  absent  in  Europe,  he  became  the 
acting  mayor  of  Chicago.  In  1869  he  was  ap- 
pointed a  member  of  the  Board  of  Education, 
serving  two  terms,  but  since  1872  he  has  devoted 
himself  entirely  to  the  practice  of  his  profession. 

In  September,  1851,  Mr.  Schintz  married  Bar- 
har.i  Zentner,  also  a  native  of  Switzerland  ;  they 
have  one  son  and  one  daughter. 


-^.-^J 


BIOCR.irHICAI.  D/CT/O.XAKV    IXD  J'ORTH.UT  (7.I/JJ:/CV. 


415 


Tlicoilorc  II.  Scliiiitz,  their  son,  was  cilucatcd 
in  the  Chicago  University,  studied  law  with  his 
father,  and  was  admitted  to  practice  before  the 
Supreme  Court  of  the  State,  at  Mount  Vernon. 
Josephine,  the  daughter,  is  a  graduate  of  the 
Cook  County  Normal  School. 

In  summing  up  the  events  of  his  life,  we  have 
merely  to  state  that  the  high  position  he  now 
occupies  amongst  the  residents  of  Chicago  he 
owes  entirely  to  his  own  exertions;  he  started  on 
the  highway  of  life  with  a  capital  consisting  only 
of  health,  determination,  force  of  character  and  a 
liberal  education.     That  he  has  made  trood  use  of 


his  natural  abilities  is  proven  by  the  fact  that  he 
occupies  a  position  of  i)rominence  among  the 
[prominent  citizens  of    Chicago. 

In  conclusion,  it  can  trulj-  be  stated  that  Theo- 
dore Schintz,  whether  filling  a  public  position  or 
acting  for  private  client,  has  always  transacted  the 
affairs  witii  which  he  was  intrusted  in  such  a 
manner  as  to  merit  the  confidence  of  all  that  have 
been  fortunate  enough  to  have  dealings  with  him. 

Such  is  his  biography.  It  is  that  of  a  citizen 
of  Chicago  who  has,  step  by  step,  advanced  to  a 
high  position  amongst  its  most  respected  and 
honored  citizens. 


HON.  JOSEPH    P.   MAHONHV, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


THERE  is  not  in  the  vast  City  of  Chicago 
another  such  example  of  youthful  activity 
and  success  as  that  afforded  by  the  subject  of  this 
sketch,  Joseph   P.  Mahoney. 

Admitted  to  the  practice  of  law^  when  only 
twenty-one  years  of  age,  elected  a  member  of  the 
State  Legislature  when  only  twenty-one,  ap- 
])ointed  a  Master  of  Chancery  of  the  Circuit 
Court  of  Cook  County  at  the  age  of  twenty-four, 
and  offered  a  seat  on  the  Board  of  Education  by 
the  Hon.  Hempstead  W'ashburne,  Mayor  of  Chi- 
cago, before  he  had  reached  his  twenty-.sevcnth" 
birthday,  are  some  of  the  items  of  interest  in  this 
remarkable  career,  which  we  have  no  hesitation 
in  saying  is  without  parallel  in  the  State. 

Joseph  P.  Mahoney  was  born  in  Oswego,  New- 
York  State,  on  November  i,  1864,  and  is  there- 
fore only  twenty-seven  years  old.  His  parents 
removed  to  Chicago  when  he  was  only  three 
years  old.  His  father  died  recently,  but  the 
other  members  of  the  family  still  reside  here. 
His  parents  were  particularly  careful  and  anxious 
regarding  the  education  of  their  children.  When 
old  enough  Joseph  was  sent  to  the  public  school, 
where  he  soon  distinguished  himself  by  his  apjjli- 
cation  to  his  books  and  by  his  love  of  stud\'.  He 
is  a  graduate  of  the  Chicago  public  schools,  and 
is  a  credit  to  them.  Immediately  after  leaving 
.school  Mr.  Mahoney  applied  himself  to  the 
study  of  law,  for  which  he  felt  a  .strong  inclina- 
tion.    He  entered  the  office  of  Messrs.  Jewett  & 


Norton,  a  firm  of  excellent  rejjutation  in  this 
city,  and  there  learned  the  theory  and  practice  of 
law.  He  presented  himself  for  examination  for 
admission  to  the  bar  when  only  twenty  years  old, 
and  his  answers  were  so  satisfactory  that  Judge 
McAllister  made  an  exception  in  his  case,  and 
although  under  age,  admitted  him  to  the  practice 
of  law  on  condition  that  he  would  take  out  his 
license  when  twenty-one  years  old.  He  at  once 
commenced  the  practice  of  his  profession  in  Chi- 
cago and  has  continued  to  do  so  ever  since, 
h'our  years  ago  the  Circuit  Court  bench  appointed 
him  one  of  its  Masters  of  Chancery,  the  duties  of 
which  he  still  continues  to  discharge  with  general 
satisfaction. 

As  a  lawyer,  Mr.  Mahoney  is  a  close  and 
earnest  student,  who  devotes  himself  unsparingly 
to  his  duties.  Quiet,  earnest  and  able,  he  moves 
forward  with  his  work  with  ease,  confidence  and 
success. 

As  a  public  speaker  he  is  fluent,  forcible  and 
logical.  His  manner  is  gentle,  earnest  and  pleas- 
ing. With  a  musical  voice,  a  ready  utterance 
and  a  logical  mind,  he  is  a  young  man  who  may 
hope  to  attain  a  very  high  place  in  his  profession, 
and  honorable  preferment  as  a  citizen. 

.Mr.  Mahoney  is  an  active  and  earnest  Demo- 
crat. Liberal  and  tolerant  towards  those  who 
iliffer  from  him  in  politics,  yet  strong  and  fearless 
in  the  defense  of  his  principles.  As  a  resident  of 
the  West   Siile,  he   has  taken   a  warm   interest   in 


4i6 


BlOCRArmCAL  DICTIOXARY  AXn  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


every  question  affecting  that  district.  He  was 
elected  Representative  to  the  State  Legislature 
for  the  Fifth  Senatorial  District,  and  held  that 
position  for  three  consecutive  terms,  when  he  was 
elected  Senator  for  the  same  district,  which  posi- 
tion he  now  holds. 

As  a  member  of  the  Legislature  he  has 
acquitted  himself  with  honor  and  credit,  and  has 
given  the  utmost  satisfaction  to  his  constituents 
by  attention  to  their  interests,  and  by  his  integ- 
rity and  ability  in  the  discharge  of  every  duty. 
Mr.  Mahoney  has  the  honor  of  being  the  young- 
est man  ever  elected  a  member  of  the  Legis- 
lature of  this  State.  He  is  at  present  the  young- 
est member  of  the  Senate. 

He  is  the  author  of  the  bill  giving  authority  to 


the  West  Town  of  Chicago  to  issue  bonds  to  the 
amount  of  one  million  dollars,  and  to  expend  the 
same  on  park  and  street  improvements,  prepara- 
tory to  the  World's  Columbian  Exposition.  This 
measure  has  been  passed,  and  the  bonds  are  now 
being  prepared  for  issue.  He  also  took  a  promi- 
nent part  in  passing  the  Convict  Labor  Bill, 
which  has  for  its  object  the  prevention  of  compe- 
tition of  prison  with  outside  labor. 

As  a  young  man,  Mr.  Mahonej^  has  the  reputa- 
tion amongst  his  professional  brethren  of  being  a 
painstaking,  conscientious  and  talented  lawyer, 
and  of  being  a  man  of  uncompromising  integrity. 

Judging  from  his  past  record,  we  have  no  hesi- 
tation in  saying  that  he  has  a  bright  and  honor- 
able future  before  him. 


HON.  THOMAS   WITHERELL   PALMER, 


DETROIT,   MICH. 


THE  subject  of  this  biography,  one  of  Michi- 
gan's "  favorite  sons "  and  most  honored 
citizens,  is  pre-eminently  a  self-made  man.  He 
began  life  with  a  definite  purpose  in  view,  worked 
faithfully,  honestly  and  with  a  will  for  its  accom- 
plishment, and  now,  at  the  age  of  sixty-two  years, 
enjoys  a  more  than  national  reputation  as  a  man 
of  progressive  ideas,  rich  attainments,  high-mind- 
ed, pure-hearted  and  clean-handed — in  a  word,  a 
leader  worthy  the  name.  His  native  city,  De- 
troit, where  he  was  born,  January  25,  1830,  has 
always  been  his  home.  He  has  grown  with  her 
growth,  prospered  with  her  prosperity,  and  is  a 
most  worthy  representative  of  her  enterprise  and 
greatness. 

He  traces  his  ancestry  to  New  England  and 
early  colonial  families,  his  father  having  been  a 
native  of  Connecticut  and  his  mother  of  Ver- 
mont. 11  is  falhcr  was  a  merchant  in  Detroit 
during  the  territorial  days  of  Michigan,  and  a  rep- 
resentative man  of  his  time,  widely  known  for  his 
sterling  qualities;  and  by  the  few  survivors  of 
those  early  days  who  were  associated  with  him 
he  is  held  in  affectionate  remembrance.  The 
mother,  a  daughter  of  Judge  James  Withercll,  a 
descendant  of  Roger  Williams,  and  one  of  the 
pioneer  settlers  and  representative  men  of  the 
Territory    of    Michigan,    was   a  woman    of  many 


womanly  virtues  and  generous  impulses,  and  is 
remembered  with  tenderest  regard  for  her  earnest 
Christian  spirit  and  charitable  deeds.  She  was 
one  of  the  first  Methodists  in  Detroit. 

Mr.  Palmer's  father  and  his  mother's  father 
were  included  among  those  surrendered  by  Gen. 
Hull  in  1 81 2. 

Thomas  was  rearetl  in  the  citj-  of  Detroit  until 
twelve,  when  he  entered  Mr.  Thompson's  acad- 
emy at  St.  Clair,  Michigan,  then  the  village  of 
Palmer,  nametl  from  his  father.  Leaving  the 
academy  he  entered  the  freshman  class  at  Ann 
Arbor  University,  and  remained  one  year.  His 
eyes  failing,  he  was  compelled  to  abandon  his 
studies.  He  spent  a  portion  of  the  following  year 
upon  Lake  Superior.  His  eyesight  being  partially 
restored  he  resumed  his  studies  at  Ann  Arbor 
for  about  six  months.  His  eyes  again  failing, 
he,  with  five  others,  left  Ann  Arbor  for  a  voy- 
age to  Spain  in  the  fall  of  1848.  He  landed  at 
Cadiz,  after  a  thirty  days'  winter  voyage,  and  for 
two  months  traveled  on  foot  through  the  country, 
visiting  the  Alhambra  in  Granada,  and  other 
points.  Returning  to  Cadiz,  he  took  ship  for 
South  America,  landing  at  Rio  Janeiro  in  1849. 
After  passing  three  months  in  South  America,  he 
returned  home  via  New  Orleans,  spending  two 
months  in  the  Southern  States.     In  1850  he  went 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


419 


to  Wisconsin  and  spent  one  year  as  afjcnt  of  a 
transportation  company.  In  185 1  he  went  into 
business  at  Appleton,  Wisconsin,  was  burned  out 
and  financially  ruined.  In  1853  he  returned  to 
Detroit  and  engatjed  in  the  real  estate  business. 
In  1S55  he  engaged  in  the  lumbering  business, 
which,  with  the  purchase  and  sale  of  pine  lands, 
has  been  his  vocation  since.  He  is  now  one  of 
the  firm  of  Charles  Merrill  &  Co.,  of  East  Sagi- 
naw, a  special  partner  in  the  firm  of  IMcGraft  & 
Montgomery  at  Muskegon,  and  the  owner  of 
mills  at  Falmouth,  Missaukee  county,  Michigan. 
Mr.  Palmer  has  been  an  active  and  staunch  mem- 
ber of  the  Republican  party  ever  since  its  organ- 
ization. He  has  been  called  to  high  positions 
and  important  trusts,  and  has  never  failed  to 
acquit  himself  in  a  manner  to  call  forth  the  plaud- 
its of  his  fellow-citizens.  He  was  never  a  candi- 
date for  office  until  he  ran  for  one  of  the  estima- 
tors-at-large  of  the  city  of  Detroit  in  1873.  In 
1878  Mr.  Palmer  declined  the  nomination  for 
Congress,  but  at  the  earnest  solicitation  of  his 
friends  he  accepted  the  nomination  for  State  Sen- 
ator, tendered  him  by  acclamation,  and  was  elect- 
ed. Two  j'ears  later,  in  the  convention,  he  made 
an  unsuccessful  race  for  the  nomination  for  Gov- 
ernor of  his  State,  but  was  chosen  by  the  Legisla- 
ture to  succeed  the  Hon.  T.  W.  Ferrj^  in  the 
United  States  Senate,  for  a  term  of  si.x  years,  be- 
ginning March  4.  1883,  and  but  for  his  voluntary- 
retirement  from  politics  would  have  been  re-elect- 
ed without  opposition  for  a  second  term.  His 
name  was  prominently  discussed  for  a  cabinet 
position  before  the  conclusion  of  his  term  of  office 
in  the  Senate.     In  April,  18S9,  he  was  nominated 


by  President  Harrison  and  confirmed  as  minister 
to  Spain.  He  resigned  the  office  in  May,  1890. 
preferring  the  life  of  a  private  citizen  at  home 
to  that  of  a  government  official  stationed  in 
Madrid. 

In  June,  1890,  he  was  appointed  by  President 
Harrison  as  one  of  the  commissioners-at-Iarge  of 
the  World's  Columbian  Exposition,  to  be  held  at 
Chicago  in  1893,  and  upon  the  meeting  of  that 
bod\-,  June  27,  was  unanimously  elected  its  pres- 
ident, an  office  for  which  his  native  executive 
ability  and  rich  and  varied  experiences  as  an 
organizer  most  eminently  fit  him.  Personally, 
Mr.  Palmer  is  a  man  of  great  firmness  and  de- 
cision of  character,  and  cool  and  deliberate  in  his 
judgments.  He  is  at  the  same  time  a  man  of  ad- 
vanced and  progressive  ideas,  enterprising  and 
stirring,  and  withal  possessed  of  a  sincerity  and 
goodness  of  heart  that  discover  themselves  in  his 
every  act,  and  attract  the  admiration  and  win  and 
hold  the  confidence  of  all  with  whom  he  has  to 
do.  He  is  a  generous  man,  public-spirited,  and 
contributes  liberally  of  his  time  and  energy  and 
money  to  religious  and  philanthropic  interests, 
and  to  whatever  conduces  to  the  welfare  of  his 
city  and  the  good  of  his  fellows.  He  is  a  man  of 
literarj'  tastes,  a  lover  and  liberal  patron  of  art, 
and  was  one  of  the  projectors  and  founders  of  the 
Detroit  Art  Museum.  In  short,  Mr.  Palmer  has 
made  his  life  a  decided  success,  and  with  his  in- 
fluence and  wealth,  and  a  will  to  put  them  to  the 
noblest  use,  he  cannot  but  hold  a  leading  place 
and  make  the  world  better.  He  married  Miss 
Lizzie  P.,  daughter  of  Chas.  P.  Merrill,  in  1855. 
He  has  no  children. 


HON.  WILLIAM    LINDSAY, 


FRANKFORT,   KY. 


WILLIAM  LINDSAY  is  a  native  of  Rock- 
bridge county,  Virginia.  He  was  born  on 
September  4,  1835,  and  traces  his  lineage  back 
through  a  line  of  distinguished  ancestors  to  the 
celebrated  Lindsay  family  of  Scotland.  He  early 
decided  to  enter  the  legal  profession  and  turned 
his  studies  in  that  direction,  and  began  the  prac- 
tice of  law  in  Hickman  county,  Kentucky,  whither 
he  had  removed  in  1854.     At  the  opening  of  the 


War  of  the  Rebellion  he  enlisted  in  the  Confed- 
eate  cause,  and  served  gallantly  as  captain  and 
staff  officer.  In  1S65  he  was  paroled  as  a  pris- 
oner of  war,  at  Columbus,  Mississippi,  and  re- 
turned to  his  home  in  Kentucky  and  resumed  the 
practice  of  law.  Two  years  later  he  was  elected 
to  the  State  Senate  of  Kentucky,  and  subse- 
quently was  elected  judge  of  the  Court  of  Ap- 
peals.    In   1890  he  again  represented  his  district 


420 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


in  the  State  Senate,  anil  more  recently  he  was  a 
candidate  for  the  United  States  Senate  against 
Mr.  Carlisle. 

Judge  Lindsay  is  a  man  of  scholarh-  attain- 
ments, a  lawyer  of  great  ability  and  in  the  best 
sense  a  high-minded  gentleman.  He  is  the  recog- 
nized head  of  the  Kentucky  bar,  and  in  all  the 
relations  of  his  private  life  or  public  career  he 
has   won    uni\ersal    confidence    and   respect.      He 


has  been  honored  with  many  positions  of  confi- 
dence and  trust.  He  is  president  of  the  Ken- 
tucky branch  of  the  Sons  of  the  Revolution  and 
one  of  the  commissioners-at-large  of  the  World's 
Columbian  Exposition,  to  be  held  at  Chicago  in 
1893.  To  all  these  varied  offices  he  has  devoted 
himself  with  energy  and  zeal,  bringing  to  them 
the  benefit  of  a  well-disciplined  mind  and  a  rich 
and  varied  experience. 


WILLIAM    H.   BVFORD,  JR.,   M.D. 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


DURING  the  latter  part  of  the  present  cen- 
tury the  scientific  world  has  watched  with 
growing  interest  the  labors  of  a  certain  medical 
triumvirate.  A  father  and  two  sons.  Dr.  William 
H.  Byford,  Sr.,  Dr.  Henry  Turman  Byford,  and 
the  man  of  whom  we  write,  have,  by  their  re- 
markable achievements,  marked  an  epoch  in 
American  surgerj'.  The  first,  as  is  well  known, 
lived  to  attain  the  full  fruition  of  his  work.  Chi- 
cago is  still  the  home  of  the  second.  The  trium- 
virate was  broken  by  the  untimely  death  of  the 
third — the  young,  gifted  and  beloved  physician. 

William  Hezekiah  Byford  was  born  in  the  year 
1850,  at  Mt.  Vernon,  Indiana,  and  christened  with 
a  name  already  fainous  in  the  medical  profession, 
being  a  grandson  of  the  noted  Dr.  Hezekiah  Hol- 
land, of  Kentucky — a  man  who  died  from  ex- 
posure in  the  performance  of  professional  duty. 

Our  subject  had  three  sisters,  all  married  and 
living  in  Chicago,  and  one  brother,  mentioned 
abu\e,  between  whom  and  himself  there  existed  a 
strong  bond  of  affection. 

In  1857  the  family  removed  to  Chicago,  where 
William,  who  was  then  seven  years  of  age,  re- 
ceived the  first  rudiments  of  his  education.  He 
spent  fi\'e  \'ears  in  the  public,  and  twn  in  the  pii- 
vate  schools  of  the  city,  and  in  1865,  when  the 
family  went  abroad,  was  well  prepared  to  enter 
High  School  in  Germany.  Three  years  of  faith- 
ful work  there  and  in  a  German  gymnasium  fur- 
nished him  with  that  broad  basis  of  general 
know  le(!L;e  and  proportionatel\-  wide  range  of 
chfiice  which  is  the  best  jireijaialion  for  the  more 
special  study  of  a  profession.  I  lis  _\duthful  aspi- 
rations inclining  him  tow.ud  tlie  legal    profession, 


he,  in  1868,  entered  the  Chicago  Law  .School, 
graduating  therefrom  in  1870.  He  practiced  in 
Chicago  for  three  years  when  failing  health  neces- 
sitated a  trip  to  the  South.  Experiencing  no 
benefit  therefrom,  in  the  summer  of  1873,  in  com- 
pany with  his  brother,  Dr.  H.  T.  Byford,  he  re- 
moved to  Denver,  Colorado,  and  bravely  devoted 
himself  anew  to  the  practice  of  law.  Ill-health, 
however,  still  continuing,  he  concluded  that  so 
sedentary  a  pursuit  was  not  best  for  him,  and  de- 
cided to  adopt  a  more  active  profession  in  which 
he  would  have  the  opportunity  of  being  in  the 
open  air.  Accordingly,  in  1876,  he  returned  to 
Chicago,  and  with  unabated  energy  and  indomi- 
table courage,  began  the  study  of  medicine.  He 
graduated  in  1878  from  the  Chicago  Medical 
College,  and  immediately  received  the  ap[)oint- 
ment  as  Assistant  Demonstrator  of  .Anatomy  in 
that  institution. 

I-"or  about  a  year  he  practiced  in  Chicago,  as- 
sociated with  his  brother,  and  then  removed  to 
Faribault,  Minnesota.  Finding  that  field  too 
narrow  for  his  specialty,  in  1879  he  changed  his 
residence  to  Minneapolis.  At  last,  established  in 
his  proper  sphere,  his  rise  was  rapid  and  brilliant, 
and  success  was  assured.  Soon  after  locating  in 
Minneapolis  he  was  elected  to  the  Professorship 
of  Physical  Diagnosis  in  the  Minnesota  College 
Hospital  Medical  School,  a  position  which  he 
held  until  his  death. 

Dr.  Byford  became  noted  for  his  boldness,  dex- 
terity, and  success  as  an  operator,  and  in  a  short 
time  his  practice  had  grown  beyond  the  possibil- 
il\- of  his  meeting  its  demands.  He  was  obliged 
to  confine  himself  to   citnsultation,    in   which    the 


'^W  ^f^:^-i^ 


mocRArmcAi.  pictioxakv  i\p  roKTRAir  c.ai.i.f.ry. 


423 


accuracN-  ami  completeness  of  his  diagnoses  gave 
him  the  highest  rank  as  an  authority.  Laboring 
in  the  same  de])artmcnt  of  medical  science  as  his 
distinguished  father,  it  was  soon  evident  that  his 
would  be  an  equally  distinguished  career.  Father 
and  son  alike  gained  great  and  well-deserved  re- 
nown in  all  matters  pertaining  to  abdominal  sur- 
gery, and  each,  when  he  died,  was  his  cit}'s  lead- 
ing gynaecologist.  This  eminence,  which  woulil 
have  been  esteemed  abundant  for  many  a  man  as 
the  crown  of  a  life-time's  work,  was  gained  by 
Dr.  Hyford  before  he  was  thirty-three  years  old. 
What  might  have  been  the  end  of  a  career  so 
brilliantly  begun  can  only  be  imagined,  for  in 
November,  1883,  in  the  midst  of  high  honors 
and  with  the  most  splendid  prospects  beckon- 
ing him  forward,  the  young  physician's  life  was 
ended. 

Gifted  by  nature  with  a  large  and  powerful 
physique,  he  was  from  his  youth  a  practiced  ath- 
lete. Daring  and  ambitious  in  the  performance 
of  feats  of  strength  and  agility,  he  brought  upon 
himself,  in  an  unfortunate  moment  of  over-exer- 
tion, the  rupture  of  a  blood  vessel  in  the  lungs. 
From  this  injury  he  suffered  many  years,  and  to 
its  effects  in  the  rare  disease  known  as  fibrous  de- 


generation of  the  lung  tissue,  his  death  was  ulti- 
mately due. 

Earnest,  self-sacrificing,  eager  to  lessen  the  suf- 
ferings of  his  fellows,  and  equally  eager  for  the 
advancement  of  the  nation.  Dr.  liyford  took  an 
active  and  well-directed  interest  in  civil  govern- 
ment and  politics,  his  political  faith  being  that  of 
the  Republican  part)-.  In  religious  belief  he  was 
brought  up  a  Methodist,  but  in  later  years  the 
arduous  duties  of  his  profession,  together  with  in- 
creased infirmity,  prevented  active  service  in  the 
church.  Sincere  as  truth  itself,  Dr.  Hj-ford  was  a 
man  to  whom  hypocrisy  was  an  aboinination,  and 
who,  ignoring  forms  and  all  practice,  valued  men 
at  their  real  worth.  Severe  as  was  his  judgment, 
none  e\er  had  a  friend  more  loyal  and  magni- 
mous  than  he  when  once  his  confidence  was 
given.  He  seemed  always  to  be  more  concerned 
for  the  prosperity  of  others  than  for  his  own. 
Men  loved  him  because  he  retained  in  manhood, 
a  boy's  impulsive,  sympathetic,  generous  heart. 

Dr.  Byford  was  married  in  1876  to  Mrs.  Maude 
Whyte,  daughter  of  a  venerable  jurist  of  Ohio. 
Mrs.  Byford  was  a  faithful,  dcxotcd  wife  and  did 
much  to  aid  her  husl)and  in  llu-  attainment  of 
prominence  in  the  profession. 


GEORGE   EDMUND    FOSS, 


CHICAC.O,    ILL. 


AMONG  the  young  lawyers  who  practice  in 
Chicago  no  one  stands  higher  than  the  sub- 
ject of  this  sketch.  He  is  not  only  one  of  the 
best  educated  men  in  the  profession,  in  science 
and  literature,  but  he  has  systematically  pursued 
the  study  of  the  law  in  all  of  its  various  branches, 
and  is  familiar  with  its  subtleties  and  technicali- 
ties. Acute  and  aicft  of  mind,  and  master  of 
brilliant  and  lucid  expression,  Mr.  Foss  rises  to 
the  full  dignity  of  an  accomplished  orator,  either 
addressing  a  jury  or  on  the  platform,  being  al- 
ways courteous,  magnanimous  and  forcible.  He 
arrays  evidence  logically  and  draws  conclusions 
convincingly.  He  is  graceful  in  his  gestures, 
earnest,   rhetorical   and    vivid   in   deli\'ery. 

Mr.  Foss  is  a  native  of  Berkshire,  Vermont, 
and  was  born  July  2d,  1863.  His  father,  (jeorge 
F.  Foss,  is  a  manufacturer  and  a  business   man. 


widely  and  favorably  known  as  a  man  of  intelli- 
gence and  strict  integrity.  The  mother  of  our 
subject,  before  marriage,  was  Miss  Marcia  C. 
Noble  ;  her  great-grandfather  was  a  soldier  in  the 
war  of  the  Revolution.  Cieorge  Kdmund  began 
his  education  in  the  high  school  at  St.  Albans,  Ver- 
mont, and  was  graduated  therefrom  in  1880.  He 
entered  Harvard  College,  at  Cambridge,  Massa- 
chusetts, in  1881,  L;raduating  in  1SS5.  He  was 
then  connected  witii  the  law  office  of  Noble  and 
Smith,  at  St.  Albans.  He  went  to  New  York 
City  and  entered  Columbia  Law  .School,  but  was 
taken  ill  at  the  end  of  one  term.  He  was  con- 
nected with  a  legal  magazine,  and  obtained  con- 
sider.ible  distinction  as  a  writer  on  legal  subjects, 
.ind  was  tendered  the  editorship  of  a  legal  maga- 
zine liublished  in  New  \'ork. 

In    1888  he  removed  to  Chicago,  and  in  tiie  fall 


424 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIO.XARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


of  that  year  lie  entered  the  senior  class  of  the 
Union  College  of  Law,  taking  a  two  years'  course 
in  one  year;  he  was  graduated  in  the  summer  of 
1889.  He  was  president  of  his  class,  and  at  com- 
mencement honorable  mention  was  given  him  for 
the  best  legal  thesis,  and  a  fifty-dollar  prize  was 
awarded  him  as  best  orator. 

In  March  of  the  same  year,  after  examination 
by  the  Appellate  Court,  he  was  admitted  to  the 
bar  of  Illinois.  He  was  then  associated  with 
Hon.  Alfred  Ennis,  formerly  general  counsel  of 
Pullman  Palace  Car  Company,  and  later  on  was 
office  associate  with  Hon.  George  Driggs,  now  a 
judge  of  the  Circuit  Court  of  Cook  county,  and 


since  January  1st,  1889,  he  has  been  practicing 
alone,  with  excellent  success,  having  quite  a  num- 
ber of  the  wealthy  citizens  of  Chicago  as  clients, 
and  occupying  a  fine  office  in  the  Chamber  of 
Commerce  building. 

Mr.  Foss  is  well  developed  physically,  has  a 
robust  constitution,  and  he  is  admirably  adapted 
to  the  labors  of  his  chosen  profession.  He  is  a 
courteous  gentleman  and  of  excellent  habits  and 
high  social  standing.  He  has  been  vice-presi- 
dent of  the  Alumni  Association  of  Union  Col- 
lege of  Law  ;  he  is  a  member  of  Harvard  and 
Sunset  Clubs,  and  also  secretary  of  the  Sons  of 
\'ermont. 


JOHN    DOLESE, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


AMONG  the  pioneers  of  the  Garden  City,  the 
men  who  have  seen  her  rapid  and  steady 
rise  from  an  unincorporated  town  to  her  present 
high  position  as  the  second  city  of  the  L^nion, 
and  the  great  center  of  the  North  and  West,  few 
have  made  more  of  a  success  of  life  than  the  sub- 
ject of  this  sketch. 

His  father,  Peter  Dolese,  settled  in  Chicago  in 
1833  or  1834,  and  was  married  in  1836  to  Miss 
Matilda  Laible,  of  Detroit,  Michigan.  John  was 
born  in  Chicago  on  February  12,  1837,  in  the  fam- 
ily residence,  then  located  on  the  corner  of  Lake 
and  La  Salle  streets.  Peter  Dolese,  our  subject's 
father,  was  born  in  the  Province  of  Lorraine, 
France,  and  his  wife  in  Baden,  which  was  at  that 
time  an  independent  principality  ;  their  first  child 
was  named  John,  in  honor  of  Peter's  brother,  who 
was  then  a  resident  of  Chicago.  Shortly  after 
John's  birth  the  family  moved  to  Peru,  Illinois, 
where  they  remained  until  the  death  of  Mrs.  Do- 
lese, in  1840. 

The  Laible  famil)-,  John's  maternal  ancestors, 
all  lived  in  Detroit,  with  the  exception  of  one  sis- 
ter, who  resided  in  Europe.  After  his  mother's 
death  John  accompanied  his  father  to  France, 
where  he  remained  with  his  grandparents  until 
1845,  when  he  returned  with  his  father  to  Chi- 
cago. This  trip  was  the  thirteenth  and  last  trip  of 
Peter  Dolese  across  the  Atlantic.  Though  but 
seven  years  of  age  at  that  time,  our  subject   re- 


members with  distinctness  the  most  interesting 
incidents  of  his  trip  from  New  York  west,  which 
was  made  entirely  by  water.  The  route  was  by 
way  of  the  Hudson  River  to  Albany,  thence  via 
the  Erie  Canal  to  Buffalo,  and  by  the  lakes  to  Chi- 
cago, where  he  arrived  the  latter  part  of  July, 
1845,  and  he  has  remained  a  resident  of  this  city 
ever  since.  He  recalls  vividly  the  Fourth  of  July, 
1845,  because  on  that  day,  while  passing  through 
Syracuse,  on  the  Erie  Canal  boat,  the  boat's  bed- 
ding was  burned  by  fireworks  that  were  used  in 
celebrating  the  sixty-ninth  anniversary  of  "  Inde- 
pendence Day."  He  arrived  in  Chicago  with  his 
cousin,  then  a  young  man  of  twenty,  who  drifted 
South  and  died  at  New  Orleans.  His  rudimen- 
tary education  was  obtained  at  the  Dearborn 
School,  then  located  opposite  the  present  site  of 
AlcVicker's  Theatre.  His  first  venture  in  mercan- 
tile life  was  in  the  employ  of  his  father,  and  he 
remained  with  him  until  ivineteen  years  of  age, 
when  he  started  a  teaming  and  transfer  business 
for  himself,  and  continued  in  that  business  until 
1868,  when  he  formed  a  copartnership  with  Jason 
H.  Shepard.  That  was  the  beginning  of  the 
quarrying  and  paving  business  of  Dolese  A: 
Shepard.  Previous  to  the  formation  of  the  firm, 
Mr.  Dolese,  in  connection  with  his  father,  had 
taken  several  contracts  and  graded  several  streets. 
Their  early  work  in  that  direction  included  grad- 
ing work  on  the  Michigan  Southern  Railroad,  and 


^4^ 


/-^ 


iuoGRAriiic.il.  niCTiox.xRV  .ixn  i'ortr.iit  cillery. 


427 


also  contracts  for  t^radiiij;  on  the  Rock  Island 
Railroad  between  Blue  Island  and  Morgan  Ridge, 
now  called  Washington  Heights,  which  had  been 
sub-let  to  them  by  Judge  Fuller,  the  original  con- 
tractor. His  father's  career,  however,  was  brought 
to  an  end  by  his  unexpected  decease  on  Febru- 
ary 14,  1862. 

Among  the  more  important  contracts  of  Mr. 
John  Dolese  was  that  with  the  Union  Rolling  Mill, 
now  the  Illinois  Steel  Company  (of  which  his 
present  partner.  Mr.  Shepard,  was  cashier  anil 
bookkeeper).  He  had  charge  of  their  shipments 
and  transferred  their  material.  This  contract  is 
now  being  filled  by  his  eldest  son,  William,  who 
has  succeeded  to  his  father's  earlier  business. 

From  a  small  business  at  the  time  of  the  forma- 
tion of  the  copartnership,  the  firm  of  Dolese  & 
Shepard  has  reach  a  point  of  success  which  very 
few  firms  attain,  and  they  can  look  back  with  a 
feeling  of  just  pride  upon  their  business  career, 
which  has  been  one  of  unexampled  prosperity,  re- 
sulting from  the  application  of  sterling  business 
principles,  combined  with  native  business  ability. 
Mr.  Dolese  has  attended  to  the  supervision  of  the 
executive  part  of  the  business,  and  his  partner, 
Mr.  Shepard,  to  the  finances  of  the  firm.  Their 
business,  conducted  with  great  foresight  and  tact, 
has  become,  undoubtedly,  the  largest  in  its  line, 
not  only  in  Chicago,  but  in  the  United  States. 
The  number  of  their  employes  has  increased 
from  five  or  six  men  to  six  hundred  or  more,  and 
their  pay  roll,  including  the  wages  of  men  cm- 
ployed  in  concerns  they  control,  has  increased 
from  a  few  hundred  dollars  a  month  to  the  enor- 
mous sum  of  from  twent\-five  thousand  to  thirty 
thousar^d  dollars  monthly. 

They  own  three  granite  quarries  and  two  gravel 
pits,  and  they  have  constructed  many  more  miles 
of  streets  than  any  firm  on  the  continent.  They 
have  either  built  or  furnished  the  material  for  the 
construction  of  at  least  two-thirds  of  that  beauti- 
ful drivewa)-,  Michigan  boulevard,  and  have  either 
constructed  or  been  interested  in  the  construction 
of  all  the  streets  and  drives  of  Hyde  and  South 
parks.  All  this  work  has  been  done  under  the 
personal  supervision  of  Mr.  Dolese,  who  has  taken 
an  active  interest  in  it — an  interest  prompted  not 
by  financial  motives  alone,  but  also  by  a  con- 
scif)usness  that  his  work  well  done  would  be  a 
lasting  monument  to  his  firm  that  would  survive 


many  generations.  The  great  South  I'ark  system 
of  boulevards  and  drives  has  become  famous,  and 
is  pointed  out  to  Chicago  visitors  as  one  of  the 
most  beautiful  localities  in  the  city;  and  as  the 
larger  part  of  this  construction  was  done  under 
the  immediate  management  of  Mr.  Dolese,  or  the 
material  furnished  by  the  firm  of  which  he  is  a 
member,  he  has  just  cause  to  feel  proud  of  its 
completion. 

He  was  married  in  August,  1857,  to  Mi.ss  Kath- 
erine  Jacobs,  of  Chicago,  and  they  have  nine 
children,  all  unmarried.  Their  names  and  order  of 
birth  are:  William,  Matilda,  Rose,  Minnie,  John, 
Jr.,  Henry,  Peter,  Ida  and  Laura.  The  family  resi- 
dence was  formerly  in  Cicero  township,  but  is 
now  (1892)  at  No.  3414  Wabash  avenue. 

Mr.  Dolese  is  a  very  courteous  and  genial  gen- 
tleman, and  a  man  who  is  always  an  enter- 
taining conversationalist.  His  reminiscences  of 
early  Chicago  are  most  interesting  and  enter- 
taining. He  can  recall  the  time  when  the 
present  corner  of  Lake  and  Clark  streets  was 
an  apparently  bottomless  swamp,  when  the  city 
prisoners  formed  into  a  "  chain  gang,"  dragged 
heavy  iron  balls  and  worked  upon  the  public 
streets  ;  and  their  prison  was  an  old  log  structure 
at  the  corner  of  La  Salle  and  Randolph  streets. 
He  also  speaks  of  his  father's  reminiscences  of  the 
day  of  the  first  city  election,  when  Messrs.  Ogden 
and  Kinzie  were  the  candidates  for  the  mayoralty. 
His  father  and  uncle  took  opposite  sides  on  the 
question  of  the  day,  the  latter  voting  as  a  Demo- 
crat for  Mr.  Ogden,  and  the  former  as  a  Whig  for 
Mr.  Kinzie.  Mr.  Dolese  has  followed  in  his 
father's  footsteps,  and  when  the  supporters  of 
Daniel  Webster  became  embodied  in  the  Repub- 
lican party,  he  became  a  staunch  Republican. 
Mr.  Dolese  also  speaks  of  the  great  ice  gorge, 
which  caused  the  bridges  to  be  washed  from  their 
fastenings,  and  indeed  he  can  relate  interesting  in- 
cidents connected  with  nearly  every  part  of  the 
city.  He  has  seen  Chicago  grow  from  the  dimen- 
sions of  a  mere  village,  to  take  rank  amongst  the 
very  first  cities,  not  only  in  our  own  country,  but 
in  the  workl. 

There  are  few  men  in  Chicago  who  ha\  e  ilonc 
as  much  to  materially  beautify  and  improve  the 
city  as  he.  Always  even-tempered,  ready  to  greet 
one  with  a  kindly  word  and  cheerful  welcome, 
polite,  considerate  and  charitable,  he  is  respected 


428 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARV  AM)  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


h\-  his  subordinates  and  admired  and  sought  after  in  life,  he  has  taken  his  greatest  pleasure  in  the 
by  his  equals.  He  has  never  striven  for  any  polit-  enjoyment  of  his  friends'  society,  and  that  place  of 
ical  or  social  honors,  but  content  with  his  success      pure  and  sweet  delight,  a  cheerful,  happy  home. 


BENJAMIN    H.   CAMPBELL, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


THE  life  of  Benjamin  Hendren  Campbell  was 
a  busy  one,  and  shows  what  indomitable  will 
and  persevering  energy  can  accomplish.  He  not 
only  benefited  himself  by  his  numerous  enter- 
prises, many  of  which  were  of  a  semi-public  char- 
acter, but  the  community  in  which  he  resided 
was  also  largely  the  gainer.  He  was  in  e\cry  sense 
a  pioneer,  a  man  of  fine  physique  and  noticeable 
presence. 

He  was  born  in  King  W'illiam  cuunt\-,  near 
Richmond,  Virginia,  in  1814.  At  the  age  of 
nineteen  we  find  the  youth  in  Galena,  Illinois. 
The  steamer  Winnebago,  on  which  he  took  pas- 
sage, was  thirteen  days  making  the  trip  from 
St.  Louis  to  Galena.  Here  he  secured  employ- 
ment in  the  wholesale  grocery  house  of  Campbell 
&  Morehouse  (G.  W.  Campbell  and  D.  B.  More- 
house comprising  the  firm).  After  four  },-ears  of 
faithful  service  he  was  admitted  as  a  jiartner  in 
the  business,  the  name  of  the  firm  changing  to 
Campbell,  Morehouse  &  Co.  For  two  \-ears  he 
remained  an  active  partner  in  this  concern.  In 
1 841  the  firm  closed  oLit  their  business  and  Mr. 
Campbell  next  turned  his  attention  to  the  com- 
mission business,  forming  a  partnership  with  Mr. 
M}-ers  F.  Truett,  under  the  firm  name  of  Camp- 
bell &  Truett.  This  j)artnership  was  of  short 
duration,  and  Mr.  Campbell  resumed  the  grocery 
trade  in  partnership  with  Capt.  Orrin  Smith, 
under  the  firm  name  of  Campbell  &  Smith.  This 
partnership  lasted  for  about  two  years,  antl  after 
its  dissolution  Mr.  Cam])l)cll  carried  on  the  busi- 
ness for  a  short  time  in  his  own  name,  after  which 
he  entered  into  copartnership  with  his  brother-in- 
law,  J.  Russell  Jones,  Esq.,  who  was  then  his  chief 
clerk  and  bookkeeper.  At  that  time  the  whole- 
sale trade  of  Galena  was  very  large,  and  to  supply 
it  required  both  ability  and  experience.  A  year's 
supply  of  teas  was  frequently  bought  in  Boston, 
and  coffees  and  sugars  in  New  Orleans.  It  was 
no  unusual  thing  for   Mr.   Campbell    to   visit  the 


plantations  of  Louisiana  and  buy  an  entire  cargo 
of  sugar,  to  be  shipped  by  boat  to  Galena.  In 
1850  Mr.  Campbell  organized  the  old  Minnesota 
Packet  Company,  the  steamer  "Argo"  (William 
Lodwick,  captain,)  being  its  first  boat.  This 
enterprise  proved  a  financial  success  to  the  com- 
pany, and  opened  a  large  and  profitable  trade 
with  the  river  and  interior  towns  of  Iowa  and 
Wisconsin  above  Galena,  and  the  entire  state  of 
Minnesota.  This  company,  the  controlling  spirit 
of  which  wzs,  Mr.  Campbell,  contributed  ver\- 
largely  to  the  development  of  these  States,  and 
was  a  source  of  wealth  to  the  merchants  of 
Galena.  It  was  afterwards  called  the  Galena, 
Dubuque,  Dunlieth  and  Minnesota  Packet  Com- 
pany, then  the  Northwestern  Packet  Company, 
and  a  few  years  later  was  merged  into  the  Keokuk 
&  Northern  Line  Packet  Compan)-.  running  be- 
tween St.  Louis,  Keokuk  and  St.  Paul. 

On  the  opening  of  the  Milwaukee  &  Prairie  du 
Chien  Railroad,  the  wholesale  business  was  taken 
from  Galena  and  transferred  to  Chicago,  and  sev- 
eral of  Galena's  heaviest  dealers  retired  from 
business. 

In  1861  the  firm  of  B.  H.  Campbell  &  Company 
closed  out  their  business,  Mr.  Jones  having  been 
aijpointcd  United  States  Marshal  for  the  Northern 
District  of  Illinois.  On  retiring  from  the  grocery 
trade  Mr.  Campbell  purchased  the  steamers 
"Jennie  Whipple,"  "  Keokuk  "  and  "  Kate  Castle," 
and  established  a  dail\-  line  between  Davenport 
and  Keokuk,  carrying  the  United  States  mails. 
He  then  built  two  steamers,  the  "Keithsburg" 
and  the  "New  Boston,"  antl  added  them  to  his 
line,  and  several  years  later  sold  out  to  the 
Northern  Line  &  Keokuk  Packet  Compan\-.  In 
1859  ^^''-  Campbell  built  the  first  and  only  steamer 
ever  built  in  Dubuque,  Iowa.  She  was  called  the 
"  Dexter."  He  also  built  two  barges,  the  "Annie" 
and  the  "Jessie."  In  1869  Mr.  Campbell  was 
appointed  by  his  ohl-time  friend,  President  Grant, 


^^ 


S^^^.-^yC^^{j 


lUOGRArillCAI.  IIICTIOXARY  AXD  I'OirrRAIT  C.AI.I.KUY. 


431 


L'nitcd  States  Marslial  for  the  Noitlicrn  District 
of  Illinois.  Tliis  position  he  liekl  for  eight  years, 
h.uing  been  reappointed  after  serving  four  years. 
Under  his  supervision  the  United  States  Census 
of  1870  was  taken,  and  tlie  returns  were  especially 
commended  by  the  department  as  being,  with 
one  otlier,  the  best  taken  in  the  country.  This 
appointment  required  him  to  change  his  residence 
to  Chicago,  and  after  serving  the  two  terms,  hav- 
ing become  interested  in  various  enterprises  in 
Chicago,  he  decided  to  make  his  home  there.  He 
was  vice-president  of  the  Chicago  West  Division 
Street  Railway  Company  and  the  largest  stock- 
holder in  that  organization.  He  was  one  of  the 
incorporators  and  directors  of  the  National  Bank 
of  Illinois,  also  a  director  in  the  Union  Hide  and 
Leather  Company  and  president  of  the  Chicago 
Safe  and  Lock  Company. 

Mr.  Campbell  was  married  in  July,  1837,  at 
Sinsinawa  Mound,  Wisconsin,  to  Miss  Eliza  H. 
Scott,  daughter  of  Judge  Andrew  Scott,  who  was 
the  first  United  States  Judge  of  Arkansas.  Mrs. 
Campbell  died  in  Chicago,  March  ig,  1874,  leaving 
eight  children.  Mr.  Campbell  died  at  Chicago. 
on  November  28,  1890,  in  the  seventy-si.xth  year 
of  his  age,  leaving  the  following-named  children 
surviving  him:  Mrs.  Annie  C.  Babcock,  widow  of 
Gen.  ().  E.  Babcock,  Augustus  S.,  Benjamin  H., 
A.  Courtne)-  and  Mary  L.  Campbell,  Mrs.  Emily 
C.  Ni.xon,  Mrs.  Russella  C.  Smith  and  Jessie 
Campbell. 


Our  subject  took  great  interest  in  politics,  both 
.State  and  National,  but  was  nc\'er  an  office- 
seeker.  Originally  a  Whig,  he  became  an  ardent 
Republican,  and  was  on  terms  of  closest  friend- 
ship with  Presidents  Lincoln  and  Grant,  having 
first  known  the  latter  when  in  business  in  Galena. 
Mr.  Campbell  was  very  successful  in  business, 
was  widely  known  and  esteemed  for  his  manly 
traits  of  character.  He  was  a  verj-  genial,  pleasant 
man,  and  in  consequence  very  popular.  The 
name  of  "  Ben  Campbell  "  on  the  upper  Missis- 
sippi was  as  well  known  in  steamboating  as  other 
names  now  are  in  railroading,  and  one  of  the 
finest  steamers  named  after  him  was  a  special 
favorite  with  the  traveling  public. 

His  life-long  friend,  Mr.  J.  l-lussell  Jones,  pays 
him  this  tribute: 

I  was  probably  better  acciuainteti  with  Mr.  Campbell  than 
any  of  his  acquaintances,  and  I  fully  appreciate  the  noble 
characteristics  and  lovable  disposition  which  marked  his 
course  through  lifc.  We  were  associated  together  in  business 
enterprises  for  over  fifty  years,  and  during  that  time  I  never 
knew  him  to  do  an  ungallant  or  unprofessional  act.  He  was 
the  soul  of  honor  and  uprightness.  In  1840  1  cntereti  his 
employ  as  clerk  in  Galena,  Illinois,  and  for  seventeen  years  I 
was  associated  with  him  in  the  wholes;ile  grocery  business  as 
clerk  or  partner.  I  came  to  Chicago  in  1861,  and  he  followed 
me  eight  years  later.  During  my  twenty-five  years'  connec- 
tion with  the  Chicago  West  Division  Railway  System,  as 
president,  he  was  associated  with  me  as  vice-president,  and 
one  of  the  directors.  During  my  fifty  years'  business  connec- 
tion with  him  we  have  been  on  the  most  intimate  terms.  He 
was  a  very  successful  business  man.  He  was  always  popular 
by  reason  of  his  amiability  and  genial  manner. 


WILLARD    HALL    PORTER, 


Wll.MlNCTON,   DEL. 


A.S  one  of  the  commissioners  of  the  World's 
Columbian  E.xposition,  to  be  held  at  Chi- 
cago, in  iS<_)3,  Mr.  Porter  brings  to  his  position 
the  fruits  of  a  ripe  scholarship  and  a  rich  and 
varied  e.xperience.  He  is  a  native  of  Wilming- 
ton, Delaware,  and  was  born  April  7,  1854.  He, 
early  in  life,  decided  to  enter  the  legalprofession, 
and  after  graduating  from  Princeton  College  pur- 
sued a  course  of  study  at  Columbia  Law  College. 
He  has  j)racticed  his  profession  in  his  native  city 
and  State  with  much  success,  and  attained  a  high 
position  among  the  leading  lawyers  of  that  com- 
monwealth.    He   is  recognized  as  a  leading  man 


in  his  cit\-  and  community,  aiul  as  such  has  been 
honored  with  manj-  positions  of  confidence  and 
trust,  and  his  selection  as  one  of  the  commis- 
sioners of  the  World's  Columbian  Exposition 
was  a  most  natural,  and  in  the  fullest  sense  a 
commendable  one.  At  the  present  time  (1892) 
he  is  president  of  the  Delaware  Society  for  the 
Prevention  of  Cruelty  to  Children,  and  attorney 
for  the  Delaware  Society  for  the  Prevention  of 
Cruelty  to  Animals,  and  he  takes  a  special  pride 
in  his  office  as  secretary  of  the  Delaware  His- 
torical Society,  of  which  the  Hon.  Thomas  V . 
Bayard  is  an  active  member. 


432 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Mr.  Porter  holds  a  liigh  social  position,  and  is 
usually  at  the  head  of  leading  social  events  in  his 
State.  In  political  faith  and  affiliation  he  has 
always  been  a  Democrat,  but  has  uniformly  de- 
clined political  preferment. 


In  all  his  varied  relations  Mr.  Porter  has  main- 
tained a  matily  bearing,  and  by  reason  of  his 
integrity  of  purpose,  his  splendid  abilities  and  his 
nobility  of  character,  he  enjoys  well-merited  con- 
fidence and  esteem. 


FRANK    NEWTON    GAGE, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


FRANK  NEWTON  GAGE  was  born  at  Wal- 
tham,  Massachusetts,  July  24,  1853,  ^"^  's  the 
son  of  John  N.  and  Martha  (Webster)  Gage. 
His  father  settled  in  Chicago  in  1857,  and  founded 
the  house  of  Webster  &  Gage,  which  after- 
wards became  Gage  Bros.  &  Company,  wholesale 
dealers  in  fancy  goods  and  millinery. 

Frank  was  educated  in  the  public  schools  of 
Chicago,  graduating  from  the  "  ^Id  Central  " 
high  school  with  honors  in  1870.  Having  a 
predilection  for  commercial  rather  than  profes- 
sional life,  he,  upon  leaving  school,  entered  the 
business  of  Gage  Bros.  &  Company,  and  the 
great  fire,  which  made  Chicago  famous,  coming 
the  following  year,  gave  him  an  opportunity 
for  rapid  advancement  which  he  was  not  slow  to 
avail  himself  of.  For  fifteen  years  following,  or 
until  January  i,  1885,  when  he  organized  the  cor- 
poration known  as  "  The  Gage-Downs  Corset  Com- 
pany," of  which  he  became  treasurer  and  mana- 
ger, he  was  well  known  in  the  Chicago  business 
world,  and  tireless  in  his  efforts  for  success  and 
advancement. 

The  following  si.vc  years,  in  which  a  successful 
manufacturing  business  was  established,  were 
equally  active.  Disposing  of  his  interest  and 
severing  his  connection  with  this  corporation  in 
the  early  part  of  1891,  his  attention  has  since 
been  given  to  his  large  estate  and  the  supervision 
of  his  diversified  financial  interests,  which  )iLld 
him  a  comfortable  income. 

Mr.  Gage  finds  time  outside  of  this  to  attend 
to  the  duties  of  president  of  the  North  American 
Accident  Association,  and  is  quite  active  in  the 
management  of  several  successful  building  and 
loan  associations  as  well  as  on  the  Chicago  Stock 
E.xchange. 

A  lover  of  good  horses,  several  of  which  can  be 
found  in   his  well-a])i)()inted   stable,  he    is  a  mem- 


ber of  the  Washington  Park  Club,  and  his  artistic 
instincts  are  shown  by  his  enrollment  as  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Art  Institute. 

In  June,  1888,  Mr.  Gage  was  elected  president 
of  the  National  Union  (he  having  become  a  mem- 
of  same  in  1883),  a  beneficial  order,  having 
something  over  thirty  thousand  members,  and 
during  his  term  of  office,  which  expired  in  June. 
1890,  he  had  full  jurisdiction  over  the  whole  order, 
and  performed  the  duties  of  his  office  in  an  e.xem- 
plary  manner.  He  is  also  a  member  of  the  Royal 
Arcanum,  the  Royal  League  and  the  Mystic  Cir- 
cle— all  well-known  fraternal  orders. 

He  has  traveled  extensively,  both  in  this 
country  and  Europe,  and  possessing,  as  he  does, 
a  retentive  memory,  and  graphic,  powers  of  de- 
scription, his  reminiscences  are  always  of  an  inter- 
esting and  entertaining  character. 

In  politics  he  is  a  Republican,  and  is  always 
true  to  his  party  on  national  and  other  important 
issues;  but  he  is  by  no  means  a  partisan,  in  the 
generally  accepted  sense  of  the  word,  and  beyond 
recording  his  vote,  as  occasion  may  require,  he 
takes  no  active  part  in  politics  generally. 

In  religious  faith  he  is  a  Universalist  and  is  a 
member  of  St.  Paul's  Universalist  Church.  It  is 
not  often  that  ayoungman  becomes  so  early  iden- 
tified with  the  practical  work  of  a  church  and  its 
Sunday  school,  as  did  Mr.  Gage,  for  he  has  been 
an  officer  of  this  church  for  many  years,  and 
connected  with  the  Sunday  .school  work  since 
i860.  This  is  an  honorable  record,  and  one  of 
which  Mr.  Gage  is  naturally  proud.  He  has  not 
vet  reached  the  meridian  of  life,  and  the  church 
of  which  he  is  so  active  and  prominent  a  member 
anticipates  many  years  of  service  from  him. 

He  was  married  November  6,  i88g.  to  Miss 
Olive  E.  Lewis,  daughter  of  Mrs.  Mary  Lewis. 
Thev  have  one  child,  a  boy.  named  for  the  grand- 


l^lOCRArUICAl.  niCTIOXARV  AXn  rORTRAir  i.AI.I.ERV. 


435 


father,  Jolni  Newton  Gage.  Domestic  by  nature, 
Mr.  Gage  spends  much  of  the  lime  not  devoted  to 
business  interests  with  his  family,  and  he  is  never 
happier  than  when,  relieved  from  business  cares, 
he  is  able  to  join  his  family  and  enjoy  the  com- 
forts of    a    beautifully    situated,    richly   furnished 


and  well-regulated  home,  or  a   drive   behind   one 
or  more  of  his  well-bred  horses. 

Of  thorough  rectitude,  pleasing  address  and 
much  ability,  he  is  one  of  Chicago's  enterprising 
and  representative  citizens,  and  as  such  his 
biography  is  here  inserteil. 


D.   A.   K.   STEELE,   M.D. 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


TllKRE  arc  at  least  two  classes  of  beings 
that  are  born,  not  made;  and  if  the  poets 
consent,  we  would  say  that  one  of  them  is  the 
surgeon.  However  this  may  be,  as  a  general  prop- 
osition, it  will  certainly  be  supported  in  Chicago 
in  the  case  of  Daniel  Atkinson  King  Steele.  Of 
good  old  Irish  blood,  his  father.  Rev.  Daniel 
Steele,  was  born  near  Cookstown,  County  Tyrone, 
Ireland,  in  the  ancient  country-.seat  known  as 
"Steele's  Rock,"  where  his  ancestors  have  lived 
and  died  for  over  a  hundred  years. 

Daniel  Steele,  the  elder,  was  a  Presbyterian 
minister,  and  after  some  years  of  missionary  work 
in  Western  Ireland,  he,  with  his  young  wife, 
Mar\-  (  Leatham)  Anderson,  came  to  America,  and 
settled  in  Eden,  Delaware  county,  Ohio.  In  that 
place,  on  the  29th  of  March,  1852,  was  born  the 
subject  of  our  sketch.  When  Daniel  was  two 
years  old  his  parents  removed  to  a  farm  near 
Pinckneyville,  Perry  count}-,  Illinois.  His  educa- 
tion began  in  the  old  log  schoolhouse  on  Grand 
Cote  Prairie.  Besides  his  school  duties  he  assisted 
his  father  on  the  farm,  losing,  perhaps,  a  little 
time  for  study,  but  gaining  the  inestimable  ad- 
vantage of  a  youth  spent  in  the  open  air.  What- 
ever his  drawbacks,  at  fifteen  he  was  ready  to 
enter  the  academy  at  Oakdale,  and  on  the  re- 
moval of  his  father  to  Rantoul,  did  excellent 
work  as  a  teacher. 

In  1S69  he  began  the  study  of  medicine  under 
Dr.  D.  P.  McClure,  of  Rantoul,  at  the  same  time 
acting  as  clerk  in  a  drugstore.  In  1870  he  came 
to  Chicago,  and  took  a  three-years'  course  at  the 
Chicago  Medical  College,  graduating  in  1873. 
During  his  senior  year  he  was  Prosector  of  Anat- 
omy in  the  college,  and  immediately  after  gradu- 
ation was  made  Demonstrator  of  y\natomy  at  the 
Chicago  School  of  Anatomy.     Especially  desirous 


of  rapid  ad\ancement  in  surgery,  he  took  a  com- 
petitive examination  for  the  position  of  interne 
in  the  Cook  County  Hospital,  and  won,  as  the 
result,  the  position  of  house  surgeon.  In  this 
capacity  he  continued  two  years,  and  then  began 
general  practice,  at  the  same  time  acting  as  clini- 
cal assistant  to  the  celebrated  Dr.  Moses  Gunn, 
of  Rush  Medical  College.  In  1875  he  was  made 
Attending  Surgeon  at  the  South  Side  Free  Dis- 
pensary, and,  in  1876,  Lecturer  on  .Surgery  at  the 
Chicago  Medical  College.  Leaving  this  institu- 
tion in  1882,  he,  in  company  with  several  other 
prominent  physicians,  was  greatly  instrumental  in 
founding  the  Chicago  College  of  Physicians  and 
Surgeons,  which  has  since  proven  itself  so  invalu- 
able an  acquisition  to  the  medical  institutions  of 
Chicago.  In  this  institution  he  acted  as  Professor 
of  Orthop.nedic  Surgery  until  1886.  At  that  time 
the  resignation  of  the  eminent  Dr.  Nicholas  Senn, 
formerly  of  Milwaukee,  left  vacant  the  chair  of 
Principles  and  Practice  of  Surgery  and  Clinical 
Surgery.  Dr.  Steele,  though  younger  by  ten 
years  than  those  who  usually  occupy  this  chair, 
was  called  to  fill  it,  which  he  has  done  with  em- 
phatic success. 

Dr.  Steele  was  one  of  the  originators  of  the 
Chicago  Biological  Society,  since  become  the 
Pathological  Society,  and  is  a  charter  member  of 
the  Chicago  Medical  Club,  a  very  select  organiza- 
tion designed  for  social  as  well  as  professional 
purposes.  He  was  the  first  president  of  the  Chi- 
cago Medico-Legal  Society,  and  in  1887,  ■'^"'1 
again  in  1890,  was  made  president  of  the  Medical 
Board  of  Cook  County  Hospital,  where,  for  eight 
>-ears,  he  was  Attending  .Surgeon.  In  1886  he  be- 
came president  of  the  Chicago  .Medical  Society, 
and  in  the  .Slate  and  National  medical  associa- 
tions stands  in  the  foremost  rank. 


436 


niOGRAPIIlCAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


In  1888  Dr.  Steele  was  sent  by  the  American 
Medical  Association  as  a  delegate  to  the  British 
Medical  Association,  at  its  annual  coinention  in 
Glasgow,  Scotland.  He  visited  the  medical  insti- 
tutions of  England,  France,  Germany  and  Switz- 
erland, making  many  important  investigations  for 
the  benefit  of  home  science.  Much  of  this  in- 
formation he  has  since  embodied  in  a  paper 
entitled  "  A  Chicago  Physician's  Impressions  and 
Observations  of  European  Surgery."  His  re- 
searches were  much  furthered  by  the  acquaint- 
ance of  such  men  as  Lister,  MacCormick  and 
Heath,  of  London  ;  Martin,  of  Berlin,  and  Mc- 
Ewan,  of  Glasgow.  Apropos  of  a  little  matter 
which  came  up  during  this  visit,  Dr.  Steele  after- 
ward opened  with  an  eminent  English  physician 
the  correspondence  on  professional  etiquette 
which  attracted  so  much  attention  at  home  and 
abroad.  Not  a  great  while  after  this  Dr.  Steele 
again  visited  Europe,  this  time  as  a  delegate  to 
the  Ninth  International  Medical  Congress,  held 
at  Berlin.  A  pleasure  excursion  as  well  as  a  pro- 
fessional obligation,  this  trip  took  him  through 
Vienna,  Rome,  the  galleries  of  Florence,  Munich 
and  all  the  principal  points  of  interest  on  the 
Continent. 

During  the   past  year  Dr.  Steele   has   taken  a 


very  active  part  in  the  founding  of  one  of  the 
noblest  institutions  of  which  our  city  boasts — the 
Public  Medical  Library  of  Chicago,  under  the 
leadership  of  Dr.  N.  S.  Davis.  So  well  is  Dr. 
Steele  known  as  a  writer  that  it  is  needless  to  say 
more  than  that  his  contributions  to  medical  litera- 
ture are  as  valuable  as  they  are  numerous. 

He  is  a  Republican,  a  member  of  the  Presby- 
terian Church,  and  as  to  his  personal  character, 
that  can  best  be  judged  from  the  words  of  one  of 
the  foremost  physicians  of  the  city  :  "  Dr.  Steele 
is  an  extremely  busy  and  successful  practitioner, 
constantly  overburdened  by  demands  for  his  serv- 
ices, socially  and  professionally.  He  is  a  man  of 
the  highest  and  purest  character,  an  industrious 
and  ambitious  student,  and  a  gifted  teacher  of 
surgery.  Genial  in  disposition,  unobtrusive  and 
unassuming,  he  is  himself  patient  under  adverse 
criticism,  and  in  his  expressions  concerning 
brother  practitioners  is  friendly  and  indulgent." 

In  1876  Dr.  Steele  was  married  to  Miss  Alice 
L.  Tomlinson,  daughter  of  Sheldon  Tomlinson. 
Esq.,  an  old  and  prominent  citizen  of  Champaign 
count)-,  Illinois.  Mrs.  Steele  is  a  woman  of  un- 
usual intellectual  qualities,  deeply  interested  in 
her  husband's  professional  work,  and  in  the  home 
a  most  amiable  hostess. 


ARTHUR    DIXON, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


ARTHUR  DIXON  is  one  of  Chicago's  most 
respected  citizens;  his  private  character  is 
one  to  be  admired  and  loved  ;  his  public  rccnrtl  is 
without  a  blemish.  Throughout  his  life  he  has 
been  actuated  by  pure  motives  and  nianh'  princi- 
ples, and  by  following  a  fi.xed  purpose  tn  make 
the  most  and  best  of  himself,  he  has  overcome 
many  difficulties  and  risen  stc])  b\'  step  to  a  place 
of  influence  and  honor  among  ]uihlic-spirited, 
high-minded   men. 

lie  is  of  Scotch-Irish  descent,  and  was  born 
Mrch  27,  1837,  in  h'ermanagh  County,  North  of 
Ireland,  in  the  charming  rural  district  of  Lough- 
killygreen,  the  son  of  Arthur  and  Jane  (.Allen) 
Di.Non.  The  former  was  a  Scotchman,  whose 
father  and  brother  held  commissions  in  the  Brit- 
ish arnu'.      His  father  was  a    man    of   niore   than 


ortiinar\-  intelligence,  and  by  occupation  was  a 
farmer  and  a  country  school  teacher.  He  also 
])racticed  with  considerable  success  as  a  country 
attorney. 

lie  hail  four  sons  and  one  daughter,  Elizabeth 
Carson,  wife  of  Thomas  Carson  of  Chicago;  they 
are  the  onl_\'  two  survivors,  and  from  him  .Arthur 
rccei\ctl  his  early  instructions,  antl  inherited 
many  sterling  traits  of  character  that  ha\e  sig- 
nally characterized  his  life.  His  memory,  as  well 
as  that  of  his  mother,  is  held  in  sacred  remem- 
brance b\'  the  son.  and  he  never  speaks  of  them 
except  with  feelings  of  most  tender  and  affection- 
ate regard. 

Arthur  attended  the  district  and  national 
schools  during  his  boyhood,  and  early  developed 
a    fonilness    for    mathematics,    logic,  histor\-    and 


niOGRAl'HICAL  D/Cr/OX.tRV  .IXP  PORTR.UT  ClLLrRV. 


439 


ciucstions  of  moral  and  social  ethics.  Ho  was  an 
apt  scholar  and  read  much,  and  took  a  livclx- 
interest  in  all  stirring  questions  of  the  day,  and 
watched  with  boyish  enthusiasm  and  delij^ht  the 
pro5:;ress  of  events.  He  loved  home  and  its  envir- 
onments and  attended  regularly  the  Episcopalian 
and  Methodist  Sunday  Schools  and  services. 
The  discipline  of  those  early  years,  and  the  influ- 
ence of  his  surroundings  during  the  formative 
period  of  his  character,  left  an  impression  that  has 
marked  all  his  subsequent  life.  He  had  read 
glowing  reports  of  the  Republic  across  the  Atlan- 
tic, and  early  resolved  to  go  thither  and  seek  his 
fortune,  and  when  eighteen  years  old,  put  his  res- 
olution into  action.  Going  to  Philadelphia,  Penn- 
sylvania, where  he  had  some  friends,  he  remained 
with  them  for  a  time  and  on  July  4,  1858,  went  to 
Pittsburgh  and  spent  three  years  in  the  nurserj' 
busine-ss,  learning  tree  planting  and  grafting. 

In  1861  Mr.  Dixon  began  clerking  in  the 
grocery  house  of  Mr.  G.  C.  Cook,  at  Chicago,  but 
soon  afterwards  opened  a  retail  grocery  store  on 
his  own  account  and  conducted  it  with  good  suc- 
cess some  two  years.  In  the  spring  of  1863  he 
established  a  general  teaming  business  at  No.  299 
Wells  street,  now  Fifth  avenue,  being  led  into 
that  line  of  business  by  seemingly  a  mere  acci- 
dental circumstance.  He  had  been  obliged  to 
take  a  team  of  horses  and  wagon  in  payment  of  a 
grocery  debt,  and  with  them  he  began  that  busi- 
ness which,  under  his  careful  and  skillful  manage- 
ment, has  prospered  and  grown  until  it  is  now 
( 1892)  the  largest  of  its  kind  west  of  New  York 
City.  Mr.  Di.xon  has  been  untiring  in  his  vigi- 
lance in  watching  the  interests  of  his  patrons, 
among  whom  are  many  whose  business  he  has 
done  for  nearly  thirty  years.  Financially,  the 
business  has  yielded  most  satisfactory  results,  and 
for  many  years  its  proprietor  has  been  known  as 
one  of  Chicago's  prosperous  and  thrifty  business 
men.  Mr.  Dixon  has  been  prominently  identi- 
fied with  many  public  interests,  and  has  been  a 
well-known  character  in  Chicago  for  thirty  years. 
During  the  war  of  the  rebellion  he  was  active 
in  response  to  the  calls  of  President  Lincoln  in 
enlisting  and  equipping  men  for  the  service.  He 
became  especially  prominent  in  1866  by  the 
active  part  he  took  in  the  establishment  of  the 
fire  limits,  which  was  then  agitating,  and  in  the 
sjiring  of  the  following  year  was  elected    Alder- 


man from  the  second  ward  of  Chicago,  on  the  same 
ticket  with  e.x-Mayor  Rice.  From  that  time  un- 
til April,  1S91,  when  he  voluntarily  declined  to 
longer  remain  a  member  of  the  City  Council,  he 
was  re-elected  with  increased  majorities,  and  some- 
times without  opposition,  and  has  the  honor  of 
having  served  longer  than  any  other  Alderman  of 
Chicago.  He  was  often  called  "  The  Nestor  of 
the  Aldermen." 

Arthur  Dixon  was  presented  bj-  a  delegation, 
January  i,  with  the  following  resolution,  richly 
bound  and  superbly  illumined  and  engrossed. 
This  volume  is  prized  as  one  of  his  richest  treas- 
ures; 

.At  a  regular  meeting  of  the  City  Council  of  the  City  of 
Chicago  held  .April  27,  1891,  the  following  preamble  and 
regulations,  endorsing  the  official  actions  of  Alderman  Arthur 
Dixon,  were  unanimously  adopted : 

Whereas,  The  City  Council  of  the  City  of  Chicago  is 
about  to  lose  the  servipcs  of  its  oldest  and  best-known  mem- 
ber, through  his  voluntary  and  we  hope  temporary  retire- 
ment from  the  political  field  of  action, 

Resolved,  That  we,  the  colleagues,  some  of  many  years, 
others  of  short  acquaintance,  tender  to  Alderman  Dixon  on 
this  occasion  the  expression  ot  our  heartiest  good  wishes  for 
his  future,  and  also  the  expression  of  our  appreciation  of  the 
loss  which  the  Council  and  the  City  sustain  through  his 
withdrawal  from  our  municipal  legislature; 

Resolv.d,  That  we  place  on  record  our  conviction  of  his 
great  public  worth,  his  zeal  for  honest  and  economical  gov- 
ernment, his  sincere  interest  in  the  cause  of  the  taxpayers, 
and  his  undoubted  and  unquestioned  ability  in  every  position 
assigned  to  him,  and  further  we  record  the  expression  of  our 
hope  that  his  zeal,  his  earnestness  and  ability  may  soon  be 
utilized  for  the  public  in  some  new  capacity;  and  be  it 
further 

Resolved,  That  the  City  Clerk  be,  and  is  hereby  directed 
to  spread  this  preamble  and  the  resolutions  upon  the  records 
of  the  Council,  and  to  present  to  Alderman  .Arthur  Dixon  a 
suitably  engrossed  copy  of  the  same. 

Hemp.  W.\shi!IRNE,  Mayor. 

J.^MES  R.  R.  Van  Ci.eavk,  City  Clerk. 

He  has  been  editorially  described  in  the  Chi- 
cago papers  as  "  The  careful  guardian  of  the 
City's  interests  against  the  assaults  of  boodlers, 
corruptionists  and  monopolists,"  and  was  called 
the  watch-dog  of  the  citj'  treasury- 

In  1S74,  after  a  bitter  contest,  he  was  chosen 
President  of  the  City  Council,  and  he  was  re-elected 
to  the  same  honorable  position  for  six  years.  He 
served  as  chairman  of  all  important  committees 
at  various  times,  and  on  many  occasions  was 
elected  unanimously.  As  a  member  of  the  .Mder- 
manic  council  Mr.  Dixon  was  a  recognized  le;ider 
in  debate,  a  [iracticed  parliamentarian  of  the  city 


440 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  A.XD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


charter.  He  advocated  among  other  important 
measures,  that  of  the  city's  owning  her  own  gas 
plant :  high  water  pressure  ;  building  sewers  by 
special  assessnnents ;  the  creation  of  a  public 
library  ;  the  annexation  of  the  suburbs  ;  the  build- 
ing of  viaducts  over  railway  crossings;  the  drain- 
age law  ;  the  city's  receiving  the  interest  on  her 
public  funds;  the  extension  of  the  fire  limits,  etc. 
He  opposed  the  erection  of  elevated  railroads 
upon  public  thoroughfares,  and  is  one  of  a  com- 
mittee of  three  favoring  a  subway  connecting 
Michigan  boulevard  with  the  Lake  shore  drive. 
He  was  appointed,  by  the  Mayor,  one  of  the  exec- 
utive committee  of  arrangement  for  the  World's 
Columbian  Exposition,  and  was  also  one  of  the 
committee  that  helped  in  arranging  and  passing 
the  ordinance  providing  for  the  loan  of  five  mil- 
lion dollars  for  the  Exposition. 

In  April,  1892,  he  was  elected  a  director  of  the 
Exposition  and  his  services  and  counsels  in  that 
capacity  have  been  invaluable  in  the  prosecution 
of  this  enormous  enterprise. 

Mr.  Dixon  represented  the  First  Senatorial 
District  in  the  Twenty-seventh  General  Assembly 
of  Illinois,  and  as  a  member  of  that  body  had 
charge  of  measures  and  rendered  services  of  great 
value  to  the  city  of  Chicago.  Among  the  bills 
introduced  by  him  and  passed  was  that  provid- 
ing for  the  location  of  the  Chicago  Public  Library, 
the  drainage  canal,  and  that  authorizing  the  one 
mill  tax  and  special  assessment. 

For  over  twenty  years  he  has  been  a  member 
of  the  City  and  County  Republican  Central  com- 
mittees, and  many  times  chairman  of  the  same. 
In  1868  he  was  the  first  president  of  the  Irish-Re- 
publican organization  in  Chicago,  and  the  follow- 
ing year  was  president  of  the  National  Irish-Re- 
publican convention  held  in  Chicago,  and  was 
elected  treasurer  of  that  organization.  In  iSjj 
he  was  a  prominent  candidate  for  Congress,  and 
lacked  but  a  few  votes  of  receiving  the  nomina- 
tion. He  was  a  delegate  in  the  National  Conven- 
tion, in  1880,  that  nominated  James  A.  Garfield 
for  the  Presidency.  In  all  his  public  career  Mr. 
Dixon  has  maintained  a  character  above  reproach, 
and  all  his  actions  have  been  straight-forward, 
business-like  and  in  the  interest  of  good  govern- 
ment. 

He  became  a  member  of  the  Masonic  fraternity 
in  1865,  and  is  now  a  life  member  of  the  Chapter, 


the     Commandery     Knights    Templar,     and     the 
thirty-second  degree  of  Scottish  rite. 

He  is  also  a  member  of  the  Union  League,  La 
Salle,  Hamilton,  Irish-American  and  Sheridan 
clubs  and  has  held  ofificial  positions  in  most  of 
them  at  different  times.  He  has  also  been  presi- 
dent of  the  Irish  Literary  Society,  and  is  a  man 
of  a  literary  turn  of  mind.  His  library  contains 
the  choicest  books  of  the  best  editions,  finely 
bound  and  carefully  selected,  containing  a  due 
proportion  of  religious,  scientific,  poetic,  philo- 
sophic and  humorous  volumes.  Here,  among  his 
silent  but  eloquent  companions,  Arthur  Dixon 
finds  the  chief  charm  and  pleasure  of  his  life. 

Mr.  Dixon  was  raised  in  the  Episcopalian  faith, 
but  for  many  years  has  been  prominently  identi- 
fied with  the  First  Methodist  Church,  of  Chicago, 
and  is  one  of  the  Trustees  of  that  organization. 
He  has  always  taken  an  active  part  in  religious 
work  and  for  twenty-five  years  has  taught  a  Bible 
class  of  young  men  in  Sunday  School. 

In  1862  Mr.  Dixon  married  Miss  Anna  Carson, 
of  Pittsburgh,  Pennsylvania,  and  by  her  has  had 
fourteen  children,  thirteen  of  whom  survive. 
Domestic  in  his  tastes,  and  home-loving,  he  finds 
no  place  so  attractive  as  his  own  fire-side,  and 
there,  in  the  company  of  his  estimable  wife  and 
merry,  light-hearted,  happy  children,  passes  his 
happiest  hours. 

His  personal  qualities  are  of  a  high  order;  while 
firm  in  his  own  convictions,  he  is  tolerant  of  the 
views  of  others  who  differ  from  him  in  o[)inicin. 
He  is  liberal,  broad-minded  and  charitable,  and  in 
his  dealings  with  his  fellow-men  is  unselfish,  gen- 
erous and  the  soul  of  honor. 

He  is  a  man  of  strictly  temperate  habits,  and 
virtuous  and  upright  in  every  relation  of  life.  In 
a  word,  Mr.  Arthur  Dixon  is  a  Christian  gentle- 
man. 

He  is  six  feet  tall  with  a  well-pniportioned 
physique,  of  fair  complexion  and  robust  health 
and  weighs  over  two  hundred  pounds. 

Rev.  William  Farwsitt,  D.  D.,  pastor  of  the 
First  Methodist  Church  of  Chicago,  says :  "Mr. 
Arthur  Dixon  has  been  a  member  of  the  First 
Methodist  Church,  in  this  city,  for  over  thirty 
years,  and  the  greater  part  of  that  time  he  has 
held  ofificial  positions  in  the  church.  He  is  also  a 
Trustee  of  the  great  First  Church  property,  and  in 
the  distribution  of  the  funds  for  the  aid  of  Mission 


lilOGRArUICAI.  IUCT/OX.UkV  .t.\/i  rORT/i.UT  i,.\I.U-.l<V. 


441 


churches  many  a  poor,  stru^glirij^  church  has 
found  in  Artluir  DixoYi  a  friend  in  need.  l''or 
many  (over  twenty-eight)  years  he  lias  been  a 
teacher  of  a  l>ibie  class  in  the  Sabb.ith  School  of 
the  First  Church,  and  out  from  that  class,  and 
from  his  instructions  men  have  gone  into  leading 
positions  in  the  Methodist  Church  in  Chicago, 
and  through  the  countrj-.  It  is  not  an  uncom- 
mon thing  to  find  men  in  all  parts  of  the  country 
who  attribute  the  highest  impulse  of  their  lives  to 


the  instruction  they  received  in  his  Bible  class. 
Perhaps  the  best  evidence  of  Mr.  Di.xon's  Chris- 
tian character  and  influence  is  found  in  his  own 
home,  where  a  large  family  of  sons  and  daughters 
love  him  dearly  and  have  the  faith  of  their  father 
by  their  association  and  work  in  the  Methodist 
Church.  If,  as  some  one  has  said,  'the  best  evi- 
dence of  a  man's  Christian  character  is  what  his 
children  think  of  his  Christianity,'  then  is  Arthur 
Dixon  an  honored  Christian." 


EDWARD   WILLIAM    RUSSELL, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


AMONG  the  lawyers  who  began  practicing  at 
the  Chicago  bar  in  the  early  years  of  its 
history  as  a  city,  many  found  it  more  profitable 
to  confine  themselves  largely  to  an  office  practice 
than  to  engage  in  the  active  litigation  of  causes. 
While  it  has  followed  that  lawyers  of  this  class 
have  achieved  as  much  professional  distinction, 
they  have  received  less  professional  notoriety 
than  some  of  their  contemporaries. 

The  jury  lawyer  who  successfully  conducts  his 
client  through  the  uncertain  mazes  of  litigation, 
always  achieves  greater  notoriety  than  his  col- 
league who  devotes  himself  to  that  branch  of 
practice  which  is  designed  to  keep  clients  out  of 
court;  but  the  latter  is,  perhaps,  the  more  useful 
public  servant  of  the  two,  and  deserves  no  less 
honorable  mention.  One  of  the  noted  lawyers  of 
this  class  is  Edward  William  Russell,  who  set- 
tled in  Chicago  in  1858,  and  for  thirty-three 
years  has  been  a  practicing  attorney  of  the  Chi- 
cago bar. 

Mr.  Russell  was  born  in  Sunderland,  l-nuiklin 
county,  Massachusetts,  July  2,  1834,  of  pure 
Puritan  stock.  He  is  the  son  of  William 
W.  and  Lucretia  (Delano)  Russell.  His  mother 
was  a  direct  descendant  of  John  and  I'riscilla 
Alden,  made  famous  in  song  by  Longfellow. 
On  his  father's  side,  among  the  earliest  ances 
tors  in  this  country,  was  the  Rev.  John  Rus- 
sell, the  first  Congregational  minister  who  settled 
in  Hadlcy,  Ma.ssachusetts.  His  father  was  a 
farmer,  and  the  lad  had  the  training  usual  to 
farm  life,  "  being  a  boy "  of  the  genuine  New 
England  stamp  of  those  days,  alternating  his  work 


on  the  farm  with  the  studies  in  the  district  school, 
enjoying,  however,  some  additional  educational 
ad\'antages,  as  a  result  of  which  we  find  him,  at 
the  age  of  seventeen,  graduating  from  Williston 
Seminary,  of  East  Hampton,  Massachusetts. 
From  the  age  of  seventeen  to  twenty  he  taught 
school,  and  at  the  same  time  devoted  his  leisure 
to  reading  law.  He  afterward  continued  his  law 
studies  in  the  office  of  Messrs.  Wilcox  &  Gray, 
at  Detroit,  Michigan,  where  he  was  admitted  to 
the  bar  in  1858.  During  the  same  year  he  re- 
moved to  Chicago,  with  the  view  of  making  it 
his  permanent  home.  In  1861  he  formed  a  co- 
partnership with  Francis  S.  Howe  Esq.,  then  a 
highly  esteemed  member  of  the  bar,  under  the 
firm  name  of  Howe  &  Russell.  This  firm 
maintained  an  honorable  and  prominent  position 
at  the  Chicago  bar,  until  it  was  dissolved  by 
the  death  of  Mr.  Howe,  in  1878,  since  which  time 
Mr.  Russell  has  practiced  law  without  a  partner, 
devoting  his  energies  to  corporation  and  real 
estate  law,  and  acting  as  counsel.  For  years  he 
has  been  the  general  counsel  for  the  Illinois 
Trust  and  Savings  Bank  and  several  other  large 
corporations. 

Mr.  Russell  was  married  in  St.  James  Church, 
Chicago,  June,  1864,  to  Miss  Maria  Jesup,  of 
Albany,  New  York.  The  union  has  been  blessed 
with  two  daughters  and  one  son. 

In  politics  Mr.  Russell  is  a  staunch  Republican, 
though  never  an  office-holder  nor  an  ofificc-seeker. 
He  is  one  of  those  men  who  is  wedded  to  his  pro- 
fession. "  The  law,"  says  an  old  ma.xim,  "  is  an 
exacting  mistress,  and  he  who  would  become  one 


44 : 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXAKY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


of  her  votaries  must  give  her  all  his  time  and  at- 
tention." This  seems  to  be  the  view  which  Mr. 
Russell  has  taken  of  his  profession,  and  he  has 
devoted  himself  diligently  and  assiduously  to  the 
duties  of  active  practice. 

Mr.  Russell  is  an  able  ad\ocatc,  a  law)er  who 


knows  the  law,  and  a  counselor  who  advises  clients 
carefully  and  conscientiously.  He  is  not  less  es- 
teemed as  a  citizen  of  Chicago  than  as  a  member  of 
the  bar,  and  his  kindly  impulses  and  charming  cor- 
diality of  manner  have  made  him  popular  among 
all  classes  of  people. 


HENRY    HOWEY   SHUFELDT, 


CHIC.-\GO,    ILL. 


THE  subject  of  this  sketch  was  born  in 
Dutchess  county.  New  York,  March  30, 
1834.  His  father,  George  A.  Shufeldt,  was  an 
Adiniialty  lawyer  in  New  York  City,  whose 
ancestors  were  Hanoverians  who  came  to  this 
country  in  1702,  and  were  granted  lands  on  the 
Hudson  river  by  Queen  Anne.  His  mother  was 
the  daughter  of  an  English  clergyman  who  came 
to  this  country  in  1783,  and  whose  grandfather 
was  for  fifty-four  years  in  charge  of  one  church  in 
Wooler,  Northumberland,  England.  The  grand- 
father of  Mr.  Shufeldt  was  intimately  associated, 
after  coming  to  this  countrj-,  with  Chancellor  Liv- 
ingston, and  his  mother  was  a  child-companion  of 
the  distinguished  Chancellor.  She  died  at  the 
age  of  ninety-si.x.  At  the  last  interview  of  this 
son  with  his  mother,  in  reply  t<>  the  question, 
"Do  you  remember  Robert  l'\ilton?"  she  said: 
"I  sat  on  the  lap  of  Chancellor  LivingstdU  when 
Robert  Fulton  made  the  contract  with  him  re- 
garding the  running  of  the  first  steamboat  on  the 
Hudson  river." 

Mr.  Shufeldt  was  educated  in  the  common 
schools  of  his  native  county,  and  afterward  went 
through  the  grammar  school  of  Columbia  Col- 
lege, then  in  charge  of  Charles  Anthon,  and  the 
Kingston  Academy  in  Ulster  county,  in  which 
his  father  had  been  prepared  for  Union  College, 
of  which  the  distinguished  Doctor  Nott  was  then 
president.  An  inclination  for  the  sea,  inherited 
from  an  ancestry  of  sailors  and  naval  people,  was 
fostered  by  the  reading  of  Marryat's  sea  novels, 
and  at  the  age  of  sixteen,  in  the  year  1 850,  he 
went  to  sea.  Between  the  years  1850  and  1857 
he  made  seventy  voyages  to  the  West  Indies  as 
sailor  and  navigating  officer,  one  voyage  around 
the  world  and  several  across  the  Atlantic.  He 
was  in  China  tluring  tin-  great   Taeping  Rebellion 


and  was  shut  up  for  a  number  of  months  in  the 
Yang-tse-Kiang  river  during  the  siege  of  Shanghai. 
A  brother  of  his  is  the  present  Admiral  Shufeldt 
of  the  United  States  navy,  who  was  instrumental 
in  securing  the  Corean  treaty  with  China,  which 
no  other  power  had  been  able  to  do. 

In  the  last  month  of  the  year  1857  Mr.  Shufeldt 
settled  in  Chicago  and  has  remained  there  ever 
since.  In  1858  he  went  into  the  distilling  busi- 
ness, and  the  well-known  firm  of  H.  H.  Shufeldt 
&  Company  has  from  that  time,  without  change 
of  name,  been  one  of  the  leading  houses  of  that 
branch  of  business  in  the  country.  The  relations 
of  this  great  hou.se  with  the  United  States  govern- 
ment have  always  been  of  the  most  honorable 
character,  and  it  has  paid  in  taxes  to  the  govern- 
ment, without  attempt  at  evasion,  some  eighty 
million  dollars.  Mr.  Shufeldt  retired  from  active 
business  in  June,  1 89 1. 

In  1859  ^Ir.  Shufeldt  married  Miss  Emeline 
Egan,  a  daughter  of  William  B.  Egan,  a  physi- 
cian, whose  name  is  prominently  associated 
with  the  history  of  Chicago,  and  who  is  remem- 
bered by  many  of  its  older  residents.  By 
this  union  Mr.  Shufeldt  has  three  children,  all 
married — one  daughter  living  at  Seattle,  on  the 
Pacific  coast,  another  in  New  York  City  and  one 
son  living  in  Chicago. 

In  religion  and  politics  Mr.  Shufeldt  is  a  man  of 
liberal  and  independent  views.  As  a  citizen, 
while  entertaining  enlightened  views  on  public 
questions,  he  is  in  no  respect  a  partisan. 

Socially,  Mr.  Shufeldt  is  one  of  the  most  cordial 
and  engaging  of  men.  His  elegant  city  residence 
and  his  beautiful  country  seat  at  Oconomowoc, 
where  he  delights  to  spend  his  summers,  are  open 
to  a  wide  and  generous  hospitality.  In  business 
he    is    sagacious    and    enterprising,    as    the    great 


cU^ 


BIOGR.irillCAl.  DICT/OXARY  .IXD  I'ORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


445 


success  of  the  house  that  bears  his  name  attests,  is  always  ready  to  espouse  the  cause  of  any  one 

His  business  methods  have   been  a  model  which  who  has  any  claim  on  him  whatever,  and  there  is 

other    houses    have    sought    to    imitate.      In    his  no   doubt   that   his  success  and   popularity  have 

relation  to  employes    and   customers  he  is    sym-  been  largely  owing  to  this  warm  personal  interest 

pathetic  and  makes  their  interests  his  own.     He  he  takes  in  the  success  and  welfare  of  others. 


WILLIAM    LAW,   JR. 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


AMONG  the  names  of  distinguished  members 
of  the  Chicago  bar,  that  of  William  Law, 
Jr.,  is  conspicuous.  He  was  born  on  January  31, 
184I,  in  Hancock  county,  Illinois.  He  is  the 
son  of  Dr.  William  Law,  now  a  retired  plusiciaii 
of  prominence  of  ShuUsburg,  Wisconsin. 

His  jxirents  came  from  the  North  of  Ireland 
and  settled  in  ShuUsburg,  where  William  received 
his  elementary  education  from  a  private  tutor, 
and  continued  his  studies  in  the  I'lattsville 
Academy. 

In  1859  he  commenced  the  study  of  law,  the 
practice  of  which  was  to  be  his  life  profession. 
He  entered  the  office  of  Messrs.  Higher  &  Law, 
at  ShuUsburg,  and  later  pursued  his  studies  with 
Mr.  Oscar  Taylor,  in  Freeport,  Illinois.  In 
January,  1861,  he  entered  the  office  of  the  late 
Hon.  Jas.  H.  Knowlton,  a  lawyer  eminent  at  the 
Chicago  bar,  under  whose  preceptorship  he  com- 
pleted his  course  of  study.  He  was  admitted 
to  the  bar  in  1862,  and  immediately  commenced 
the  practice  of  his  profession. 

In  1864  he  located  in  Boise  City,  the  capital  of 
Idaho  Territory,  where  he  was  actively  engaged 
in  most  of  the  important  litigation  of  the  Idaho 
courts  during  his  residence  there,  and  was  for 
some  time  clerk  of  the  United  States  District 
Court  and  also  for  a  while  Acting  United  States 
Attorney.  He  returned  to  Chicago  in  1866,  and 
his  career  at  the  Chicago  bar  has  been  marked 
with  ability.  His  practice  has  been  general  and 
extended  to  all  of  the  courts,  and  while  it  has 
not  been  confined  to  any  one  branch  of  law,  still 
his  experience  in  corporation  law  has  brought 
him  in  prominent  connection  with  some  of  the 
most  im])ortant  cases  of  corporation  litigation  in 
the  histor>-  of  Chicago.  He  was  county  attorney 
for  two  jx-ars,  which  position  he  filled  to  the 
satisfaction  of  the  community. 


He  is  at  present  (1892)  a  director  in  and  the 
legal  advisor  of  the  Northwestern  Masonic  ^Aid 
Association  of  Chicago,  and  he  is  very  prominent 
in  Masonic  circles.  He  was  created  a  Mason  in 
1S67,  in  Ashlar  Lodge,  No.  308,  A.  F.  and  A.  M. 
He  has  reached  the  thirty-second  degree  of 
Masoiir)'.  He  is  a  member  of  Montjoie  Com- 
mandery,  K.  T.,  and  a  life-member  of  the  Oriental 
Consistory. 

In  social  circles  he  is  much  esteemed.  He  is  a 
member  of  the  Home  and  Harvard  clubs  of 
Englewood,  and  of  the  Sunset  Club  of  Chicago. 
He  is  also  a  prominent  member  of  the  La  Salle 
Club,  and  was  at  one  time  vice-president  of  it. 

In  politics  he  is  a  staunch  and  zealous  advocate 
of  Democratic  principles.  He  always  takes  an 
active  interest  in  politics,  and  he  has  always,  both 
by  voice  and  pen,  endeavored  to  assist  his  party 
during  its  campaigns. 

In  1868  he  married  Miss  Kate  Zimmerman,  a 
daughter  of  Henry  W.  Zimmerman,  one  of 
Chicago's  pioneer  settlers.  They  have  one 
daughter,  named  Genevieve,  a  young  lady  of 
fifteen,  who  is  quite  accomplished. 

Mr.  Law  has  four  brothers  and  one  sister.  T. 
J.  Law,  one  of  his  brothers,  is  an  ex-judge  of 
Lafayette  County  Court  and  editor  and  proprietor 
of  the  Peck  and  Gad.  He  is  well  and  favorably 
known  throughout  the  state  of  Wisconsin.  An- 
other  brother,  Dr.  John  Law,  is  an  eminent 
physician  of  Leadville,  Colorado,  and  another  is  a 
merchant  in  Darlington,  Wisconsin.  His  only 
sister  is  the  wife  of  Mr.  George  W.  Douglass, 
])resident  of  the  ShuUsburg  (Wis.)  Bank. 

Mr.  Law  is  an  able,  well-read  attorney,  and  dis- 
criminating in  his  practice.  He  is  considered  an 
elotjuent  advocate  and  reliable  counselor.  He  is 
honorable  and  honest  in  his  professional  advice, 
consulting  the  interests  of  his  clients,  and  is  noted 


446 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  A.XD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


for  his  devotion  to  those  who  intrust  their  affairs 
to  him.  He  commands  the  respect  of  the  courts, 
and  the  confidence  and  esteem  of  his  fellows. 

He  is  of  dignified  carriage  and  of  commanding 
presence,  and  has  fine,  clear-cut  features  and  a 
striking  personality.  His  mind  has  been  stored 
with  useful  knowledge,  which  he  has  culled  from 


observation  and  from  contact  with  many  different 
people  as  well  as  from  study.  He  is  an  interest- 
ing conversationalist  and  always  courteous  and 
affable.  With  a  character  above  reproach,  an 
ambitious  nature,  and  having  the  courage  of  his 
convictions,  he  is  loved  by  his  friends  and  hon- 
ored by  all  who  know  him. 


JASON    H.  SHEPARD, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


JASON  H.  SHEPARD  was  born  on  October 
15,  1838,  at  Cleveland,  O.  He  was  reared 
and  educated  in  that  vicinity,  and  resided  there 
until  his  twenty-fifth  year,  when  he  removed  to 
Chicago.  After  obtaining  a  thorough  common- 
school  education,  at  the  age  of  sixteen  he  began 
his  business  career  by  teaching  school.  Two  years 
later  he  embarked  on  the  sea  of  mercantile  life  by 
entering  as  clerk  the  supply  store  of  the  Cleve- 
land Rolling  Mill  Company,  located  at  Newburg, 
a  suburb  of  Cleveland. 

He  became  their  chief  clerk,  and  also  at  one 
time  had  entire  charge  of  the  Cleveland  Rolling 
Mill  Company's  supply  store,  thus  showing  that 
even  in  his  very  young  days  Mr.  Shepard  was 
looked  upon  as  a  young  man  deserving  of  confi- 
dence, and  also  as  one  capable  of  having  control 
of  the  executive  branches  of  a  large  mercantile 
business.  To  show  that  they  appreciated  his  en- 
deavors to  attend  to  their  best  interests,  they  ten- 
dered him  the  position  of  bookkeeper  and  cashier 
for  the  Union  Rolling  Mill  Company,  of  Chicago, 
now  the  Illinois  Steel  Company,  an  offshoot  of 
the  Cleveland  corporation.  He  accepted  the 
position  and  entered  upon  his  new  duties  in  Chi- 
cago in  1863. 

In  1868  he  resigned,  and  entered  into  copart- 
nership with  John  Dolese,  establishing  the  paving 
and  quarrying  business  of  Dolese  &  Shepard. 
To  show  how  successful  the  partnership  has  been, 
one  has  merely  to  state  that  the  firm  is  acknowl- 
edged by  all  acquainted  in  that  line  of  business  to 
be  undoubtedly  the  best  known  on  this  conti- 
nent ;  and  the  name  of  the  firm  will  survive  in 
memory  long  after  the  natural  term  of  life  of  the 
present  partners  has  expired,  as  their  work  on  the 
boulevards  and  drives  of  Chicago  will  be  remem- 


bered and  spoken  of  long  after  the  present  gener- 
ation lies  underneath  the  sod. 

Mr.  Shepard  has  charge  of  the  contracting  and 
financial  part  of  the  business,  whilst  his  partner 
attends  to  the  execution  of  the  contracts. 

Mr.  Shepard  is  prominently  known  in  financial 
and  commercial  circles,  and  enjoys  the  very  high- 
est reputation  for  honesty  and  integrity.  He  is  a 
member  of  the  Calumet,  Washington  Park  and 
Union  League  clubs. 

He  is  a  member  of  Hesperia  Lodge.  No.  411, 
A.  F.  and  A.  M.,  and  of  Chevalier  Bayard  Com- 
mandery.  No.  52,  K.  T.  He  was  reared  in  the 
State  of  Ohio,  aptly  called  by  an  eloquent  histo- 
rian, "  the  lap  of  patriotism  and  the  mother  of  Re- 
publicanism ;"  he  has  followed  the  teachings  of 
his  father,  and  is  prominently  known  as  a  staunch 
Republican.  He  has  never  desired  a  political 
position,  but  he  has  been  brought  prominently  be- 
fore the  citizens  as  an  available  candidate  for  the 
mayoralty,  but  made  no  effort  for  the  nomination. 
His  father  was  a  lieutenant  in  the  Sixth  Ohio  Vol- 
unteer Cavalry,  and  spent  eighteen  months  of  the 
war  enduring  the  suffering  and  cruelty  of  the 
Southern  military  prisons ;  his  brother  was  one  of 
the  first  to  respond  to  Lincoln's  call  and  enlisted 
in  the  same  regiment  upon  the  call  for  ninety- 
day  men  ;  he  afterward  re-enlisted  for  the  balance 
of  the  war. 

On  December  16,  1868,  Mr.  Shepard  was  mar- 
ried to  Miss  Margaret  M.  Taylor,  of  Portland, 
Me.  They  have  two  children — Henri  Elias  and 
Laura  Janet. 

Mr.  Shepard  is  a  most  courteous  gentleman,  a 
man  of  prepossessing  appearance,  dignified  and 
commanding,  sought  by  men  of  culture  for  his 
social  qualities  and  gentlemanly  bearing,  respected 


i 


/"/y 


BIOCRArmCAI.  DICTIOXARV  AXn  PORTRAIT  CA/./.ERV. 


449 


ill  the  c(ininumity,  and  at  the  hchii    of    a    most      what   h(>iicst\-  ami   integrity  combined  with  fore- 
prosperous    business  ;     ho    is  another  picture  of      sight  and  grit  have  done  for  a  number  of  men. 


HON.  CHAUNCEY   M.   DEPKW,  LL.D. 


NEW  YORK. 


CHAUNCKV  M.  UErEW,  Commissioner  of 
the  World's  Columbian  Exposition,  was  born 
in  Peekskill.  New  York,  April  3,  1834.  His  father, 
Isaac  Depew ,  was  a  prominent  citizen  oi  Peeks- 
kill,  and  his  mother,  born  Martha  Mitchell,  was 
a  lady  of  marked  personal  beauty  and  fine  accom- 
plishments, and  a  member  of  a  New  England 
family  whose  most  illustrious  representative  was 
Roger  Sherman,  one  of  the  signers  of  the  Decla- 
ration of  Independence,  she  being  a  granddaughter 
of  the  Rev.  Jusiah  Sherman,  the  brother  of 
Roger.  Her  father,  Chauncey  R.  Mitchell,  was  a 
distinguished  lawyer,  and  famous  for  his  elo- 
quence. Her  mother,  Ann  Johnston,  was  a 
daughter  of  Judge  Robert  Johnston,  of  Putnam 
county,  who  was  Senator  and  Judge  for  many 
years,  and  owned  Lake  Mahopac,  and  much  of 
the  country  thereabouts.  Mr.  Depew's  remote 
ancestors  were  French  Huguenots,  who  quit  the 
inhospitable  land  of  their  nativity  about  the  time 
of  the  revocation  of  the  Edict  of  Nantes,  in  1685, 
and  were  of  those  who  founded  New  Rochelle, 
Westchester  county.  New  York,  in  honor  of  La 
Rochelle,  France,  which  their  Huguenot  progeni- 
tors had  defended  with  dauntless  courage  against 
the  assaults  of  their  persecutors.  The  family 
settled  in  Peekskill  two  hundred  years  ago,  and 
the  farm  purchased  at  that  lime  still  belongs  to 
them.  Mr.  Depew's  boyhood  was  spent  in  his 
native  village,  and  here  he  was  prepared  for  col- 
lege. He  was  known  as  an  apt  scholar,  as  a  leader 
among  his  fellows,  and  as  giving  unmistakable 
promise  of  future  brilliancy  and  usefulness.  At 
the  age  of  eighteen  he  entered  Yale,  and  in  1856 
was  graduated  with  one  of  the  first  honors  of  his 
class.  The  year  of  his  graduation  was  signalized 
in  a  political  way  by  the  organization  of  the  Re- 
publican party,  and  his  first  vote  for  President  of 
the  United  States  was  cast  for  John  C.  Fremont. 
In  1S60  he  took  the  stump  for  Abraham  Lincoln 
for  president,  and  during  the  campaign  addressed 
many  large  and  enthusiastic  audiences  in  the  Ninth 


Congressional  District,  and  in  other  parts  of  New 
"S'ork  where  he  was  best  known,  and  was  hailed 
with  delight  wherever  he  went.  In  1861  Mr.  Depew 
was  nominated  for  the  Assembly  in  the  Third 
Westchester  County  District,  and  although  the 
Democrats  were  largely  in  the  ascendant  in  the 
county,  and  hopeful  of  the  district,  he  was  elected 
by  a  majority  of  two  hundred  and  fifty-nine,  a 
high  compliment  to  his  personal  popularity.  He 
was  re-elected  in  1S62,  and  his  name  was  prom- 
inently associated  with  the  Speakership.  He  was 
made  Chairman  of  the  Committee  on  Ways  and 
Means,  was  part  of  the  time  Speaker /ro/i-w.,  and 
was  honored  as  but  few  legislators  of  his  experi- 
ence and  years  are  ever  honored. 

Mr.  Depew  was  chosen  by  the  Republican  party 
as  its  candidate  for  Secretary  of  State,  and  the 
campaign  was  an  exciting  one.  Mr.  Depew  took 
the  aggressive  from  the  start,  and  led  his  forces 
with  consummate  skill  and  with  an  energy  and 
dash  that  carried  consternation  into  the  ranks  of 
the  enemy.  At  the  close  of  the  contest  he  had 
reversed  the  decision  of  1862  and  was  proclaimed 
the  victor  by  a  majority  of  30,000.  In  this  can- 
vass, Mr.  Depew  displayed  prodigious  power  of 
endurance.  He  discharged  the  duties  of  his  office 
with  credit  to  himself  and  honor  to  the  State  ; 
and  upon  the  expiration  of  his  term,  was  tendered 
a  renomination  by  his  party,  which  he  unhesitat- 
ingly declined.  When  Andrew  Johnson  succeeded 
to  the  Presidency  of  the  United  States,  and  before 
he  broke  with  the  party  which  had  associated  his 
name  with  that  of  Abraham  Lincoln  and  elevated 
him  to  power,  he  selected  Mr.  Depew  for  the  post 
of  Collector  of  the  Port  of  New  York,  and  had 
proceeded  in  the  business  so  far  as  to  make  out 
the  commission  ;  but  becoming  incensed  against 
Mr.  Edwin  D.  Morgan,  then  one  of  the  Senators 
from  New  York,  becau.sc  of  that  gentleman's 
refusal  to  sustain  his  veto  of  the  Civil  Rights  liill, 
he  tore  up  Mr.  Depew's  credentials,  and  never 
sent   his   name   to   the   Senate    for  confirmation. 


450 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Still  later,  in  the  same  administration,  the  Secretary 
of  State,  William  H.  Seward,  appointed  Mr. 
Depew  United  States  Minister  to  Japan,  and  for 
a  time  he  was  disposed  to  accept ;  but  after  hold- 
ing his  commission  for  four  weeks  Mr.  Depew 
declined  the  office,  with  the  determination  to 
withdraw  from  political  life. 

In  1866  Mr.  Depew  was  appointed  the  attorney 
for  the  New  York  &  Harlem  Railroad  Company, 
and  in  1869,  when  this  company  was  consolidated 
with  the  New  York  Central,  and  became  the  New 
York  Central  &  Hudson  River  Railroad  Company, 
with  Commodore  Vanderbilt  at  its  head,  Mr. 
Depew  was  made  the  attorney  of  the  new  organ- 
ization, and  was  afterward  elected  a  member  of 
its  Board  of  Directors.  As  the  influence  of  the 
Vanderbilts  extended,  and  one  road  after  another 
was  brought  under  their  management,  the  range 
of  Mr.  Depew's  official  jurisdiction  became  corre- 
spondingly wider,  and  in  1875  he  was  promoted 
to  be  general  counsel  for  the  entire  Vanderbilt 
system,  and  elected  to  a  directorship  in  each  of 
the  lines  comprising  it,  in  which,  in  addition  to 
the  New  York  Central  &  Hudson  River,  are 
included  the  Lake  Shore  &  Michigan  Southern, 
Michigan  Central,  Chicago  &  North-western,  St. 
Paul  &  Omaha,  West  Shore  and  Nickel  Plate 
Railroads.  In  1872  he  permitted  the  use  of  his 
name  as  a  candidate  for  Lieutenant-Governor  on 
the  Liberal-Republican,  or  Greely,  ticket;  but  his 
party  was  unsuccessful,  and  he  shared  its  fate.  In 
1874  he  was  the  choice  of  the  Legislature  for  Re- 
gent of  the  State  University,  and  was  also  ap- 
pointed one  of  the  commissioners  to  build  the 
Capitol  at  Albany. 

On  the  4th  of  March,  1881,  James  A.  Garfield 
was  inaugurated  President  of  the  United  States, 
and  on  the  i6th  of  May  following,  the  Hon. 
Roscoe  Conkling  and  the  Hon.  Thos.  C.  Piatt, 
United  States  Senators  from  New  York,  resigned 
their  seats  in  the  Senate  ;  the  former  for  the  term 
to  e.xpire  March  3,  1885,  and  the  latter  to  close 
March  3,  1887.  Soon  after  the  organization  of 
the  Cabinet  it  became  evident  that  there  was  to 
be  trouble  between  the  President  and  the  senior 
Senator  from  New  York  ;  and  as  time  passed  the 
President's  attitude  toward  Mr.  Conkling  became 
intolerable  to  the  Senator,  while  on  the  other 
hand  Mr.  Conkling's  bearing  toward  the  President 
was  not  even  remotely  suggestive   of  submission 


or   concession.       Mr.   Piatt  shared  in  the  feelings 
and  convictions  of  his  colleague  and  the  resigna- 
tion  of  both  was  the  outcome  of  this  disagree- 
ment.    Mr.  Conkling  had  long  been  the  leader  of 
the   Republican    party  in  the  Senate  and  in  the 
State  he  had    so    ably   represented ;    and  the  an- 
nouncement   of  his  withdrawal  from  the    Senate 
had  a  bewildering  effect  upon  the  party  through- 
out the  whole  country.    Governor  Cornell  advised 
the  Legislature  of  the  resignation  of  the  Senators, 
and  on  the  51st  of  May  the  two  houses  balloted 
separately  for  their  successors.     The   Republicans 
had  a  majority  in  each   House,  and  after  the  first 
ballot  went   into  joint  convention.       Mr.  Depew 
was  pressed   into  the  lists   by  many  of  the  most 
influential    men    in    the    Republican    party,    and 
yielded   reluctant   assent  to  the  use  of  his  name. 
He  was  regarded  by  his  friends  as  the  man  above 
all  others  worthy  to  succeed  Mr.  Conkling,  if  Mr. 
Conkling  could  not  be  his  own  successor ;  and  it 
was  deemed   practicable  to   present  him  for  Mr. 
Piatt's    unexpired    term,    which    had   two    years 
longer   to    run.      The    first    ballot   for  a  Senator 
to    succeed    Mr.    Piatt    was    distributed    amongst 
eighteen  candidates.     In  the  ballot  under  consid- 
eration, Mr.  Depew  divided  the  honors  with   Mr. 
Piatt,  who  had  been  elected  by  this  same  Legisla- 
ture, and  led  Governor  Cornell  handsomely.    The 
Republicans  had   held  no  caucus,   and   now  went 
into  joint  convention  without  formal  consultation 
or  agreement.     On   the   second  joint   ballot,   Mr. 
Depew  tied  Mr.  Piatt ;  on  the  third,  he  led  him  by 
two  ;  on  the  seventh,  he  forged  gallantly  ahead  to 
the  tune  of  si.xteen ;    on  the   tenth,  he  led  him  by 
twenty-six,     and    on    the    fourteenth    he    moved 
readily    away  from    his  strongest   competitor  by 
twenty-nine,  leaving  all  the  others  to  bring  up  the 
rear  with  but  a  feeble  showing  of  .speed  or  strength. 
On  the  nineteenth  ballot    Mr.  Depew  only  lacked 
ten  votes  of  an  election,  and  on  the   thirty-fourth 
this  record   was  repeated  ;    other  ballots  carried 
him  very  near  to  the  goal.     His  friends  stood  by 
him  with  unflagging  loyalty,  and  in  such  numbers 
as   to  demonstrate    beyond  all   question   that   he 
was  the  man  for  the  occasion,  and  the  choice  of  a 
majority  of  his  party's  representatives.     On  the 
ninth  ballot  he  had  a  majority  of  three  over  all 
the  other  candidates;    on  the  tenth,  seven  ;  and, 
finally,   when   a  caucus  was  held  and  a  candidate 
nominated,    the    entire    caucus    only    numbered 


BIQGR.irniCAl.  DJCTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


451 


twelve   more   than   the   highest   number  of  votes 
given  to  Mr.  Depew. 

On  the  morning  of  the  2d  of  J  ul\- the  deadly 
bullet  of  the  assassin,  Guiteau,  struck  down  the 
President  of  the  United  States,  James  A.  Garfield, 
and  the  heart  of  the  nation  was  thrilled  with 
horror.  In  the  presence  of  this  awful  calamity 
the  people  stood  awe-struck  and  dumb,  and  sad- 
ness, mourning  and  a  fearful  sense  of  insecurity 
spread  all  over  the  land.  The  effect  of  this 
appalling  tragedy  upon  the  minds  of  men  need 
not  be  described  here.  The  story  has  been  told 
in  letters  of  fire.  To  many  it  seemed  as  if  a 
serious  crisis  had  been  reached  in  the  life  of  the 
Republic,  but  in  the  calm  that  ensued  men  saw 
with  clearer  vision,  and  reason  and  confidence 
were  soon  restored  again,  and  mingled  with  the 
prayers  of  the  people  for  the  preservation  of  the 
life  of  their  President.  The  New  York  legislature 
had  adjourned  upon  the  announcement  of  the 
tragedy,  and  when  it  reassembled,  the  more 
thoughtful  men  of  the  Republican  party  felt  that 
the  senatorial  contests  should  be  brought  to  a 
close  as  decently  and  speedily  as  possible.  Mr. 
Depew  was  the  first  to  point  out  the  duty  of  the 
hour,  and,  after  the  fortieth  ballot  had  shown  his 
undiminished  strength,  he  withdrew  from  the 
field.  In  his  letter  to  the  convention  he  said  : 
"  Neither  the  State  nor  the  part)'  can  afford  to 
have  New  York  unrepresented  in  the  national 
councils.  A  great  crime  has  plunged  the  nation 
into  sorrow,  and  in  the  midst  of  the  prayers  and 
the  tears  of  the  whole  people,  supplicating  for  the 
recovery  and  weeping  over  the  wound  of  the 
President,  this  partisan  strife  should  cease."  To 
those  who  had  fought  with  pride  and  unquench- 
able zeal  under  his  flag,  he  made  grateful  and 
touching  acknowledgment,  and  said :  "Their  de- 
votion will  be  the  pride  of  my  life,  and  the  heri- 
tage of  my  children."  On  the  8th  of  July,  Mr. 
Depew  having  withdrawn,  a  caucus  of  the  Repub- 
lican members  was  held,  and  the  number  present, 
as  we  have  already  stated,  was  only  twelve  more 
than  the  highest  number  of  votes  cast  for  Mr. 
Depew.  The  Hon.  Warner  Miller  was  nominated 
by  the  caucus,  and  the  nomination  was  ratified  in 
joint  convention  on  the  forty-eighth  ballot.  Mr. 
Conkling's  successor  was  not  electeil  until  the  22d 
of  July.  After  fifty-five  ballots  had  been  cast,  a 
meeting  of  the  Republicans  was  held,  and  it  was 


resolved  to  meet  in  caucus  at  throe  o'clock  in  the 
afternoon  of  the  day  named.  On  the  call  of  the 
roll,  Elbridge  G.  Lapham  received  si.xty-one  votes, 
Roscoe  Conkling  twenty-eight,  and  the  nomina- 
tion of  the  former  was  made  unanimous.  An 
hour  later  Mr.  Lapham  was  elected  United  States 
Senator ;  and  thus  was  brought  to  a  close  the 
great  dual  contest  for  the  places  made  vacant  by 
the  resignations  of  Senators  Conkling  and  Piatt. 

In  1884  the  Republicans  of  all  factions  in  the 
Legislature,  being  in  a  majority  of  nearly  two- 
thirds,  tendered  the  United  States  Senatorship  to 
Mr.  Depew,  but  he  had  become  committed  to  so 
many  business  and  professional  trusts  he  felt 
compelled  to  decline  the  honor.  In  1882  William 
H.  Vandcrbilt  retired  from  the  presidency  of  the 
New  York  Central,  and  the  management  was 
reorganized.  Mr.  James  H.  Rutter  was  made 
president,  and  Mr.  Depew  second  vice-president. 
Upon  the  death  of  Mr.  Rutter,  in  1885,  Mr. 
Depew  was  elevated  to  the  presidency,  and  is 
now  the  executive  head  of  one  of  the  largest  and 
most  prosperous  railroad  corporations  in  the 
world,  with  untold  wealth  at  his  back,  and  with 
an  influence  commensurate  with  the  vast  interests 
of  the  great  Vandcrbilt  system  of  railroads,  and 
not  even  circumscribed  by  these  limits. 

This  sketch  of  Mr.  Depew  would  fall  far  short 
of  doing  him  justice  if  it  failed  to  take  into 
account  the  warmth  and  depth  of  his  social 
nature,  the  inflexible  probity  of  his  character,  and 
his  broad  and  generous  sympathies  toward  his 
fellow-men.  He  has  an  abundant  measure  of  the 
afTectionate  nature  which  distinguished  Henrj- 
Clay,  and  which  made  him  the  idol  of  such  a 
circle  of  friends  as  no  other  American  statesman 
could  ever  boast  of.  He  is  loyal  to  his  friends, 
and  they  are  unswerving  in  their  devotion  to  him; 
he  is  tolerant  of  men's  convictions  while  firm  in 
maintaining  his  own  ;  he  delights  in  speaking  well 
of  others,  and,  above  all,  finds  infinite  satisfaction 
in  doing  good.  While  he  has  back  of  him  enor- 
mous wealth,  and  can  count  among  his  friends 
the  noblest  in  the  land,  he  is  never  unmindful  of 
the  claims  of  the  less  fortunate  who  are  entitled 
to  his  consideration. 

Mr.  Depew  was  married  to  Llise  Hegeman  on 
the  9th  of  November,  1871,  and  has  one  child,  a 
.son.  Notwithstanding  the  constant  demands 
upon  his  time  and  best  thoughts  by  public  affairs. 


452 


BIOCRArillCAL   niCTIOXARV  AXn  /'OR TRAIT  iJAJJJCRV. 


by  the  many  railroad  and  financial  corporations  in  attendant,  it  is  in  his  own  home,  with  his  wife  and 
which  he  is  an  active  director,  and  by  the  socic-  family,  that  his  large-hearted  and  large-minded 
ties  and   clubs  of  which  he  is  always  a  welcome      manhood  finds  its  favored  sphere  and  chief  delight. 


DR.  JOHN    E.   OILMAN, 


CHICAGO,  ILL. 


WHEN  the  great  fire  swept  away  the  city  of 
Chicago,  in  1 871,  it  made  room  for  a  new 
city.  It  was  not  the  resurrection  of  the  old  Chi- 
cago which  followed  that  memorable  conflagra- 
tion, but  the  evolution  of  a  new  met'-opolis, 
differing  from  and  in  every  respect  immeasurably 
the  superior  of  the  old  one.  It  is  true  the  new 
city  has  some  of  the  distinguishing  characteristics 
of  the  old  one,  but  there  are  just  enough  of  them 
to  clearly  establish  the  fact  of  a  common  origin. 
In  appearance  the  Chicago  which  disappeared  in 
flame  and  smoke  a  little  more  than  twenty  years 
ago,  was  a  provincial  town  compared  with  the 
magnificent  city  which  we  find  occupying  the 
same  site  to-day.  Compared  with  the  massive 
business  blocks  of  the  present  city,  the  buildings 
in  which  the  trade  of  the  old  Chicago  was  carried 
on  were  very  shabby  structures,  and  the  fine 
residences  of  twenty  years  ago  would  hardly  be 
regarded  now  as  fairly  respectable  tenement- 
houses.  What  were  looked  upon  at  that  time 
as  business  enterprises  of  vast  magnitude,  would 
scarcely  attract  passing  notice  to-day,  and  the 
influence  of  the  old  city  upon  the  trade  and 
commerce  of  the  country  was  small  compared 
with  what  it  now  is. 

While  Chicago  has  been  making  such  striilcs  in 
the  march  of  progress  as  have  no  parallel  in  the 
history  of  cities,  a  corresponding  change  has 
taken  place  in  the  character  of  its  citizens.  The 
men  who  have  built  up  the  new  city  of  Chicago, 
are  the  men  who  were  tried  by  the  ordeal  of  fire 
in  1 87 1,  and  demonstrated  at  that  time  that  they 
were  men  of  irrepressible  force  and  energy,  of  iron 
nerve  and  indomitable  courage. 

To  have  lifted  the  stricken  city  out  of  its  own 
ashes  and  placed  it  on  its  own  footing  would  have 
been  a  great  undertaking;  but  to  lift  it  to  the 
much  higher  plane  which  it  now  occupies,  has 
been  aHerculean  task,  only  accomplished  by  the 
united   effort    of   all    loyal   Chicagoans.      Not   the 


least  important  result  of  this  united  effort  has 
been  what  may  be  called  its  reflex  action  upon 
those  who  participated  in  it,  and  the  people  of 
Chicago  generally,  having  been  compelled  by 
force  of  circumstances  to  make  a  long,  strong  pull 
together,  and  having  witnessed  the  magnificent 
results  of  that  effort,  have  gotten  into  the  habit 
of  working  unitedly  and  harmoniously  for  any- 
thing which  promises  to  contribute  to  the  growth, 
importance  or  attractiveness  of  the  city.  This  is 
the  secret  of  success  which  has  attended  the 
efforts  of  Chicago  to  secure  national  political 
conventions  and  other  similarly  attractive  gather- 
ings, when  brought  into  sharp  competition  with 
other  cities  of  the  country  within  the  past  ten 
years.  It  is  also  the  secret  of  success  which  has 
crowned  the  efforts  of  the  metropolis  of  the  West 
to  secure  the  World's  Columbian  Exposition  of 
1892-93. 

It  may  be  said,  therefore,  that  when  we  look  at 
the  Chicago  of  to-day  and  compare  it  with  the 
Chicago  of  1871,  we  discover  that  the  fire  not 
only  burned  away  the  old,  ugly  and  unsightly 
buildings,  and  made  room  for  those  which  are 
models  of  their  kind,  but  it  also  scorched  to 
death  the  petty  rivalries,  jealousies  and  bicker- 
ings of  her  business  and  professional  men,  and 
made  room  for  the  broad  liberality  which  char- 
acterizes their  dealings  with  each  other  at  the 
present  time. 

Nowhere  is  this  spirit  of  liberality  more  notice- 
able than  among  those  professional  gentlemen 
who  are  generally  supposed  to  be,  above  all 
others,  inclined  to  serious  disagreements  and  bit- 
ter controversies — the  gentlemen  of  the  medical 
profession.  It  is  said  by  those  who  are  in  a 
position  to  know,  that  in  no  other  city  in  the 
United  States  do  the  different  schools  of  medi- 
cine affiliate  to  the  same  extent  that  they  do  in 
Chicago.  The  beginning  of  this  era  of  good  feel- 
ing in  the  medical  fraternity  of  Chicago,  like  many 


i^,»v 


rccA 


DJOGRAnilCAL  V/CT/O.Wth'V  A.V/1  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


455 


other  beneficent  intluenccs,  dates  back  to  the  fire. 
It  was  at  that  time,  when  the  tempest  of  flame 
swept  over  the  city,  leaving  thousands  of  people 
homeless  and  destitute,  when  chaos  reigned  every- 
where, and  when  the  sick  and  suffering  were 
driven  into  the  streets,  to  huddle  together  here 
and  there  without  food,  medicine  or  shelter,  that 
a  prominent  allopathic  physician,  and  a  young, 
but  promising  homtcopathic  practitioner  proffered 
their  services  at  the  same  time  to  the  citizens' 
committee,  which  had  undertaken  to  restore  order, 
to  care  for  the  sick  and  distressed,  and  relieve  as 
far  as  possible  the  general  distress.  When  the 
committee  on  "sick  and  hospitals  "  was  regularlj- 
organized.  Dr.  H.  A.  Johnson,  the  physician 
above  alluded  to,  was  made  chairman  of  the 
committee,  and  Dr.  John  E.  Oilman,  the  homoe- 
opathic physician,  became  secretary  of  the  same 
committee. 

The  time  had  been  in  Chicago,  as  in  every  other 
city,  when  gentlemen  representing  these  two 
antagonistic  schools  of  medicine  could  not  have 
met  each  other  half  way  on  a  single  proposition, 
or  acted  three-quarters  of  an  hour  harmoniously 
together.  The  great  fire  had,  however,  touched 
the  medical  profession  of  Chicago  and  burned 
away  its  prejudices  and  its  unreasonable  bitter- 
ness, along  with  the  other  rubbish  of  the  old 
Chicago. 

The  causeless  bickerings  and  foolish  dissensions 
were  for  the  time  being  buried  in  the  ashes  of 
the  metropolis,  and  there  has  never  been  any- 
thing like  a  general  resurrection  of  the  old  ani- 
mosities. Side  by  side,  and  shoulder  to  shoulder, 
the  two  physicians  at  the  head  of  this  important 
committee  worked  together  almost  day  and  night 
to  relieve  the  sick  and  suffering,  and  their  ex- 
ample was  followed  by  their  professional  brethren 
of  both  schools.  The  work  on  hand  had  to  be 
done  under  great  difficulties.  It  was  not  in  the 
power  of  the  physicians  themselves  to  furnish  the 
medicines  needed ;  it  was  not  in  the  power  of 
those  who  became  their  patients  to  supply  them- 
selves with  medicine,  because  in  many  instances 
all  their  earthly  possessions  had  been  licked  up 
by  the  fire,  and  they  had  not  the  means  even  to 
procure  a  night's  lodging  or  a  loaf  of  bread.  The 
city  government  undertook  to  assume  the  re- 
sponsibilitj-  of  caring  for  all  such  unfortunate 
sufferers,  but  the  ability  of   the  city  to  discharge 


the  obligation  thus  assumed  was  very  gravely 
questioned. 

Chicago  was  looked  upon  by  many  as  a  ruined 
and  bankrupt  municipality,  and  not  every  one 
who  had  the  ability  to  honor  the  city's  drafts  was 
willing  to  do  so.  In  conversation  with  the  writer, 
recently.  Dr.  Oilman  said  that  when  he  made  out 
the  first  order  for  drugs  which  it  was  absolutely 
neccssarj-  his  committee  should  have,  and  sent  it 
to  the  drug  house  of  Fuller  &  Fuller,  this  being 
the  only  drug  house  in  that  part  of  Chicago 
known  as  the  "  South  side,"  which  had  not  been 
destroyed  by  fire,  he  had  grave  doubts  of  having 
his  requisition  honored,  and  his  confidence  in  the 
magnanimity  and  generosity  of  Chicago  business 
men  was  vastly  increased  when  Mr.  O.  F.  Fuller, 
the  senior  member  of  the  drug  firm,  came  in  per- 
son to  deliver,  not  only  the  drugs  ordered,  but 
such  other  medicines  in  addition  as  he  had  rea- 
son to  believe  would  be  needed  by  the  com- 
mittee. 

It  was  the  untiring  efforts,  the  unflagging  zeal 
of  Dr.  Oilman  in  this  work,  which  brought  him 
prominently  before  the  public,  won  for  him  the 
kind  regard  of  his  brother  practitioners,  without 
regard  to  the  school  to  which  they  happened  to 
belong,  and  at  the  same  time  secured  to  him  that 
large  measure  of  confidence  in  his  skill  and  ability 
as  a  physician  and  surgeon  which  laid  the  founda- 
tion for  the  splendid  practice  he  has  since  built 
up.  That  he  should  have  achieved  success  in  his 
profession,  or  in  any  other  calling  to  which  he 
had  turned  his  attention,  seems  perfectly  natural 
to  those  who  know  the  man,  who  have  noted  his 
diligence,  his  industrj-,  and  his  remarkable  capa- 
citj-  for  so  directing  all  his  efforts  as  to  accom- 
plish the  greatest  amount  of  work  in  a  given  time. 
Those  who  know  the  history  of  the  Oilman  family 
could  hardly  e.xcuse  anything  short  of  complete 
success  in  one  of  its  representati\'es. 

Although  Dr.  Oilman  himself  was  born  at 
Harmer,  Ohio,  a  suburb  of  Marietta,  in  1841,  he 
conies  of  the  old  Puritan  family  which  a  some- 
what noted  historian  has  said  "  influenced  for 
a  century  and  a  half  the  political,  ecclesiastical, 
social  and  financial  history  of  New  England."  It 
was  in  1638  that  the  first  Oilman  came  over  from 
England  and  became  the  American  progenitor  of 
this  noted  family.  Beginning  with  Nicholas  Oil- 
man, who  was  a    moving    spirit    in  the  American 


456 


BlOGRArmCAL  DICTIOXARY  AM)  l'i)RTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Revolution,  the  Gilmans  of  New  England  have 
ever  since  been  prominent  in  public  life.  For 
eleven  successive  years  John  Taylor  Gilman  was 
governor  of  New  Hampshire,  just  before  the  close 
of  the  last  century,  and  for  three  successive  years 
at  the  beginning  of  the  present  century  he  occu- 
pied the  same  position,  making  in  all  fourteen 
years  that  he  served  the  people  of  his  State  in  the 
capacity  of  chief  magistrate  of  the  common- 
wealth. At  the  same  time  his  brother,  Nicholas 
Gilman,  was  serving  as  a  member  of  the  Conti- 
nental Congress,  and  later  as  a  United  States 
Senator  from  the  same  State. 

President  D.  C.  Gilman,  of  Johns  Hopkins 
University,  and  Dr.  Chandler  Robbins  Gilman, 
an  author  of  note,  have  been  the  members  of  the 
family  most  prominently  before  the  public  within 
the  last  quarter  of  a  century. 

On  the  mother's  side.  Dr.  Gilman  is  descended 
from  the  Fay,  another  old  Massachusetts  family. 
His  mother  and  the  late  Horace  Maynard,  of 
Tennessee,  who  was  postmaster-general  in  Presi- 
dent Hayes  cabinet,  and  before  that  minister  to 
Russia,  were  born  on  the  same  day,  on  adjoining 
farms,  near  Westborough,  Massachusetts,  in  1814, 
at  a  time  when  the  fathers  of  both  were  absent 
from  home,  serving  in  the  second  war  with  Great 
Britain. 

There  were  eleven  children  in  the  F'ay  family 
and  three  of  the  daughters  married  physicians. 
It  was  a  sister  of  Dr.  Gilman's  mother  who  in- 
augurated the  movement  to  build  and  maintain 
at  the  public  expense  the  homes  for  orphan  chil- 
dren which  are  now  so  prominent  a  feature  of  the 
public  charities  of  Ohio  and  other  states.  This 
lady,  Catharine  Fay  by  name,  was  for  many  years 
a  missionary  among  the  Choctaw  Indians,  and 
when  the  missionaries  were  driven  out  of  the 
Choctaw  country,  shortly  before  the  late  war  of 
the  Rebellion,  .she  returned  to  Ohio  and  at  her  own 
expense  built  the  first  orphan  home  in  that  State, 
at  the  town  of  Lawrence,  on  the  Little  Muskin- 
gum river,  in  Washington  county.  She  after- 
wards induced  the  legislature  to  take  action,  which 
led  to  the  building  of  similar  institutions  in  almost 
all,  if  not  all,  the  counties  in  Ohio. 

As  his  more  remote  ancestors  had  been  among 
the  earliest  settlers  of  New  England,  his  imme- 
diate ancestors  were  among  the  first  to  find  their 
way  into  what  was  then    the  wild  West,  the  un- 


broken wilderness  on  the  banks  of  the  Ohio  river, 
where  the  first  settlement  was  made  in  the  Puck- 
eye  State. 

His  grandfather  settled  at  Belpre,  opposite 
Blennerha.ssett's  Island,  the  picturesque  spot 
which  was  supposed  to  have  served  as  the  head- 
quarters for  those  turbulent  and  restless  .spirits, 
engaged  in  Aaron  Burr's  conspiracy.  Afterward 
he  removed  to  Kentucky,  where  some  members 
of  his  family  still  re.side,  his  son.  Dr.  George  Gil- 
man, having  been  for  many  years  a  prominent 
physician  of  Lexington. 

It  was  within  a  few  miles  of  Belpre  that  Dr. 
Gilman  was  born  ;  but  when  he  was  five  years 
old  he  returned  with  his  father.  Dr.  John  C. 
Gilman,  to  Westborough,  Massachusetts,  where 
the  latter  engaged  in  the  practice  of  his  profes- 
sion. It  was  the  intention  of  the  father  that  his 
three  sons  should  follow  in  his  footsteps,  so  far  as 
the  choice  of  a  profe.ssion  was  concerned,  and  he 
shaped  their  .studies  to  that  end. 

Two  of  the  sons  drifted  into  the  profession 
which  had  been  chosen  for  them,  but  the  third 
engaged  in  railroad  business,  in  which  he  has  been 
decidedly  successful. 

William  L.  Gilman,  an  elder  brother  of  the 
subject  of  this  sketch,  after  practicing  niciiicine 
for  some  years,  entered  the  ministry,  and  is  imw 
at  the  head  of  a  church  in  Denver,  Colorado. 
There  was  nothing  irksome  to  John  E.  Gilman  as 
a  boy,  about  the  calling  chosen  for  him  by  his 
father.  His  studies  were  to  him  a  source  of  plea- 
sure, and  the  assistance  which  he  was  called  upon, 
from  time  to  time,  to  give  his  father  in  his  surgi- 
cal and  other  practice,  increased  his  interest  in 
what  he  looked  forward  to  as  his  life  work. 
When  he  was  seventeen  years  of  age  his  father 
died,  and  he  afterwards  studied  with  his  brother, 
then  practicing  medicine  at  Marietta,  Ohio,  and 
also  under  the  direction  of  Dr.  George  HartwcU, 
of  Toledo,  Ohio.  He  finished  his  course  of  study 
in  Hahnemann  Medical  College,  Chicago,  and  im- 
mediately thereafter  commenced  the  practice  of 
medicine  in  this  city. 

The  measure  of  his  success  as  a  practitioner  has 
already  been  alluded  to.  And  it  is  only  necessary 
to  add  to  what  has  been  said,  that  as  a  writer  and 
an  educator  he  has  become  equally  prominent. 
His  contributions  to  journals  and  periodicals  have 
covered  a  wide  range  of  subjects  and  have  been 


lilOGRArillCAL  DICTIOXARV  AM)  roUTRAIT  iiALLERV. 


457 


by  no  means  confined  to  the  field  of  nieilicine. 
He  has  Hterary  talent  of  a  hitjh  order,  and  as  an 
art  critic  has  been  proininentI\-  identifieii  with  the 
Chicago  press. 

Notwithstanding  tiie  nuiltiplicitj-  of  his  pro- 
fessional duties,  he  has  found  time  to  devote  him- 
self, quite  extensivelj-,  to  art  matters,  and  some 
years  ago  was  one  of  the  leading  spirits  in  bLiilil- 
ing  up  and  maintaining  the  Crosby  Opera  House 
Art  Gallery,  one  of  the  finest  art  galleries  Chicago 
has  ever  had:  at  the  same  time  he  edited,  in  com- 
pany with  Mr.  Joseph  W'rigiit,  the  Chicago  Art 
Journal. 

Hahnemann  Medical  College,  the  most  noted 
of  all  the  homtcopathic  educational  institutions 
west  of  the  Allegheny  Mountains,  has  recognized 
his  ability  as  a  physician  by  selecting  him  to  fill 
the  chair  of  "Physiologj-,  Sanitary  Science  and 
Hygiene."  a  position  which  he  has  held  since 
1884. 

In  i860,  Ur.  Gilman  was  married  to  Miss  Mary 
D.  Johnson,  who,  although  residing   in   the  West 


at  the  time  of  her  marriage,  was,  no  less  than  iier 
husband,  a  Puritan  as  to  lineage. 

The  farm  upon  which  Mrs.  Gilman  was  raised 
at  Westborough,  Massachusetts,  was  acquired  by 
purchase  from  the  Indians  by  the  Johnson  family, 
and  descended  from  father  to  .son  until  her  father, 
having  no  sons  to  hand  it  down  to,  allowed  the 
old  place  to  pass  out  of  the  famil\-. 

Although  not  a  drop  of  anything  but  Puritan 
blood  runs  in  the  veins  of  the  Gilman  family,  the 
Chicago  representative  of  the  old  New  England 
stock,  while  revering  the  general  nobility  of  char- 
acter of  his  ancestry  and  the  class  of  God-fear- 
ing, liberty-loving  men  to  which  they  belonged,  is 
by  no  means  blinded  to  their  faults,  and  some 
clever  criticism,  in  verse,  of  their  old-time  creeds 
and  customs,  have  been  among  the  products  of 
his  pen. 

[The  above  sketch  is  from  the  Magazine  of 
Western  History,  September,  189O,  Vol.  XII, 
No.  5,  and  over  the  signature,  Howard  Louis 
Conard.  I 


JOHN    M.   DUNPHY, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


A.MAN'S  life-work  is  the  measure  of  his  suc- 
cess, and  he  is  truly  the  most  successful 
man  who,  pursuing  an  honorable  purpose,  attains 
the  object  of  his  endeavor.  The  life-history  of 
him  whose  name  heads  this  sketch  illustrates  what 
can  be  accomplished  by  continued  and  faithful 
hard  work. 

John  M.  Dunphy  is  a  native  of  New  York,  and 
was  born  at  Utica,  October  2,  1834,  the  .son  of 
Martin  and  Mary(Hickcy)  Dunphy.  His  father 
was  a  successful  and  prominent  builder  in  Utica. 
John  received  the  usual  common  school  educa- 
tion, and  at  the  age  of  si.\tcen  his  father  appren- 
ticed him  to  learn  the  mason's  and  contractor's 
business.  He  served  an  apprenticeship  of  four 
years,  completely  ma.stering  the  details  of  his 
\ocation.  Then  for  a  year  he  worked  as  a  jour- 
neyman mason  in  Utica.  Upon  attaining  his 
majority  he  resolved  to  go  West  and  try  his  for- 
tune in  a  new  country,  and  worked  at  his  trade 
in  various  cities  in  the  West  until  1858,  when  he 
settled   in  Chicago,  where  he  has  since  made  his 


home.  He  secured  work  at  once  as  foreman  for 
Mr.  R.  E.  Moss,  a  contractor  and  builder,  with 
whom  he  remained  until  1863,  when  he  started 
in  business  on  his  own  account  as  a  contractor 
and  builder.  He  w-as  reasonably  successful 
from  the  start,  having  all  the  work  he  could 
attend  to.  Among  the  many  prominent  struct- 
ures now  existing  as  memorials  of  Mr.  Dunphy's 
work  may  be  mentioned  the  Cathedral  of  the 
Holy  Name,  St.  James'  Church,  the  residences  of 
Mr.  George  M.  Pullman  and  Mr.  W.  P.  Moulton, 
St.  Dennis  Hotel  and  others  of  a  like  character. 

Mr.  Dunphy  has  always  taken  an  active  inter- 
est in  politics,  and  is  an  earnest  and  popular 
Democrat.  In  the  spring  of  1879  he  was  nomi- 
nated for  the  office  of  Collector  of  the  We.st 
Town,  and  was  elected  by  a  decided  majority. 
Again,  in  the  spring  of  1883,  he  was  elected  City 
Treasurer  by  a  good  majority.  In  1889  Mr.  Dun- 
phy was  appointed  by  Mayor  Cregier  Commis- 
sioner of  Buildings,  in  which  capacity  he  served 
with  credit  until  the  spring  of   1891. 


458 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AND  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Mr.  Dunphy  was  married,  in  1859,  to  Miss  Mar)'  Democratic   Club,   also   the   Wahnatons  and    the 

Doyle,  daughter  of  J.  Edward   Doyle,  of  Dublin.  Irish-American  Club.      In    stature    he    is  of   me- 

Ireland.       Three    sons    and    one    daughter    have  dium  height  and   rather  stout.     He  has  a  genial 

blessed  this  union.    The  only  surviving  son,  John  nature  and  is  an  agreeable  companion,  and  a  man 

J.,  is  associated  with  his  father  in  business.  of    great    popularity    among   his    wide    circle    of 

Mr.  Dunphy  is  a  member  of  the  Cook  County  friends. 


JOSEPH    HOWARD    BUFFUM,   M.D. 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


ONE  of  the  favored  few,  to  whom  success  has 
come  early,  is  Joseph  Howard  Buffum,  who 
was  born  August  24,  1849,  in  Pittsburgh,  Pennsyl- 
vania. To  the  public  schools  of  that  city  he  owes 
the  foundation  of  a  very  thorough  education, 
having  passed  through  the  entire  course  of  study 
of  those  institutions,  graduating  from  high  school 
at  the  age  of  eighteen.  His  first  purpose  was  to 
become  an  engineer,  and  with  that  purpose  in 
view  he  studied  civil  engineering  for  a  year. 
Finding  this  choice  ill-advised,  he  turned  instinct- 
ively to  the  medical  profession,  and  with  a  view 
to  preparing  himself  for  it,  in  1869,  entered  Cor- 
nell University,  at  Ithaca,  New  York.  His  prep- 
aration for  college  was  so  complete  that  he 
entered  the  sophomore  class  and  was  graduated 
three  years  later.  During  that  time  he  derived 
great  benefit  from  a  special  course  under  the 
direction  of  the  distinguished  scientist,  Prof.  Burt 
G.  Wilder.  Leaving  the  University,  he  spent  one 
year  in  study  at  Hahnemann  Medical  College, 
of  Philadelphia.  He  then  returned  to  New  York 
and  was  graduated  from  the  New  York  Homeo- 
pathic Medical  College  in  March,  1873. 

Dr.  Buffum  began  his  career  as  a  general  prac- 
titioner in  his  native  city,  Pittsburgh,  where,  in 
three  years,  he  built  up  a  practice  most  creditable 
to  so  young  a  man.  While  there  he  did  good 
service  as  attending  physician  to  the  Pittsburgh 
Homeopathic  Hos])ital,  improving  his  opportun- 
ities to  study  diseases  of  eye  and  ear.  In  1876 
Dr.  Buffum  removed  to  New  York  City,  and  fur- 
ther pursued  his  favorite  study  in  the  Ophthalmic 
College  of  that  city,  and  was  graduated  as  a  sur- 
geon of  the  eye  and  ear.  He  soon  became  resi- 
dent surgeon  of  the  New  York  Ophthalmic  Hospi- 
tal, and  was  made  lecturer  on  diseases  of  the  eye 
in  the  New  \'ork  0])hthalniic  Hospital  College. 


In  1880,  owing  to  the  death  of  Prof.  W.  H. 
Woodyatt,  the  chair  of  diseases  of  the  eye  and 
ear  was  left  vacant  in  the  Chicago  Homeopathic 
Medical  College.  The  faculty  unanimously  chose 
Dr.  Buffum  to  fill  it,  whereupon  he  took  up  his 
residence  in  Chicago,  and  is  now  the  manager  of 
that  institution,  and  has,  besides,  an  extensive 
private  practice.  He  gives  a  free  public  clinic 
weekly  at  the  hospital,  and  in  his  specialty  is  con- 
sulted by  patients  from  all  parts  of  the  country. 
Dr.  Buffum's  eminence  in  this  branch  of  medical 
science  was  further  demonstrated  when  the  Amer- 
ican Society  of  Homeopathic  Oculists,  at  its 
annual  meeting  held  at  Indianapolis,  in  18S2, 
chose  him  as  its  presiding  officer.  He  is  a  mem- 
ber of  the  American  Institute  of  Homeopathy, 
and  many  other  medical  and  scientific  societies 
throughout  the  countr)-. 

In  1884  Dr.  Buffum  went  abroad,  and  s])ent 
some  time  in  the  hospitals  of  London  and  Paris, 
and  on  his  return  embodied  his  experience  in  arti- 
cles and  addresses  of  great  scientific  value.  He 
is  a  prolific  writer,  and  is  the  author  of  a  work  on 
ophthalmology,  which  is  used  in  man}-  of  the  col- 
leges of  this  countr}-,  and  which  is  one  of  the 
best  productions  extant  on  that  subject.  Among 
the  most  valuable  of  Dr.  Buffum's  contributions 
to  medical  literature  are  the  following  mono- 
graphs :  "  Dislocations  of  the  Knee,''  "  Electricity 
as  an  Adjunct  in  the  Treatment  of  Spinal  Dis- 
eases," "Two  Cases  of  Transfusion  of  Blood," 
"Contribution  to  the  Pathology  of  the  Eye," 
"  ElectroI}-sis  in  the  Treatment  of  Lachi-j-mal 
Stricture,"  "Duboisnie"  (a  new  drug),  "  Diph- 
thintic  Conjunctivitis,"  "  Colton  Drumhead," 
"  Dieleties,"  "The  Galvanic  Cauterj-  in  Surgery," 
"  Tinnitis  Aurium,"  "  Clinical  Histor}-  of  Sciatica," 
"Treatment  of  -Some   E}-e   Diseases  by  Means  of 


-^T- 


lilOCRAriUCAI.   IVCTIOXARY  A.\D  PORTRAIT  CAl.l.KRY. 


461 


I-llcctricit)-,"  "  Eye  Headaches,"  "  Eye  Renexcs,'" 
"  Tumors  and  Malfonnations  of  the  Lids,"  "  Tlie 
Pupil  in  Health  and  Disease,"  "Ocular  Neo- 
plasms," "The  Ophthalmic  and  Aural  Complica- 
tions of  Scarlet  Fever,"'  and  "Cataract  Extrac- 
tion." 

Prominent  in  the  Masonic  Order,  he  is  a  mem- 
ber (if  the  following  organizations:  Clcveiaml 
Lodge,  A.  F.  A.  M.;  Washington  Chapter,  R.  A. 
M.;  Apollo  Commandery,  Oriental  Consistory 
and  Medinah  Temple. 

In  iSjr)!))-.  Hiiflum   married    iVIiss   Evelyn   l?ar- 


rett  Spragiie,  a  laiiy  of  high  social  staiuling  in 
Jamestown,  New  \'ork,  and  a  granddaughter  of 
the  noted  Abolitionist,  William  H.  Tew.  Two 
children  have  been  born  to  them — Howard  E. 
and  Natalie  S. 

Dr.  Biiffum  is  a  man  of  powerful  mentality 
and  iron  will,  strongly  attached  to  his  profession. 
\'et,  with  all  the  student's  love  for  book.s,  keenly 
appreciative  of  art,  with  the  cosmic  views  of  a 
traveler  in  many  lands,  he  ranks  to-day  not  onlj- 
as  one  of  the  foremost  professional  men  of  this 
countr)',  but  also  as  a  pulished  man  of  the  wnrld. 


COL.  W.  THOAIAS   BLOCK, 


CHlCACiO,    ILL. 


CHICAGO  has  many  young  men  who  by 
\'arious  causes  have  risen  to  eminence  and 
distinction  ;  men  who  have  not  yet  reached  the 
meridian  of  life,  but  who  have  already  shown 
marked  ability  and  great  executive  capacity,  and 
among  that  number  is  the  subject  of  this  sketch. 
Col.  W.  T.  Block,  secretary  of  the  great  Grant 
Locomotive  Works  Company. 

Col.  Block  comes  of  distinguished  ancestry, 
and  is  of  French  and  German  descent.  He  is  a 
native  of  Penns)-lvania,  being  born  at  Marietta, 
Lancaster  county,  on  January  6th,  1853.  He  is 
the  son  of  A.  B.  Block,  merchant,  a  native  of 
France,  who  died  in  1853,  ''"'^  of  Barbara  A. 
Brobst,  his  wife,  a  descendant  of  Philip  Brobst, 
who  emigrated  from  Sa.xony  and  settled  in  Berks 
county.  Pa.,  in  1694,  and  daughter  of  Solomon 
lirobst,  one  of  the  contractors  in  building  the 
Penns\-lvania  canals  and  various  bridges  over  the 
Susquehanna  river,  and  grand-daughter  of  Chris- 
tian Brobst,  born  1767  and  died  1849,  ^^'^o  was  an 
ensign  in  I-'irst  Company,  Second  Battalion,  Lt.- 
Col.  Henry  Spyker,  in  the  Revolutionary  War, 
and  who  settled  in  1790' in  Catawissa,  Columbia 
county.  Pa.  He  built  the  first  flouring-mil!  in 
that  Count)-.  He  was  one  of  the  projectors  of 
various  internal  im[)rovements  in  the  State,  and 
was  actually  the  first  promoter  of  the  railroads  in 
the  United  States. 

I'Vom  the  history  of  Columbia  count)'.  Pa.,  we 
find  the  following : 

■'The  canal  svstem  was  of  inestimable  value  to 


the  commonwealth,  and  infused  new  vigor  in  the 
various  communities  located  on  its  route,  but 
there  were  regions  inaccessible  to  this  mode  of 
transportation,  the  mineral  wealth  of  which  de- 
manded equal  facilities  for  shipment.  It  was  out 
of  this  demand  that  the  first  railroad  grew,  and 
Pennsylvania  shares  with  Massachusetts  the 
honors  of  inaugurating  a  system  to  which  the 
nation  so  largel)-  owes  its  phenomenal  develop- 
ment. 

"  The  first  railroad  in  Pennsylvania  was  com- 
pleted in  1827,  from  Mauch  Chunk  to  Summit 
Hill,  but  Christian  Brobst,  of  Catawissa,  had  five 
years  earlier  taken  a  broader  view  of  the  useful- 
ness of  the  railroads.  He  was  a  man  of  limited 
school  training,  but  nature  had  endowed  him  with 
rare  foresight  and  reasoning  power  of  high  order. 
It  is  said  that  the  number  of  rafts  floating  down 
the  river  first  attracted  his  attention,  and  anxious 
to  build  up  the  place  of  his  residence,  he  began 
to  reckon  the  advantage  which  would  accrue  if 
all  this  traffic  could  be  made  to  pass  through 
Catawissa  to  its  final  destination.  He  took 
actual  account  of  the  river  traffic  and  compiled 
statistics  and  arguments  which  commanded  the 
attention  of  capitalists.  His  energy  did  notecase 
with  this,  however.  Once  assured  of  the  advantage 
of  a  railro.ad  he  proceeded  to  demonstrate  its 
practicabilit)-.  He  was  not  a  civil  engineer,  but 
with  some  knowledge  of  the  method  employed, 
gained  b)-  observatioTi,  by  his  own  ingenuit)-  he 
equipped    himself    for    the    work,    and   ran   out   a 


462 


HIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  A.\I>  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


jiractical  line  for  the  proposed  road.  Mr.  Brobst 
possessed  a  'Jacob's  Staff.'  He  had  a  tin  tube 
of  proper  dimensions  made,  into  the  upper  side  of 
which  he  made  small  holes  at  either  end.  In 
these  he  inserted  small  glass  vials  "  [jutticd  " 
fast,  which,  when  half  filled  with  water,  enabled 
him  to  level  his  instrument.  With  this  crude 
instrument  he  located  and  leveled  a  line  which 
was  considered  by  engineers  subsequently  em- 
ployed a  marvel  of  accuracy.  His  engineering 
skill  did  not  enable  him  to  get  a  practical  route 
over  the  mountains,  and  the  apparent  necessity 
for  an  expensive  tunnel  balked  his  plans  for  a 
time.  The  projected  road  extended  from  Cata- 
wissa  to  Tamaqua.  In  1825  he  got  certain 
capitalists  to  view  the  proposed  route,  which  made 
such  a  favorable  impression  on  them  that,  in  1831, 
a  company  for  the  construction  of  the  road  was 
chartered.  In  the  mean  time  he  had  enlisted  the 
co-operation  of  Joseph  Paxton,  who  was  better 
fitted  to  deal  with  monied  men,  and  in  1854,  after 
overcoming  great  difficulties  and  discouragements, 
the  first  passenger  train  was  greeted  at  Catawissa. 
It  is  now  operated  by  the  Philadelphia  and  Read- 
ing Company. 

"  Christain  Brobst,  afterwards,  was  one  of  the 
promoters  together  with  Stephen  Girard  of  the 
Little  Schuylkill  Railroad,  now  part  of  the  Read- 
ing railroad  system. 

"  In  1826,  whilst  a  member  of  the  State  Legis- 
lature, he  took  an  interest  in  the  scheme  to  intro- 
duce steamboats  on  the  Susquehanna  River,  and 
was  on  the  fatal  boat  'Codrous'  that  was  de- 
stroyed by  the  boiler  exploding  when  near  Ber- 
wick, Pa.  Mr.  Brobst  was  badly  injured  at  this 
time,  but  lived  for  some  years  a  useful  citizen, 
and  well  respected,  leaving  a  large  family  and  a 
large  fortune." 

Mrs.  Block,  the  mother  of  the  subject  of  this 
sketch,  was  also  a  grand-daughter  of  Peter  Mel- 
lick,  who  emigrated  from  New  Jersey  in  1774,  and 
located  in  Columbia  county.  Pa.  Peter  Mellick 
was  in  the  campaigns  of  1776  and  1777  at  Valley 
Forge.  In  1778  he  was  with  Lieut.  Moses  Van 
Campen,  in  the  defense  at  Wheeler's  Fort,  in  the 
great  Indian  massacre  in  the  beautiful  Wyoming 
Valley.  He  was  a  man  well  thought  of  and  left 
a  large  family  and  considerable  means.  Some  of 
his  descendants  were  well-known  public  men, 
among  them  being  the  eminent  physicians,  Philip 


Leidy  and  Joseph  Lcidy.  late  of  the  University 
of  Pennsylvania,  the  latter  of  whom  being  re- 
garded the  greatest  demonstrator  of  anatomy  that 
ever  lived,  and  who  also  had  the  honor  and  dis- 
tinction of  being  the  discoverer  of  trichinae  in  the 
hog. 

Young  Block  received  a  vcr\-  limited  schooling; 
he  attended  the  public  and  high  schools  at  Colum- 
bia, Pa.,  until  fourteen  years  of  age  ;  but  being  of 
a  very  studious  nature,  he  managed  to  acquire  a 
very  good  rudimentary  knowledge  before  leaving 
school  at  that  early  age,  the  age  when  most  boys 
just  begin  to  acquire  knowledge. 

In  August,  1867,  young  Block  entered  the  serv- 
ice of  the  Reading  Railroad  and  remained  with 
that  company  in  various  capacities,  receiving  pro- 
motion after  promotion,  until  1878,  when  he  was 
engaged  by  the  Hannibal  antl  St.  Joseph  Rail- 
road, where  he  remained  until  1882,  when  he 
entered  the  service  of  the  Wisconsin,  Iowa  and 
Nebraska  Railway,  now  known  as  the  Chicago, 
St.  Paul  and  Kansas  City  Railway,  remaining 
until  December,  1888,  filling  the  positions  suc- 
cessively of  auditor,  treasurer,  traffic  manager  and 
superintendent. 

In  1885,  Col.  Block  was  appointed  aide-de-camp 
on  the  staff  of  Governor  Larrabee,  of  Iowa,  for 
two  years,  with  the  titje  of  Lieut.-CoL,  and  in 
1887  was  reappointed  for  another  term  of  two 
years. 

Col.  Block  is  a  man  of  business  and  of  vast  and 
various  enterprises,  as  is  indicated  by  the  numer- 
ous concerns  in  which  he  is  actively  engaged,  and 
most  of  which  he  has  been  the  originator. 

He  was  the  promoter  of  the  Chicago,  Fort 
Madison  and  Des  Moines  Railway  Company,  now 
(1892)  being  built  in  Iowa,  and  is  at  present  vice- 
president  of  the  company.  He  was  the  promoter 
and  president  of  the  Chicago  and  Southwestern 
Railroad  in  Cicero,  Cook  county,  Illinois,  now 
owned  by  the  Chicago  and  Northern  Pacific 
Railroad. 

He  was  also  one  of  the  promoters  of  the  Grant 
Locomotive  Works  Company,  of  which  he  is  a 
director  and  also  secretary  ;  also  secretary  and 
treasurer  of  the  Grant  Land  Association :  vice- 
president  of  the  Harrisburgh  and  Cornwall  Turn- 
pike Company  in  Dauphin  county,  Pennsylvania; 
is  vice-president  and  director  in  the  Columbian 
Pyrotechnical   Company. 


lilOGRArmCAL   DICTIOXARV  AXD  PORTRAIT  CA/./.KRy. 


Col.  IMock  is  cliaritably  inclined,  as  is  shown  by 
the  fact  that  he  is  a  director  and  also  vice- 
president  of  the  Chicago  Charity  Hospital.  He 
is  also  an  associate  member  of  the  Real  Estate 
Hoard  of  Chicago.  He  is  vice-president  of  the 
Illinois  Society  of  the  Sons  of  American  Revolu- 
tion. 

In  1880  Col.  Block  was  married  to  IMiss  Anna 
E.  Scott,  daughter  of  William  P.  Scott,  of  Iowa, 
a  brother  of  the  late  railway  magnate,  Col. 
Thomas  A.  Scott,  of  Pennsylvania.  Mrs.  Block 
is  a  great  grand-daughter  of  Col.  John  Piper  of 
revolutionary  fame,  who  was  a  member  of  the 
conventions  in  Philadelphia  in  1775,  1776  and 
1778,  and  a  member  of  the  two  Constitutional 
conventions  of  1778,  and  filled  many  public 
offices  in  Pennsyh'ania.  He  was  of  Scotch-Irish 
descent. 

In  politics  Col.  Block  is  an  ardent   Republican, 


463 

though  not  a  politician  ;  his  many  interests  claim- 
ing his  undivided  attention.  He  is  interested  in 
church  matters,  and  is  a  member  of  the  Episco- 
palian church. 

Socially,  Col.  Block  is  much  esteemed.  He  is  a 
member  of  the  Union  League  and  Sunset  Clubs. 

Col.  Block  is  of  medium  size,  genial  in  nature, 
broad  and  liberal  in  his  views.  In  his  railroad 
career  he  has  passed  through  all  the  various 
grades.  lie  is  acti\e  and  pushing,  is  a  hard 
worker,  and  withal  is  a  student  still  and  bears 
the  imprint  of  culture. 

From  boyhood  up,  Col.  Block's  life  has  been 
marked  by  strict  integrity,  independent  action 
and  close  attention  to  business.  Conscientious, 
benevolent  and  warm  in  his  affections,  he  has 
endeared  himself  to  a  large  circle  of  friends,  and 
presents  an  example  of  self-culture  well  worthy 
of  emulation. 


ADOLPH    PLUKM1:R, 


CINCINNATI,   OHIO. 


ADOLPH  PLUEMER  is  a  native  of  Cassel, 
Germany.  He  was  born  July  9,  i85i,the 
son  of  Wilhclm  and  Wilhelmina  Pluemer.  He 
was  educated  in  his  native  land,  and  before  attain- 
ing his  majority  immigrated  to  the  United  States 
and  .settled  at  Cincinnati,  Ohio,  where  he  has  ever 
since  made  his  home.  He  turned  his  attention  to 
mercantile  pursuits  immediately  upon  his  arrival 
there,  and  step  by  step  has  worked  his  way  until 
he  has  become  identified  with  many  of  the  ma- 
terial interests  of  that  flourishing  city.  At  the 
present  time  (1892)  he  is  a  member  of  the  firm  of 
Hosford  &  Pluemer,  dealers  in  pig-iron,  and  is 
also  secretary  and  treasurer  of  the  Virgina  State 
Granite  Company,  whose  quarries  are  located 
near  Richmond,  Virginia. 

In  political  affairs  Mr.  Pluemer  has  taken  com- 
mendable interest  ;  he  is  a  staunch  Republican, 
and  a  life-member  and  director  of  the  Lincoln 
Club,  and  also  a  director  in  the  Young  Men's 
Blaine  Club  and  the  North  Cincinnati  Republican 
Club  of  his  city.  His  name  has  been  frequently 
mentioned  in  connection  with  official  positions, 
both  State  and  National,  but  he  has  never  sought 
political  honors,  and  with  the  exception  of  having 


served  several  j-ears  on  the  board  of  school  trus- 
tees he  has  hekl  no  public  ofTfice.  He  is  promi- 
nent and  influential  in  German  society,  and  is 
also  one  of  the  leading  members  of  the  Order  of 
Cincinnatus,  which  has  been  so  largely  instru- 
mental in  spreading  the  fame  of  and  popularizing 
his  adopted  city.  He  was  also  one  of  the  found- 
ers of  the  Cincinnati  School  of  Technology.  He 
is  a  life-member  of  the  American  Institute  of 
Mining  Engineers  and  a  member  of  the  Charcoal 
Iron  Workers  of  the  United  States.  He  is  a 
prominent  member  of  the  Masonic  fraternity, 
being  a  member  of  Nova  Ca;sarea  Harmony 
Lodge,  No.  2,  V.  and  A.  M.,  a  thirty-second 
degree  Mason  of  the  Scottish  Rite,  a  member 
of  Syrian  Temple,  N.  M.  S.,  and  a  member  of 
Trinity  Commandery,  Knights  Templar.  He  is 
also  a  member  of  the  North  Cincinnati  Turner 
Society. 

In  all  his  business  dealings  and  social  relations 
Mr.  Pluemer  has  maintained  a  manliness  and  no- 
bility of  character  that  has  won  for  him  universal 
confidence  and  esteem.  With  his  admirable  exec- 
utive ability  he  combines  courteous  manners  and 
a  pleasing  address,  and  his  selection  as  alternate 


464 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AND  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


commissioner  from  Ohio  to  the  World's  Colum-  19,  1879,  ^^i"-  I'luemer  married  Miss  Henrietta 
bian  Exposition,  to  be  held  at  Chicago,  in  1893,  Fischer,  of  Cincinnati,  by  whom  he  has  four 
was  in  every  way  a  commendable  one.     On  April      children — Meta,  Gisela,   Herbert  and   Blanche. 


HENRY  R.  SYMONDS, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


HENRY  ROBERTS  SYMONDS,  one  of  the 
leading  bankers  and  representative  men 
of  Chicago,  was  born  on  January  11,  1840,  at 
Niagara  Falls,  New  York,  and  attended  school 
there  until  he  was  fifteen  years  of  age.  He  then 
commenced  his  career  in  the  banking  business, 
which  he  followed  uninterruptedly  through  life, 
in  all  its  departments,  with  marked  success  and 
acknowledged  ability.  The  early  years  that  others 
devote  to  study,  he  spent  in  the  acquirement  of 
practical  knowledge,  and  was  all  his  life  a  student. 

Mr.  Symonds  settled  in  Chicago  in  1859  ^'""^ 
took  a  position  as  teller  in  the  Aiken  &  Norton 
Bank.  The  senior  partner  of  this  firm  was  the 
founder  of  the  First  National  Bank  of  Chicago. 

After  two  years  he  accepted  a  position  as 
cashier  in  the  banking-house  of  C.  B.  Blair,  which 
afterwards  became  the  Merchants'  National  Bank. 
His  next  position  was  as  assistant  cashier,  in  the 
First  National  Bank,  at  the  time  Mr.  Lyman  J. 
Gage  was  cashier.  He  was  afterwards  made 
cashier,  and  in  1891  was  elected  first  vice-presi- 
dent, in  which  position  he  labored  unsparingly  in 
the  discharge  of  its  arduous  and  responsible  du- 
ties, and  did  so,  even  when  prostrated  by  sickness. 

As  a  financier,  Mr.  Symonds  was  an  acknowl- 
edged authority,  having  a  thorough  knowledge 
of  every  feature  and  detail,  both  as  a  student  and 
as  a  practical  banking-man. 

Mr.  Symonds  was  a  man  of  a  happy  disposition, 
deeply  attached  to  his  family,  his  home  and  his 
library.  Although  a  member  of  the  Union 
League  and  Illinois  clubs,  he  cared  nothing  for 
society ;  his  family,  music  and  literature  fully 
occupied  the  hours  he  could  spare  from  business. 

In  January,  1892,  Mr.  Symonds  first  felt  the 
effects  of  the  illness,  which  proved  afterwards  to 
be  so  serious  and  disastrous.  He  struggled 
against  its  effects  for  some  time,  and  during  the 
illness  of  Mr.  Lyman  Gage  he  attended  business 
for  a  few  hours  dailv,   contrarv   to  the    desire    of 


his  family  and  the  advice  of  his  physician  :  the 
result  of  this  overtaxing  his  strength  was  to 
ultimately  prostrate  him  by  an  acute  nervous 
attack.  Even  then,  while  confined  to  his  room, 
his  indomitable  energy  prompted  him  to  transact, 
by  telephone,  important  business. 

His  physicians  advised  him  to  go  to  Florida, 
and  in  accordance  with  their  instructions  he  left 
Chicago  on  the  26th  of  Januarj'  for  Jacksonville, 
accompanied  by  his  wife  and  children.  Soon  after 
reaching  Florida,  his  illness,  which  had  been 
serious,  became  alarming.  During  his  illness  his 
wife  was  constantly  by  his  side,  and  night  and 
day  devoted  herself  to  his  recovery,  but  her  lov- 
ing ministrations  were  unavailing.  His  strength 
exhausted,  and  his  constitution  weakened  by 
sickness  and  overwork,  he  was  unable  to  with- 
stand the  strain  of  a  complication  of  ailments. 

At  seven  o'clock  on  the  evening  of  the  26th  of 
March,  1892,  he  breathed  his  last,  a  martyr  to 
devotion  to  duty.  By  his  death,  Chicago  lost  one 
of  her  most  prominent  business-men,  and  the 
First  National  Bank  one  of  its  ablest  directors. 
Mr.  E.F.Lawrence,  director  of  the  First  National 
Bank,  who  had  known  Mr.  Symonds  for  many 
years,  summed  up  his  worth  in  the  sentence:  "  A 
better  man  never  breathed  the  air  of  life.  He 
was  a  true  man." 

Mr.  Symonds  was  married  t\\  ice ;  first  when 
very  young  to  Miss  Julia  Ackky,  and  afterwards 
in  1876  to  Miss  Charlotte  L.  McKay,  of  this  city. 
Three  children  of  the  first  marriage  survive,  viz.: 
Mrs.  F.  K.  Morrill,  Charles  H.  and  Florence.  By 
the  second  marriage  there  are  fourchildren — Paul, 
Edith,  Edward  Lawrence,  and  Henrj'  Roberts, 
the  eldest  being  fourteen  years,  and  the  youngest 
nine  months  of  age. 

In  the  companionship  of  his  devoted  wife,  and 
in  the  sunshine  and  smiles  of  his  afTectionate 
children,  Mr.  Symonds  passed  the  happiest  hours 
of  his  life.      His    constant    endeavor   was   to  sur- 


liior.RArmcAi.  ivctioxarv  a.m^  portrait  gallery. 


467 


round  them  witli  every   comfort   and  luxurj-,  and 
liis  greatest  pleasure  was  to  make  them  happy. 

The  following  testimonial  from  the  officers  of 
the  First  National  liank  speaks  volumes  for  the 
record  of  the  twenty-five  years  that  he  was  con- 
nected with  that  institution  : 

In  the  death  of  Henrj-  R.  Syinonds,  late  vice-president  of 
this  bank,  this  Board  has  occasion  to  mourn  the  loss  of  one 
who  through  nearly  twcnty-tive  years  of  faithful  service  has 
closely  identified  himself  with  the  history  of  the  institution. 
His  clear  comprehension  of  the  great  trust  imposed  upon 
him;  his  earnest  application  to  duty:  his  scrupulous  regard 
for  the  interests  he  represented;  his  prudence,   fortitude  and 


courage,  made  his  ofhcial  life  most  effective  and  valuable. 
We  desire  to  record  our  appreciation  of  these  qualities  as 
illustrated  in  him,  and  to  express  to  his  bereaved  family  our 
sincere  sympathy  in  their  affliction.     Therefore 

Resolved,  That  this  memorial  be  spread  upon  the  records  of 
this  Board,  and  an  engrossed  copy  thereof  be  prepared  and 
sent  to  Mrs.  Symonds.  L.  J.  Gage,  President. 

R.  J.  Street,  Secretary. 

Prof.  David  Swing,  in  his  brief  remarks  at  the 
home  thus  fittingly  spoke  of  his  life's  career:  "  He 
was  honorable  ;  he  was  industrious;  he  was  faith- 
ful, but  he  was  mortal.  The  time  comes  when 
each  heart  must  go  away  from  its  earthly  shrine." 


WILLARD    ADELBERT   SMITH, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


IX  the  organization  preparatory  to  the  World's 
Fair,  which  is  to  be  held  in  Chicago,  many 
important  departments  are  necessary.  On  the 
foresight,  experience  and  ability  of  the  heads  of 
the  departments  depend  the  success  of  this  vast 
undertaking.  One  of  the  greatest  difficulties  of 
Director-General  Davis  and  the  Board  of  Control 
has  been  in  selecting  the  proper  man  to  direct 
each  department.  The  work  of  each  department 
is  like  the  Exposition  itself,  vast  in  its  area,  impor- 
tant in  its  results  and  world-wide  in  its  influences. 

"The  bureau  of  transportation  e.xhibits :  rail- 
ways, vessels  and  vehicles,"  is  an  entirely  new 
department  in  the  history  of  world's  fairs.  The 
exhibits  of  this  department  have,  in  former  ex- 
positions, been  distributed  through  other  depart- 
ments. The  World's  Columbian  Exposition  has 
wisely  determined  to  give  this  great  subject  the 
attention  which  its  importance  deserves.  It  is 
intended  that  the  exhibits  shall  fully  cover  and 
illustrate  the  entire  subject  of  transportation  in 
all  its  forms,  the  development  of  roads  and  high- 
ways, vehicles  of  all  kinds  from  the  earliest  times 
to  the  present  day,  and  the  crudest  methods  used 
by  savage  tribes  to  the  latest  and  most  improved 
machinery  used  upon  railways  or  upon  the  sea. 

Willard  A.  Smith,  the  subject  of  this  sketch, 
has  been  appointed  and  has  accepted  the  position 
of  chief  of  this  department.  Me  was  born  Sep- 
tember 20,  1849,  -i^  Kenosha,  Wisconsin.  His 
father  was  W.  H.  Smith,  whose  ancestors  settled 
in  New    England   about    1640,  and    his   mother. 


Hetty,  lue  Allen,  was  from  New  York  State. 
Willard  Adelbert  was  the  third  son  in  a  family  of 
four.  He  received  his  elementary  education  ir 
his  native  town.  When  twelve  years  old  his  par- 
ents removed  to  Rockford,  Illinois,  where  he  con- 
tinued his  public  school  education  and  gr^tduated 
in  the  High  Sciiool  class  of  that  city  in  1865.  He 
was  immediately  entered  for  a  full  course  at 
Shurtleff  College,  Upper  Alton,  Illinois,  where  he 
graduated  four  years  afterward,  taking  .second 
honors  in  his  class.  Being  now  in  his  twentieth 
year  and  having  completed  his  college  course,  he 
entered  the  law  department  of  Washington  Uni- 
versity, where  after  a  careful  reading  of  law  he 
was  admitted  to  the  bar.  In  his  law  examination 
he  took  first  honors  in  his  class,  and  was  conceded 
the  place  of  facile  princeps.  He  then  spent  a 
year  in  the  law  school,  after  which  he  commenced 
the  practice  of  his  [jrofcssion.  As  a  lawyer,  Mr. 
Smith  proved,  by  taking  the  highest  place  in  his 
class  at  the  university,  that  he  had  not  only  a 
thorough  knowledge  of  law,  but  a  facility  in  its 
application.  As  a  student  he  was  diligent,  meth- 
odical and  successful.  His  application  and  ability 
gained  for  him  the  esteem  of  his  pro/essors,  and 
his  high  sense  of  honor,  kindly  nature  and  scrupu- 
lous integrity  rendered  him  very  popular  with  his 
class  fellows.  Generous  in  spirit,  studious  in  habit 
and  agreeable  in  dispo.sition,  Mr.  Smith  has  made 
many  friends. 

While  diligently  applying  himself  to  his  studies 
at   college  he  found   time  to  edit  and  publish  a 


468 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICriOXAIiV  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


college  paper.  Journalism  was  evidently  his  forte. 
In  it,  even  as  a  student,  he  achieved  success.  Not 
long  after  his  school  days  Mr.  Smith  entered  the 
new  field  of  railroad  special  journalism.  In  1872 
he  established  the  St.  Louis  Raikvay  Register, 
and  finding  the  work  attractive  and  the  track  un- 
beaten, he  moved  to  Chicago  as  a  great  railroad 
center  and  has  made  it  his  home  ever  since.  The 
Raikvay  Reviezv  had  been  established  in  1S68,  but 
had  only  made  small  progress.  Mr.  Smith  pur- 
chased it  in  1874  and  has  since  devoted  himself  to 
its  publication.  It  is  now  one  of  the  largest  and 
most  influential  railroad  organs  in  the  country. 
He  is  also  the  owner  and  publisher  of  a  monthly 
journal.  The  Raikvay  Master  Mechanic,  and  an 
annual  publication,  The  Official  Raikvay  List. 

Mr.  Smith's  long  experience,  special  study  and 
familiar  acquaintance  with  railroad  work  and  rail- 
road men  eminently  fit  him  for  his  present  posi- 
tion of  Chief  of  the  Bureau  of  Transportation 
Exhibits.  Director-General  Davis  also  thinks  so, 
and  such  is  also  the  opinion  of  the  Board  of 
Directors  and  the  Board  of  Control,  who  have 
unanimously  confirmed  the  selection.  The  ap- 
pointment was  made  July  10,  1891,  and  was 
formally  accepted  July  27,  1891,  when  the  work 
of  organization  was  commenced. 

Mr.  Smith  is  well  informed  on  the  nature  of  his 


duties,  the  importance  of  the  interests  represented 
and  the  large  field  which  his  department  covers. 
The  department  is  a  new  one  and  offers  a  rare 
opportunity  to  its  chief  to  awaken  inquiry  and 
stimulate  improvement.  It  is  certainly  one  of  the 
largest  and  most  important  branches  of  the 
exposition,  and  is  capable  of  being  made  one  of 
the  most  interesting.  To  trace  the  means  of 
transportation  from  the  earliest  time  down  to  the 
present  date — from  the  rude  Indian  oxcarts  to 
the  latest  achievements  of  steam  and  electricity — 
is  an  educational  feature  of  this  exposition  of 
great  interest  and  benefit  to  the  public.  There  is 
every  reason  to  believe  that  Mr.  Smith,  now  in 
the  prime  of  life,  with  excellent  training  and 
enjoying  the  confidence  of  the  directorate,  will 
make  his  department  one  of  the  most  successful. 

Mr.  Smith  is  a  member  of  the  Union  League 
Club  and  is  president  of  the  Chicago  Baptist 
Social  Union.  He  is  also  a  member  of  the 
Western  Society  of  Engineers  and  a  number  of 
other  technical  organizations. 

In  May,  1873,  Mr.  Smith  married  Miss  Maria 
Dickinson,  of  St.  Louis,  Missouri.  He  resides  on 
the  South  Side,  and  in  the  company  of  his 
accomplished  wife  and  three  loving  children, 
whom  he  delights  to  surround  with  every  comfort, 
he  finds  his  greatest  pleasure. 


LEMUEL   CONANT   GROSVENOR,   M.D. 


CHICAGO,  ILL. 


AS  his  name  indicates,  the  subject  of  this 
biography  is  descended  from  two  noted 
colonial  families — the  Grosvenors  and  Conants — 
whose  prominence  in  medicine,  in  the  ministry,  and 
as  anti-slavery  workers,  is  a  matter  of  history,  lie- 
was  born  at  Paxton,  in  Central  Massachusetts,  in 
1833,  the  eldest  child  of  Deacon  Silas  N.  Gros- 
venor  and  Mary  A.  (Conant)  Grosvenor.  His 
father  was  a  leading  business  man  of  Paxton. 
The  mother  was  a  daughter  of  the  Rev.  Gaius 
Conant,  who  for  twenty-five  years  was  pastor  of 
the  Paxton  Congregational  Church.  She  was  a 
woman  of  rare  piety  and  strength  of  character, 
who  spared  no  pains  in  training  her  children  in 
ways  of  right  and  virtue.  It  was  her  especial  de- 
sire that  this  eldest  son  should  follow  in  the  steps 


of  his  eminent  grandfather,  between  whom  and 
the  boy  there  existed  the  most  intimate  and  con- 
fidential relations  and  a  strong  attachment  that 
was  mutually  shared.  This,  however,  was  not 
to  be.  The  bent  of  the  boy's  mind  was  in  another 
direction,  and,  true  to  his  native  instincts,  he  de- 
cided to  fit  himself  for  the  practice  of  medicine. 
From  such  ancestors,  and  under  the  influence  of 
such  mental  and  spiritual  training,  the  boy  inher- 
ited a  rugged  physique  that  has  carried  him 
through  the  arduous  duties  of  his  professional 
life,  and  a  strength  of  character  that  has  brought 
him  into  positions  of  influence  and  trust.  Prior  to 
his  thirteenth  year  Lemuel  attended  Williston 
Seminary,  at  East  Hampton,  Massachusetts,  but 
upon  the  removal  of  his   family  to  Worcester,  in 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXAKV  AXD  PORTRAIT  GAU.F.RY. 


471 


1846,  lie  entered  the  Hit^li  School  and  remained  a 
student  there  for  four  years.  The  good  influence  of 
these  fouryears,  during  that  formative  period  of  his 
hfe.  left  upon  the  youth  lasting  impressions.  He 
was  especially  active  in  the  literary  society,  and 
there  developed  that  taste  and  talent  for  public 
speaking  and  literary  pursuits  that  have  so  sig- 
nally marked  his  subsequent  career.  He  also, 
during  this  period,  found  time  to  cultivate  his 
musical  talents,  and  thus  acquired  what  has  been 
to  him  of  greatest  benefit,  as  a  source  of  recrea_ 
tion  and  rest  during  his  professional  life.  At  sev. 
enteen,  his  family  removed  to  Sauk  county, Wiscon- 
sin, an  event  which  had  much  to  do  with  shaping 
his  life.  The  rugged  pioneer  life  tended  to 
further  develop  the  strong  side  of  his  character. 
Here  he  had  time  to  think,  and  the  desire  to  be 
somebody  and  live  to  some  noble  purpose  became 
in  him  an  incentive  to  renewed  energy- — a  verj- 
motive  power  prompting  him  to  his  noblest  and 
best  endeavor.  The  first  winter  after  settling  in 
Wisconsin  he  was  called  to  teach  the  first  winter 
school  ever  held  at  West  Point,  in  Columbia 
county.  He  was  in  every  way  adapted  to  the 
work,  and  attained  a  great  success  as  a  teacher, 
following  the  pioneercustom  of  "boarding  around" 
among  his  pupils.  He  received  for  his  winter's 
work  si.xty  dollars  in  gold,  an  amount  which 
seemed  to  him  a  small  fortune.  His  desire  for 
knowledge  prompting,  he  easily  obtained  his 
father's  consent,  being  yet  in  his  minority,  and 
started  with  his  pack  on  his  back  and  walked  a 
distance  of  one  hundred  miles  to  Milwaukee. 
Going  thence  to  Worcester,  his  old  home,-  he  re- 
entered the  High  School  and  pursued  a  course 
in  higher  mathematics  and  surveying,  support- 
ing himself  by  manual  labor,  for  a  time,  and  after- 
ward by  teaching  evening  classes.  In  this  way 
his  time  was  fully  occupied  until  the  following 
winter,  1849.  He  now  entered  in  earnest  upon  a 
teacher's  life,  and  continued  for  ten  years  with 
great  success.  He  taught  the  district  school  of 
Scituatc,  a  select  .school  at  Rutland,  the  Union 
High  School  at  Scituate  Harbor,  whence  he  was 
called  to  the  principalship  of  the  South  Hingham 
Grammar  School.  After  two  successful  years 
there  he  received  the  appointment  as  head  master 
of  the  old  Mather  School,  in  Dorchester  (now  the 
l6th  Ward  of  lioston),  established  in  1639,  and  the 
oldest  free  .school  in    America.     He  held   this  po- 


sition seven  years,  and  during  that  time,  spent  in 
and  around  Boston,  was  afforded  many  rare  oppor- 
tunities for  culture  and  improvement,  such  as  he 
had  long  wished  for,  not  the  least  of  which  was 
the  privilege  of  often  listening  to  the  stirring  elo- 
quence and  sound  logic  of  such  men  as  Everett, 
Sumner,  Phillips  and  others  of  that  day.  He 
here  formed  the  fi.xed  purpose  of  devoting  his 
life  to  the  study  and  practice  of  medicine,  it  hav- 
ing for  him  a  peculiar  fascination  ;  and  this,  too, 
although  his  popularity  and  success  as  a  teacher 
were  decidedly  marked,  and  even  exceptional. 

He  was  a  member  of  the  American  Institute  of 
Instruction,  and  for  three  years  secretarj-  of  the 
Massachusetts  State  Teachers'  Association.  In 
order  to  more  fully  prepare  himself  for  his  chosen 
profession,  he  declined  an  invitation  to  a  chair  in 
the  Brooklyn  Polytechnic  School,  and  returning  to 
the  West  pursued  his  medical  studies  and  gradu- 
ated at  the  Cleveland  Medical  College  with  the 
degree  of  M.D.  in  the  spring  of  1864.  He  was 
now  thirty-one  years  of  age.  He  opened  his  first 
office  for  practice  at  Peoria,  Illinois,  and  remained 
there  three  years. 

When  fairly  established  he  returned  to  the  East 
and  married  Miss  Ellen  M.  Prouty,  of  Dorchester, 
a  daughter  of  Lorenzo  Prouty,  and  grand-daughter 
of  David  A.  Prouty,  the  inventor  of  the  first  iron 
plow  ever  made.  Her  maternal  grandfather  was 
John  Mears,  Sr.,  the  inventor  of  the  center-draft 
plow,  which  was  awarded  the  first  premium  at  the 
World's  P'air,  in  London,  England.  All  her  im- 
mediate ancestors  were  noted  agriculturists  and 
members  of  the  old  Boston  firm  of  Prouty  & 
Mears.  Mrs.  Grosvenor,  a  decided  brunette,  was 
not  only  a  woman  of  great  personal  beauty,  but 
had,  coupled  with  this,  those  womanly  graces  and 
virtues  that  go  to  make  up  the  model  wife  and 
mother.  She  died  in  1874,  leaving  two  sons, 
Lorenzo  N.  and  Wallace  F.,  and  one  daughter, 
Ellen  Elfiedd.  From  Peoria,  Dr.  Grosvenor  went 
to  Galesburg,  Illinois,  and  built  up  an  extensive 
practice  among  the  leading  families  of  that  pros- 
perous city.  In  1870,  desiring  a  broader  field  of 
action,  he  took  up  his  abode  in  Chicago,  where 
he  has  found  ample  opportunity  to  e.xercise 
and  develop  his  talents  and  skill.  At  the  time 
of  the  burning  of  Chicago,  October  9,  1871,  he 
was  the  only  physician  in  his  neighborhood,  on 
the    North   side,  whose   house  was  not  burned,  it 


472 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


being  left  at  the  very  edge  of  the  fire  line,  and  at 
that  perilous  time  rendered  to  the  destitute  and 
suffering  services  deserving  of  lasting  gratitude. 
Day  and  night,  without  thought  of  remuneration, 
he  ministered  to  those  whose  homes  had  been 
swept  awa}-  and  who  were  suffering  from  expos- 
ure and  the  nervous  strain  incident  to  that  terri- 
ble ordeal,  finding  his  patients  in  improvised 
shelters,  in  tents,  in  school-houses,  meeting-houses, 
police-stations,  or  wherever  cover  from  the  ele- 
ments could  be  found,  and  visiting  them  on  foot, 
owing  to  the  impossibility  of  getting  about 
through  the  streets  filled  with  the  debris,  with 
any  kind  of  vehicle.  The  task  was  Herculean 
and  continued  for  weeks,  and  must  have  over- 
powered him  had  it  not  been  for  his  splendid 
physical  organization  and  determined  will-power. 
The  experiences  of  this  winter  of  '71 -'72  would, 
of  themselves,  fill  a  volume  of  most  interesting 
reading. 

Dr.  Grosvenor's  superior  abilities  were  readily 
recognized  by  his  professional  colleagues,  and 
upon  the  new  building  for  the  Chicago  Homeo- 
pathic Medical  College  being  completed,  a  special 
chair  of  sanitary  science  was  created  for  him,  it 
being  the  first  full  professorship  in  that  depart- 
ment created  by  any  college.  The  following  from 
the  college  announcements  of  the  current  year 
aptly  expresses  the  esteem  in  w  hich  he  is  held  : 

Professor  Grosvenor.  by  his  rare  handling  of  eminently 
practical  subjects,  has  made  the  department  of  Hygiene  and 
Sanitation  an  attractive  feature  of  the  college.  His  lectures 
on  the  sanitary  condition  of  the  home,  the  sick-room,  the 
lying-in  room— especially  those  on  infant  hygiene  and  the 
hygiene  and  sanitary  conditions  of  maternity— have  greatly 
interested  students  and  practitioners  in  these  heretofore 
much-neglected  subjects. 

Dr.  Grosvenor  enjoys  a  remunerative  general 
practice,  and  as  an  obstetrician  has  no  superior, 
and  had  he  accomplished  nothing  more,  his  ser- 
vices in  alleviating  the  discomforts  of  infant  life 
and  reducing  the  drudgery  of  motherhootl  would 
entitle  him  to  lasting  renown.  Out  of  ])atiencc 
with  the  old  method  of  swaddling  babes,  he,  with 
the  aid  of  his  good  wife,  who  takes  the  deepest 
interest  in  his  work,  devised  the  beautiful,  and  in 
every  detail,  hygienic  dress,  known  as  "The  Ger- 
trude Raby  Suit,"  named  after  their  little  daughter, 
for  whom  it  was  first  designed.  This  emancipation 
dress  has  not  only  become  popular  at  home,  but 
has  also  found  a  warm  welcome  even  in    Kngland, 


Australia,  India  and  South  Africa,  and  is  highly 
commended  in  the  medical  journals  of  the  conti- 
nent. Besides  his  position  as  professor  he  has, 
for  several  years,  been  on  the  executive  board  of 
the  college.  For  eighteen  years  he  has  been  a 
member  of  the  Chicago  Academj-  of  Physicians 
and  Surgeons,  and  is  now  (1 890)  serving  for  the 
third  time  as  its  president.  He  was  two  years 
president  of  the  American  Paidological  Society, 
and  for  many  years  has  been  connected  with  the 
American  Institute  of  Homeopathy. 

Dr.  Grosvenor  excels  as  a  speaker,  and  his  pub- 
lic lectures  and  parlor  conversations  are  most 
highly  prized.  His  diction  is  simple,  sure  and 
concise  ;  his  style  fluent,  his  manner  graceful  and 
iiis  thought  and  argument  convincing.  He  has 
always  taken  the  deepest  interest  in  young  peo- 
ple, and  has  several  lectures  especially  for  their 
benefit,  such  as  "  Our  Boys,"  "  Value  of  a  Pur- 
pose," "  Stimulants  and  Narcotics,"  "  Brains," 
"  Our  Girls,"  "  How  to  be  Beautiful,"  "  Roses 
Without  Cosmetics,"  etc.,  and  enjoys  nothing 
more  than  his  class  lectures,  because  of  their 
helpfulness  to  young  men.  Dr.  Grosvenor  is  a 
man  of  sanguine  temperament,  e.xalted  hope  and 
never  recognizes  the  possibility  of  failure.  He 
lives  with  the  purpose  of  making  the  world  bet- 
ter and  brighter  constantly  in  view,  and  wherever 
known  is  recognized  as  a  Christian  gentleman, 
with  fixed  opinions  and  high  aims.  He  holds 
membership  in  the  Lincoln  Park  Congregational 
Church,  and  was  for  several  years  president  of  its 
board  of  trustees;  he  is  also  a  charter  member  of 
the  Chicago  Congregational  Club.  In  political 
sentiment  he  is  a  Republican. 

Dr.  Grosvenor  has  been  peculiarl)-  fortunate 
and  happy  in  his  home-life,  and  to  this  owes  not 
a  little  of  his  remarkable  success.  Three  years 
after  the  death  of  his  first  wife  he  was  united  in 
marriage  with  Miss  Naomi  Josephine  Bassett,  of 
Taunton,  Massachusetts,  a  highly  educated  young 
lady,  with  unusual  literary  tastes  and  talents  and 
charming  accomplishments,  and  withal,  rare  good 
sense  and  Christian  virtue.  Her  natural  fondness 
for  children,  inhanccd  by  several  years  of  teach- 
ing, added  to  her  other  womanly  graces,  fitted 
lur  for  the  responsible  place  she  w as  to  fill — that 
of  taking  charge  of  a  home  with  two  motherless 
bo_\-s.  But  so  faithfully  has  the  task  been  per- 
formed, that  it  is  not  surprising  that  there  should 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


473 


exist  for  her  the  most  loyal  love  on  the  part  of 
her  two  stepsons.  There  have  been  born  to  Dr. 
drosvenor  and  his  present  wife,  four  children,  of 
whom  two — Inez  and  Gertrude — died  when  two 
and  three  years  of  age,  respectively ;  the  two 
surviving — David  l^assett,  now  in  his  tenth  year, 
and  one  daughter.  Luc\-  Ella,  now  in  her  eighth 
year — are  beautiful  and  interesting  children.  Tlieir 
home  is  a  center  of  refinement  and  generous  hos- 
pitality, and  no  one  can  come  within  the  range  of 
its  genial.  Christian  influence  without  being  made 
nobler  and  better. 

The  eldest  son,  Dr.  Lorenzo  N.  Grosvenor,  born 
at  Galesburg.  in  1868,  received  his  preliminary  ed- 
ucation in  the  public  schools  and  Chicago  High 
School,  and  afterwards  attended  Oberlin  College. 


Me  then  pursued  a  course  of  study  in  the  Chicago 
Homeopathic  Medical  College,  and  graduated  in 
1889,  taking  a  post-graduate  course  in  1892,  and 
is  now  in  practice  at  Edgewater,  a  beautiful  sub- 
urb of  Chicago.  He  is  a  young  man  of  high 
character,  energetic,  cheery  and  hopeful,  and  at 
once  scholarly  and  refined,  in  every  sense  a  worthy 
son  of  a  worthy  father.  The  second  son,  Wal- 
lace F.  Grosvenor,  born  at  Galesburg,  January  4, 
iS/O,  is  a  member  of  the  class  of  '92  in  Oberlin 
College,  and  also  a  matriculate  of  the  Chicago 
Homeopathic  Medical  College.  He  is  a  young 
man  of  much  promise,  and  in  scholarship  ranks 
among  the  first  in  his  class,  whose  honors  he  car- 
ried off  in  his  sophomore  year.  He  will  enter  the 
medical  profession  upon  completion  of  his  studies. 


M.    II.   DK  YOUNG, 

SAN    FRAN'CISCO,  CAL. 


MM.  DE  YOUNG,  proprietor  of  the  San 
•  Francisco  Chronicle,  was  born  in  St. 
Louis,  Missouri,  in  1848.  When  he  was  a  youth 
of  five  years  he  was  taken  across  the  plains  to 
California  by  his  parents,  who  became  residents 
of  the  bustling  young  city  of  San  Francisco. 
For  a  time  during  his  boyhood  days  Mr.  De 
\'oung  sold  papers  on  the  streets  of  the  Pacific 
coast  metropolis.  In  1865,  when  seventeen  years 
of  age,  he,  with  his  brother  Charles,  began  the  pub- 
lication of  a  small  advertising  sheet,  known  as  the 
Dramatic  Chronicle.  The  paper  was  carried  on 
with  a  very  small  capital,  and  being  distributed 
gratuitously,  it  depended  entirely  upon  its  adver- 
tising patronage  for  support.  It  grew  very  rap- 
idly, and  ju.st  as  the  first  year  of  its  existence 
closed  it  secured  telegraphic  dispatches  and  began 
to  have  the  character  of  a  newspaper.  It  had  a 
large  subscription  list  at  that  time — large  for  a 
local  paper  in  those  days  of  Pacific  Coa.st  journal- 
ism, and  it  was  looked  upon  as  a  power  in  the 
land.  Mark  Twain,  Iket  Harte,  Prentice  Mulford 
and  other  rising  stars  in  the  literary  firmament 
contributed  to  the  paper,  and  it  became  very 
popular.  Mr.  De  Young  assumed  the  control  of 
the  business  department  of  the  paper,  while  his 
brother  h.id  charge  of  the  editorial  department. 
Mr.    De   Young    watched     the    growth    of    the 


Chronicle  with  all  the  interest  and  enthusiasm  of 
a  young  journalist  whose  heart  is  wrapped  up  in 
his  enterprise.  He  devoted  all  his  time  and  atten- 
tion to  the  development  of  the  Chronicle,  and  its 
wonderful  success  more  than  compensated  for  his 
years  of  toil.  When,  in  1880,  Charles  De  Young 
was  killed  by  the  son  of  Mayor  Kalloch,  M.  H. 
De  Young  became  sole  proprietor  of  the  paper. 
He  at  once  exhibited  remarkable  talent  for  edito- 
rial management,  and  as  a  result  of  his  efforts  the 
Chronicle  has  steadily  improved  and  attained  its 
now  well-known  high  standing  among  the  news- 
papers of  the  nation. 

As  a  business  man  Mr.  De  Young  has  been 
phenomenally  successful,  and  his  fortune  has  been 
estimated  to  be  nearly  five  million  dollars.  He 
owns  the  fine  new  ten-story  Chronicle  building  on 
Kearny,  Market  and  Geary  streets,  in  San  Fran- 
cisco, a  magnificent  residence  on  California  street, 
and  the  beautiful  Alcazar  Theatre  building  on 
0"Farrell  street,  besides  a  great  deal  of  other 
valuable  property. 

In  public  life  Mr.  De  Young  has  been  (juite 
prominent  of  late,  having  been  a  commissioner  to 
the  Paris  Ex|)osition,  as  well  as  a  member  of  the 
Republican  National  Committee,  and  he  is  now 
second  vice-president  of  the  World's  Columbian 
Exposition. 


474 


BIOGRAl'IIICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Mr.  De  Young  is  one  of  the  representative  men  He  was  married,  in  1881,  to  Miss  Kate  Deane, 

of  the  Pacific  coast,  and  is  certainly  one  of  the      of  San  Francisco,  and  has   a   charming  family  of 
busiest  and  most  prosperous  men  in  San  l-Vancisco.      four  cliildren. 


GEORGE  W.   CASS, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


GEORGE  W.  CASS  is  well  known  at  the 
Chicago  bar  as  an  able  lawyer  of  large 
and  varied  experience.  He  has  an  extensive 
knowledge  of  adjudicated  cases  and  statutory 
enactments,  and  he  looks  well  to  the  history  and 
philosophy  of  the  law.  His  mind  is  broad  and 
comprehensive,  and  he  never  gets  confused  among 
the  multitude  of  cases  that  are  contained  in  the 
reports,  but  he  possesses  that  legal  acumen  and 
nice  perception  that  enable  him  to  distinguish 
with  accuracy  cases  directly  in  point,  and  he  is  so 
well  acquainted  with  the  history  of  jurisprudence 
in  this  and  foreign  countries  that  he  never  cites 
an  authority  unless  it  comes  from  a  court  entitled 
to  great  credit.  He  possesses  that  equipoise  of 
mind  and  character  that  peculiarly  fits  him  for  a 
counselor.  He  is  an  easy,  graceful  speaker,  lucid, 
logical  and  convincing,  while  as  a  citizen  no  man 
stands  higher  than  he.  He  is  the  son  of  Abner  L. 
Cass,  a  prominent  physician  of  Coshocton,  Ohio, 
where  he  was  born  February  11,  185  i.  His  father 
was  at  one  time  a  State  Senator  in  ( )hio,  and  is  a 
brother  of  Gen.  George  W.  Cass,  formerly  presi- 
dent of  the  Pittsburgh,  Fort  Wayne  and  Chicago 
Railroad,  and  a  nephew  of  Gen.  Lewis  Cass,  of 
Michigan,  a  statesman  of  national  reputation, once 
Democratic  candidate  for  the  presidency,  and  a 
grandson  of  Jonathan  Cass  of  Revolutionary  fame. 
The  maternal  ancestors  of  our  subject  were  of 
an  old  Scottish  family,  among  which  were  several 
clercivmcn  eminent   for   their  great   learning  and 


eloquence.  Our  subject  pursued  a  four-years' 
course  of  study  at  Kenyon  College,  and  was  grad- 
uated therefrom  in  1870  as  valedictorian  of  his 
class.  He  then  entered  Ann  Arbor  Law  School, 
where  he  remained  until  1873.  After  spending  a 
few  months  in  Ohio,  he  commenced  the  practice 
of  the  law  in  Chicago,  in  the  fall  of  that  year.  He 
formed  a  partnership  with  Mr.  William  P.  Elliott, 
under  the  firm  name  of  Elliott  &  Cass,  which  was 
continued  until  1877,  since  which  time  he  has 
been  in  practice  by  himself.  He  has  a  fine  class 
of  clients,  among  them  several  large  corporations 
of  Chicago,  and  is  doing  an  extensive  business. 

In  politics  Mr.  Cass  is  a  Democrat,  but  the 
duties  of  his  profession  fully  engross  his  attention, 
so  that  he  is  not  what  is  termed  an  active  poli- 
tician, but  his  high  standing  as  a  lawyer,  his 
practical  sound  judgment  and  even  balance  of 
mind  have  drawn  the  attention  of  his  party  to  him 
as  an  available  candidate  for  a  judgeship.  Since 
coming  to  Chicago,  Mr.  Cass  has  purchased  a 
large  amount  of  valuable  real  estate,  and  his  atten- 
tion has  been  turned  largely  to  real  estate  law,  and 
he  has  become  very  learned  in  that  branch  of  his 
profession;  so  much  so  that  he  is  considered  high 
authority  in  all  matters  pertaining  to  realty.  He 
has  been  secretary  of  the  Chicago  Bar  Association 
eight  years,  and  is  a  member  of  the  Calumet, 
Iroquois  and  University  clubs. 

He  was  married,  in  1878,  to  Miss  Rebecca  Os- 
borne.    Thev  have  two  children. 


COL.  GEORGE   R.  CLARKE, 


CIIICA(;(),    ILL. 


THE   subject  of  this  sketch  was  born  at  Una-  cago  in  1S36,  and    removed    his    family   thither  in 

dilla  Forks,  New  York,  February  22,  1827,  May,  1838.     In  September,    1840,  he  removed  to 

the    son    of    Dr.   Henr.\-   and    Lucy   Clarke.      His  Walworth,  Wisconsin,  and    practiced   his   profes- 

father  established  himself  in  his  profession  at  Chi-  sion  there  until   his   death,  which   occurred    April 


}         '---'''  ^■'^y^^^y^ 


t!MnjxS^-€iL^ 


lilOCR.irillCAI.    IMCTIOXARV  A\l>   roHTRMT  uAl.l.llRY. 


477 


23,  1S53.  His  widow,  Mis.  Lorinda  Clarke,  is 
still  living,  and  is  scvc-nty-scven  j-cars  of  age. 
Our  subject's  own  mother,  Lucy  Clarke,  died  in 
1829.  There  were,  besides  him,  seven  children  in 
the  family,  \iz.:  Henry  \V.,  Hannah  M.,  William 
.M.,  Miles  D.,  (icorge  R.,  Charles  C,  Henjamin  F. 
and  John  M. 

George  removed  to  Chicago  in  1839.  ^'i  ''^4S 
he  entered  Beloit  College,  and  pursued  his  studies 
through  the  junior  jear,  when  he  left  college  and 
accepted  the  principalship  of  Monroe  Seminar)-, 
Wisconsin,  and  held  it  eighteen  months.  lie 
afterwards  taught  at  Milton  Academy,  and  later 
was  elected  superintendent  of  the  public  schools 
of  Baraboo,  Sauk  county,  Wisconsin,  and  for 
eighteen  months  edited  the  Sauk  County  Standard, 
a  '•  F"ree  Soil  "  Democratic  paper. 

Having  employed  his  spare  time  in  the  study 
of  law,  he  returned  to  Chicago  in  1S53,  and  was 
admitted  to  the  bar  and  began  practice.  In  the 
following  year  he  turned  his  attention  to  the  real 
estate  trade,  and  continued  until  i860,  when  he 
went  to  Colorado  and  .spent  two  years  in  mining. 
Returning  to  Chicago  in  1862,  he  at  once  began 
recruiting  men  for  service  in  the  War  of  the  Re- 
bellion, which  was  then  in  progress,  and  was  made 
captain  of  Company  A,  One  Hundred  and  Thir- 
teenth Regiment,  Illinois  Volunteers,  infantry. 
He  afterwards  rose  to  the  rank  of  major  ami 
lieutenant-colonel.  He  was  post  commander  of 
Camp  Hutler,  near  Springfield.  Illinois,  for  eight 
months  after  the  siege  of  Vicksburg,  and  was 
in  not  only  that  siege,  but  also  many  other  im- 
portant battles  with  the  Fifteenth  Army  Corps, 
under  General  Sherman.  Returning  to  Chicago 
after  the  close  of  the  war,  he  resumed  the  real 
estate  business.  In  1869  he  laid  out  Morgan 
Park,  one  of  Chicago's  finest  suburbs,  and  still  has 
control  of  the  Blue  Island  Land  and  Building 
Company's  real  estate  matters. 

Colonel  Clarke  was  for  many  years  idciUifud 
with  the  Masonic  Order,  and  rose  to  the  thirty- 
second  degree.  He  was  a  member  of  the  Chicago 
Consistory.  He  was  married  in  1873  to  Miss 
Sarah  Dunn,  a  native  of  Cayuga  county,  New 
York,  and  daughter  of  James  Dunn.  Mrs.  Clarke 
is  a  highly  educated  woman,  and  is  noted  for  her 
religious  zeal  and  earnest  Christian  work.  Ik- 
has  one  daughter  by  a  former  marriage,  Nellie  A., 
the  wife  of  Mr.  John  Black,  of  Chicago. 


While  Colonel  Clarke's  career  has  been  one  of 
unusual  activity,  and  successful  from  a  business 
standpoint,  he  has  been  brought  into  special 
prominence  as  a  religious  teacher  and  Christian 
worker.  He  was  converted  to  Christianity  in 
i860,  while  in  the  mining-regions  of  Colorado, 
and  ever  since  has  devoted  himself  with  untiring 
zeal  to  the  work  of  winning  others  to  that  cause. 
Both  he  and  his  wife  are  connected  with  the  Con- 
gregational Church,  and  for  many  years  have  been 
co-workers  with  Mr.  Dwight  L.  Moody  in  evan- 
gelical work,  and  their  influence  has  been  felt,  not 
only  in  Chicago,  but  throughout  many  parts  of 
the  L'nited  States.  They  founded  and  have  long 
sustained  the  Pacific  Garden  Mission,  which  has 
proved  one  of  the  most  useful  reformatory  in- 
stitutions of  Chicago.  It  was  started  in  1877,  in 
a  store  at  No.  286  South  Clark  street,  in  one  of 
the  most  depraved  sections  of  the  city,  commonly 
known  as  the  "  Levee."  Religious  services  have 
been  kept  up  every  night  and  on  Sundays,  and 
the  work  has  grown  until  now  there  is  maintained 
not  only  gospel  services,  but  also  a  large  Sunday- 
school,  a  free  sewing-school,  a  free  kindergarten, 
Bible-classes,  organized  prison-work  and  a  regular 
system  of  house-to-house  visitation  among  the  poor 
and  neglected  classes.  In  order  to  accommodate 
the  crowds  who  thronged  the  mission,  commodious 
i|uartcrs  at  the  cornci'  of  Clark  and  \'an  Buren 
streets  were  secured,  where  night  after  night  as- 
sembled hundreds  of  all  classes  of  neglected  and 
degraded  men  and  women,  eagerly  seeking  the 
truth  and  a  better  life.  These  quarters  in  time 
became  overcrowded  and  Colonel  Clarke  leased 
and  fitted  up  the  spacious  rooms  at  the  corner  of 
Van  Buren  street  and  Fourth  avenue,  the  present 
home  of  the  mission.  Besides  the  \arious  depart- 
ments of  work  mentioned,  there  is  also  a  lodging 
house,  where  the  poor  converts  can  secure  lodg- 
ing for  a  small  compensation,  and  are  provided 
willi  tickets  when  they  ha\e  no  money  to  pay. 
For  fifteen  years  Colonel  and  Mrs.  Clarke  have 
carried  on  this  benevolent  work,  bringing  the 
gospel  in  a  most  practical  way  to  the  thousands 
who  else  had  never  felt  its  beneficent  influence. 
The  most  debased  have  been  lifted  up.  Criminals 
have  been  reformed;  drunkards  have  been  re- 
claimed; hearts  and  homes  from  which  light  and 
hope  had  fled  have  been  warmed  into  a  new  life 
and    made    happy    and    glad.     Men  and    women 


478 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARV  AXD  PORTRAIT  OALLERY. 


who  were  so  dcgracieil  by\icious  indulgences  that 
the  attempt  to  reform  them  seemed  almost  a 
hopeless  task,  have  become  helpful  members  of  so- 
ciety through  the  work  here  done,  and  are  living 
useful  lives,  many  of  them  preaching  to  others  that 
gospel  that  saved  them.  For  ten  years  Colonel 
Clarke  bore  the  expenses  of  this  extensive  work, 
which  averaged  about  six  thousand  dollars  per 
year,  almost  alone.  But  for  five  years  past,  others 
connected  with  the  mission  have  helped  him  in 
carrying  the  financial  burden.  In  this  vast  enter- 
prise Colonel  Clarke  has  had  the  constant  and 
earnest  co-operation  of   his  estimable   wife,  who 


devotes  herself  not  only  to  the  work  in  the  mis- 
sion-rooms, but  spends  a  large  portion  of  each 
week  visiting  among  the  poor,  and  especially  the 
prisoners  at  the  county  jail.  The  results  show 
that  the  cause  is  a  most  worthy  one  and  too 
much  praise  cannot  be  given  to  those  who  have 
so  cheerfully  made  the  sacrifices  necessary  to  se- 
cure them.  But  they  do  not  seek  or  desire  praise 
or  renown,  but  feel  that  they  are  doing  only  what 
they  ought  in  carrying  out  the  scriptural  injunc- 
tion, "Go  ye  out  into  the  highways  and  compel 
the  people  to  come  in,  that  mv  house  may  be 
filled." 


EDWARD    P.   GRISWOLD, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


AMONG  the  names  of  the  prominent  business 
men  of  Chicago  who  have  been  closely 
identified  with  its  interests,  and  have  assisted  in 
its  mar\clous  growth,  and  who,  while  helping  to 
build  up  a  metropolis,  have  founded  for  them- 
selves reputations  more  enduring  than  iron  or 
stone,  stands  that  of  Edward  P.  Griswold,  one 
who,  by  force  of  native  ability  and  steady  per- 
severance, has  raised  himself  to  a  position  of 
wealth  and  honor.  His  life-history  illustrates  in  a 
marked  degree  what  may  be  accomplished  by  well 
directed  efforts  and  a  strict  adherence  to  correct 
business  principles. 

Mr.  Griswold  is  a  native  of  Connecticut.  He 
was  born  near  Hartford,  August  6,  1838,  the  son 
of  Thomas  and  Jerusha  (Wells)  Griswold.  His 
father  was  the  leading  cloth  manufacturer  in  that 
State.  The  boyhood  of  our  subject  was  spent  in 
the  public  schools  of  his  native  town,  and  he 
finished  his  education  at  East  Hampton,  Massa- 
chusetts. In  1854  he  began  as  a  clerk  in  the 
employ  of  Mr.  S.  W.  Griswold,  who  was  then  in 
the  same  line  of  business  in  which  Mr.  Griswold 
is  now  engaged,  at  Hartford,  Connecticut. 

In  1857  he  went  to  Milwaukee,  Wisconsin,  and 
for  six  years  was  engaged  with  his  brother, 
Mr.  J.  W.  Griswold,  in  the  cloak  manufacturing 
business.  In  1863  they  removed  to  Chicago, 
where  they  continued  the  manufacture  of  ladies' 
and  children's  cloaks  under  the  firm  name  of  J. 
W.  Griswold  &  Co.     The    business  of  this   firm 


constantly  increased  from  its  start,  in  1857,  and 
has  grown  to  be  one  of  the  largest  of  its  kind  in 
America.  Since  the  retirement  of  Mr.  J.  W. 
Griswold,  in  1886,  the  management  has  become 
more  aggressive,  and  there  are  no  more  energetic, 
popular  or  better  merchants  in  the  cloak  trade 
than  his  successors,  Mr.  Edward  P.  Grisw^old  and 
Mr.  P.  B.  Palmer;  each  of  whom  having  been 
brought  up  in  the  business,  are  thoroughly  conver- 
sant with  all  of  the  details  of  what  is  considered 
the  most  difficult  lines  of  manufacture.  It  has 
been  the  aim  of  the  firm  from  its  very  start  to  the 
present  time  to  manufacture  only  garments  that 
could  be  depended  upon  for  style,  and  that  would 
give  satisfaction  in  the  wear.  The  popularity  of 
the  house  with  its  customers  is  a  well  known-fact, 
which  is  due  to  the  universal  satisfaction  which 
their  garments  have  given.  No  firm  has  a  better 
record,  and  it  has  been  established  longer  than 
any  other  house  in  this  country,  passing  through 
the  financial  crises  of  1857  and  1877,  and  the  great 
Chicago  fire  of  1871.  While  thousands  of  firms 
were  stranded  and  others  settled  at  various  per- 
centages of  their  indebtedness,  this  firm  always 
met  all  of  its  obligations,  paying  one  hundred 
cents  on  the  dollar. 

As  a  citizen,  no  man  stands  higher  than  Ed- 
ward P.  Griswold.  While  he  is  modest  in  his  de- 
meanor and  unostentatious,  he  is  always  in  the 
front  rank  in  all  matters  of  reform.  He  is  a 
deacon  in  the   I-"irst   Presbyterian  Church,  and  a 


Y^-i  i  ^^ 


'/    /   f 


PIOCRAI'HICAI.   IVCTIOXAKV  .I.VP  rOKTRAIT  CAl.I.ERV. 


481 


man  wlio  has  bettered   the  world  by  having'  Hvcd  Mr.   Griswold   was    married    in    the    year    1865 

in  it.  to  Miss  Mary  Hrowning.     They  have   four  chil- 

He  belongs  to  tlie  Union   League  and  Haniil-  dren  —  two    sons    and    two    daughters     -  Edward 

ton  clubs,  and  is  a  member  of  the  Citizens' Asso-  Hrowning,     Mary     Maude,     Grace     and     Harold 

elation  and  the  Art  Institute  of  Chicago.  Griswold. 


JOSEPH    EIBOECK, 


I)i:S    .MOINKS,    IOWA. 


AMONG  the  few  journalists  who  have  won 
distinction  in  writing  for  the  press  in  both 
the  two  leading  languages  in  the  United  States  is 
Joseph  Eiboeck,  the  present  editor  and  proprietor 
of  three  journals — the  lon'a  Staats-Atizcigcr,  Dcr 
Haus-Schatz  and  Soitnttigs-Post,  of  Des  Moines, 
Iowa.  He  was  born  in  Szeleskut  (Breitenbrunn), 
Hungary,  on  the  23d  of  February,  1838,  and  is 
the  only  child  of  Joseph  and  Marie  Eiboeck. 
When  quite  young  his  father  was  killed  in  a  duel. 
At  six  years  of  age  he  was  taken  to  Vienna,  the 
capital  of  Austria,  and  placed  in  an  educational 
institute.  His  boj-hood  days  were  passed  in  tlie 
stormy  days  of  the  revolution  of  1848-49.  Re- 
siding in  the  heart  of  the  city,  within  a  stone's 
throw  of  the  great  St.  Stephan's  Church,  he  was 
a  youthful  but  eager  eye-witness  of  the  exciting 
and  often  harrowing  scenes  of  that  eventful  pe- 
riod. It  was  there,  doubtless,  upon  the  barricade 
immediately  in  front  of  his  parental  home,  with 
the  banners  flying,  the  black-red-and-gold  cock- 
ades worn  exultantly  and  the  vivats  of  liberty 
and  equality  resounding,  as  speaker  after  speaker 
harangued  the  multitudes  and  aroused  them  to 
their  duties  as  citizens  and  patriots,  that  he  drank 
in  that  spirit  of  freedom  and  an  antagonism  to  all 
forms  of  oppression  with  which  his  nature  has 
been  imbued  all  his  life. 

After  that  sanguinary  revolution  his  stepfather, 
Paul  Kiene,  who  participated  in  that  struggle, 
was  forced  into  exile,  and  with  his  family  came  to 
America  in  the  spring  of  1849,  settling  in  Du- 
bucjue,  Iowa.  Soon  after  coming  there,  Joseph 
entered  the  office  of  the  Miner's  Express  as  an 
apprentice  under  Col.  Wm.  II.  Merritt,  where  he 
learned  the  printer's  trade  and  the  English  lan- 
guage at  the  same  time.  While  an  apprentice 
and  journeyman  printer  he  applied  himself  during 
his  leisure   hours  to   study,  with  great  assiduity. 


and  qualified  himself  for  the  position  of  teacher, 
in  which  occupation  he  was  engaged  for  several 
years.  It  is  worthy  of  note  here,  that  the  first 
time  he  ever  saw  the  interior  of  a  common  school 
in  the  United  States  was  when  he  entered  one  as 
teacher,  after  having  successfully  passed  a  thor- 
ough examination,  and  that  was  two  years  before 
he  was  of  age. 

In  1859  li"^  purchased  the  Elkader  (Clayton 
county,  Iowa,)  Journal,  an  English  paper,  which 
he  edited  and  published  for  thirteen  years.  He 
was  also  the  founder  of  the  Elkader  Nord  Iowa 
Herold,  a  German  weekly,  which  he  conducted 
for  a  time,  in  addition  to  his  other  paper.  In 
1872  he  sold  out  and  devoted  himself  to  the  com- 
pletion of  the  history  of  Clayton  county,  upon 
which  he  had  been  engaged  for  some  years. 
Thereafter,  partly  for  his  health  but  mainly  for 
information,  he  traveled  extensively  in  the  United 
.States  and  Territories,  visiting  the  Pacific  Coast 
and  the  upper  portion  of  Mexico.  In  1873  he 
was  appointed  an  honorary  commissioner  from 
Iowa  to  the  World's  Fair  at  Vienna,  and  after 
discharging  the  duties  of  his  mission  made  a  tour 
of  the  Continent,  visiting  the  principal  cities  of 
Europe.  Upon  his  return  to  Iowa  he  prepared 
and  delivered  some  very  interesting  and  instruct- 
ive lectures  upon  his  observations  abroad. 

In  I""ebruary,  1874,  not  long  after  his  return 
from  his  European  tour,  Mr.  Eiboeck  purchased 
the  foica  Staats-Anzeiger,  which  he  has  continued 
to  publish  ever  since,  covering  a  period  of  seven- 
teen years,  during  which  time  he  has  made  it  one 
of  the  leading  German  papers  of  the  Northwest. 
The  paper  is  a  large,  nine-column  folio,  and  al- 
ways contains  froin  two  to  three  columns  of  edi- 
torials in  English  print  on  the  leading  political 
issues  of  the  day,  an  innovation  on  the  custom  of 
publishers  of  German  papers  which  has  proved  a 


482 


mOGRAI'HlCAL  DICTIONARY  AM^  I'ORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


marked  success.  He  has  made  the  loioa  Staats 
Anzcigcr  noted  as  the  leading  exponent  of  the 
principles  of  personal  liberty  as  opposed  to  all 
sumptuary  legislation.  In  addition  to  the  paper 
mentioned  he  edited  the  Herald  of  Liberty  and 
the  State  Independent  for  several  years,  and  is  now 
also  editing  and  publishing  the  liaus-Schatz  and 
the  Sonntags-Post,  two  popular  local  German  liter- 
ary papers.  But  it  was  not  as  a  journalist  alone 
that  Mr.  Eibocck  attained  distinction.  Being 
able  to  speak  in  both  English  and  German,  he 
has  been,  each  year  for  many  years,  called  into 
the  political  campaigns  of  not  only  his  own  State, 
but  repeatedly  into  Ohio,  Indiana,  Nebraska,  Illi- 
nois, Minnesota  and  Dakota,  where  he  has  done 
effective  work  for  his  party. 

On  the  15th  of  September,  1863,  Mr.  Eiboeck 
was  married  in  Cedar  Falls,  Iowa,  to  Miss  Fannie 
Garrison,  an  American  lady,  a  native  of  Detroit, 
Michigan.  They  have  one  child,  a  daughter — 
Marie,  now  the  wife  of  S.  C.  McFarland,  editor 
of  the  Marshalltown  Tiines-Repiiblicaji. 

Politically  Mr.  Eiboeck  was  a  Republican  until 
1872,  when  he  joined  the  independent  party  and 
was  a  delegate  to  the  Cincinnati  convention  which 


nominated  Horace  Greeley,  but  since  that  time 
he  has  acted  enthusiastically  with  the  Democrats. 
In  1878  he  was  nominated  for  the  office  of  Audi- 
tor of  State  against  Gov.  Buren  R.  Sherman,  and 
came  within  a  few  thousand  of  his  election,  at  a 
time  when  the  Republican  majority  ranged  from 
thirty  to  fift\-  thousand. 

He  is  a  member  of  Capital  Lodge,  No.  1 10, 
A.  F.  and  A.  M.,  of  Corinthian  Chapter,  No.  14, 
R.  A.  M.,  and  of  Temple  Commandery,  No.  4, 
Knights  Templar.  He  also  belongs  to  Jonathan 
Lodge,  No.  137,  1.  O.  O.  F.,  the  German  Turner 
Association,  and  was  during  its  existence  for  two 
years,  president  of  the  Des  Moines  Press  Club. 

In  addition  to  his  journalistic  and  political  work 
Mr.  Eiboeck  is  also  engaged  in  literary  work  in 
both  English  and  German.  He  is  a  fluent  and 
forcible  writer,  and  bold  and  courageous  as  he  is, 
he  is  also  courteous  and  gentlemanly  toward  all, 
and  thus  has  won  many  warm  friends  among  the 
intellectual  people  of  the  Northwest,  both  Ger- 
mans and  Americans,  who  admire  his  firmness  and 
his  untiring  efforts  in  behalf  of  individual  liberty. 

Mr.  Eiboeck  is  one  of  the  commissioners  to 
the  World's  Columbian  Exposition  from  Iowa. 


CHARLES   S.   CRANE, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


AMONG  the  early  settlers  whose  skill  and  en- 
terprise have  made  him  widely  known 
among  the  leading  manufacturing  interests  of 
Chicago,  was  Mr.  Charles  S.  Crane.  He  was  born 
at  Passaic  Falls,  Paterson,  N.  J.,  March  21,  1834, 
and  is  the  son  of  Timotln'  B.  and  Maria  iRyerson) 
Crane. 

His  paternal  ancestors  are  traced  to  the  original 
May  P"lower  colony,  which  settled  at  Plymouth, 
Mass.,  in  1620.  His  father,  Timothy  B.  Crane, 
learned  the  carpenter's  trade  in  Litchfield,  Conn., 
and  became  a  contractor  and  builder  in  New- 
York  City. 

He  erected  a  mansion  for  (iovcrnor  Dewitt 
Clinton  and  enjoyed  intimate  personal  relations 
with  him.  He  removed  to  Passaic  Falls  to  en- 
gage in  milling  business,  and  erected  saw  and  Hour 
mills  in  New  Jersey.  He  married  Miss  Teller,  a 
descendant  of  the  original  Knickerbocker  colony, 


from  ;\msterdam.  Subsequenth-  he  married  Miss 
Maria  Ryerson,  sister  of  the  late  Martin  Ryerson, 
of  Chicago,  there  being  four  children,  Charles  S. 
the  youngest  of  the  family.  In  his  boyhood  days 
he  attended  school  at  Paterson,  during  this  time 
working  before  school  hours,  and  after  school 
hours  were  over  returning  to  his  work.  At  the 
age  of  sixteen  he  went  to  Lockport,  N.  V.,  and 
learned  the  trade  of  moulding,  and  returneil  to 
Paterson  after  finishing  his  trade.  He  worked  as 
a  moulder  in  Danforth's  Locomotive  Works, 
after  which  he  came  to  Chicago,  in  1855,  and  en- 
gaged in  business  with  his  brother  in  the  manu- 
facture of  brass  goods,  umler  the  firm  name  of 
R.  T.  Crane  &  Bro. 

In  1S59  they  built  and  o[)erated  a  foundr\-  in 
connection  with  their  other  work.  In  1S65  they 
manufactured  largely  in  iron  i)ipe,  the  first  being 
made  west  of  Pittsburg,  and   the  same   year  they 


^^  d^  (en 


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M 


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lilOuRAI'IIICAI.   JUCnOX.lRY  AXP   I'(Urrh'.l/r  CMJAJiV. 


4S3 


erected  works  for  the  mamifacture  of  malleable 
iron.  About  this  time  they  organized  a  stock- 
company  and  changed  the  name  to  the  Xorth- 
W'estern  ^lanufacturing  Company,  which  tlie\-  re- 
tained until  1872,  about  this  time  Mr.  Crane  re- 
tiring from  the  company,  after  which  the  name 
of  the  company  was  changed  to  the  Crane  Bros. 
Manufacturing  Company,  which  grew  to  be  one 
of  the  largest  and  best  institutions  of  the  kind  in 
the  countr)-. 

In  1871  Mr.  Crane  assisted  in  the  organization 
of  the  Wright  &  Lawther  Oil  and  Lead  Manufac- 
turing Company,  being  its  vice-president,  and  in 
1885  filling  the  office  of  president. 

He  engaged  in  the  dock  and  dredging  business 
as  a  general  contractor  in  1873,  carrying  it  on  with 
his  other  business  until  the  present  company  was 
incorporated  in  1877. 


Mr.  Crane  took  an  active  interest  in  public 
affairs  and  was  a  widely  known  and  highly  re- 
spected citizen.  Mr.  Crane  was  married  on  Sep- 
tember 23,  1857,  to  Miss  Eliza  J.  Ik-yea,  of  I'ater- 
son,  N.  J.  There  were  two  children,  Frank  R. 
and  Charles  B.  The  youngest  son,  Charles  B., 
died  a  few  weeks  prior  to  the  death  of  his  father, 
which  occurred  September  8,  1887. 

He  was  a  member  of  Cleveland  Lodge,  No. 
21  I.  A.  F.  vK:  A.  M.;  Washington  Chapter,  No.  43, 
R.  A.  i\L;  Siloan  Council,  No.  53,  R.  &  S.  M.; 
Chicago  Commander\-,  No.  ig,  K.  T.:  the  Orien- 
tal Consistor\-.  S.  1'.  R.  S.,  No.  },2.  and  was  a 
member  of  tJie  conclave  of  the  Knights  of  the 
Red  Cross  of  Rome  and  Constantine. 

He  leaves  a  widow,  Mrs.  Eliza  J.  Crane,  and  one 
son,  Frank  R.  Crane,  who  succeeds  him  in  his 
business  affairs. 


HENRY   C   NOVES, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


Tl  I II  gentleman  whose  name  heads  this  sketch 
is  a  native  of  the  Green  Mountain  State, 
and  was  born  at  Derby  Line,  Orleans  county, 
Janyary  22,  1846,  the  son  of  Adam  S.  Noyes,  a 
banker,  who  removed  to  the  West  and  settled  at 
Rockford,  Illinois,  in  1858,  but  returned  to  Boston 
in  1867.  Our  subject  had  five  brothers  and  a 
brother-in-law  in  the  Union  army  during  the  war 
of  the  rebellion.  He,  himself,  entered  the  army 
in  1863,  and  served  gallantly  until  he  was  mus- 
tered out.  He  was  six  months  in  the  One 
Hundred  and  Thirty-fourth  Regiment,  Illinois 
Volunteer  Infantry,  under  Captain  Milligan. 

He  received  his  primary  education  in  the  public 
schools,  and  subseciuently  entered  Beloit  College. 
In  1866  he  entered  the  law  department  of  Michi- 
gan University,  and  was  graduated  therefrom  in 
the  .spring  of  1869,  and  .admitted  to  the  bar, 
and  at  once  entered  upon  the  [iractice  of  his  pro- 
fession at  Chicago.  He  has  been  engaged  in 
numerous  suits  in  connection  with  railroads  and 
other  large  corporations,  and  is  considered  one  of 
the  foremost  corporation  lawyers  in  Chicago.  He 
is  attorney  for  the  Massachusetts  Mutual  Life 
Insurance  Company,  and  the  Manhattan  Life  In- 
surance Company  of  New  York,  and  other  large 


corporations.  Mr.  Noyes  keeps  abreast  of  the 
current  decisions  of  the  courts,  and  is  thoroughly 
versed  in  all  of  the  laws  relating  to  practice  in  the 
State  and  Federal  courts.  He  is  an  excellent 
advocate,  and  his  management  of  his  ca.ses  in 
court  is  masterful. 

Mr.  Noyes  won  laurels  in  the  case  of  Henry  W. 
Price,  a  well-known  business  man  of  Rockford, 
Illinois,  and  his  nephew,  Charles  H.  Fox,  against 
Lewis  E.  Maddaugh  and  the  heirs  of  George  W. 
Nob'e,  before  Judge  Tully,  in  the  circuit  court 
of  Cook  county,  in  October,  1889,  which  ca.se  was 
appealed  to  the  Supreme  Court  and  there  af- 
firmed. Its  decision  established  a  trust  of  forty 
years' standing^  (a  much  longer  time  than  the  re- 
port of  any  case  shows  in  any  Western  State), 
and  it  was  only  won  by  the  energy  and  persever- 
ance of  the  counsel  in  charge  of  the  case.  It 
was  bitterly  contested.  Associated  with  Mr. 
Noyes,  for  the  complainants,  was  J.  C.  Garver,  of 
Rockford,  and  the  well-known  firms  of  McCagg 
ami  Culver.  Messrs.  Goudy  and  Green  appeared 
for  the  defendants.  Mr.  Noyes  proved  that  for  a 
number  of  years  prior  to  1848,  William  H.  I'rice 
was  engaged  in  the  planing  mill  business  near  the 
corner  of  Clinton  and  Randolph  streets.     In  Sep- 


484 


BIOCRAPinCAL   niCTIOXARV  AXn   PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


tcinbLT,  1<S48,  his  bi'ollKT-in-law,  (ico.  W.  Noble, 
a  carpenter,  came  to  Chicago  and  went  to  work 
for  Mr.  Price  as  a  day  laborer.  When  the  gold 
excitement  in  California  broke  out,  in  1849,  Mr. 
Price  made  arrangements  with  Noble  to  hold  his 
property  in  trust  until  his  return,  and  started  out 
to  seek  his  fortune  in  California,  having  arranged 
with  Noble  to  maintain  his  family,  and  to  receive 
therefor  one  thousand  dollars  per  year.  Mr.  Price 
died  on  the  isthmus  before  reaching  the  golden 
shores,  in  December  of  that  year.  Noble  re- 
ceived and  suppressed  the  news  of  Mr.  Price's 
death  from  Mrs.  Price.  He  procured  books, 
deeds  and  private  papers  belonging  to  Mr.  Price 
from  the  widow,  and  never  returned  them,  and 
declined  to  support  the  family  after  the  first  year. 
Mrs.  Price  was  obliged  to  sew  for  a  living,  and 
the  children  were  thrown  upon  the  world  to  shift 
for  themselves.  To  further  carry  out  his  scheme, 
Noble  had  Mrs.  Price  sent  east,  and  immediately 
had  the  property  placed  in  his  own  name,  and 
circulated  a  story  that  Price  was  still  ali\'c  ;  that 
he  had  eloped  with  a  woman  to  Te.xas,  thus  seek- 
ing to  show  that  he  obtained  the  property  hon- 
estly. Mrs.  Margaret  Price  died  in  the  State  of 
New  York,  in  1867,  still  under  the  false  belief 
that  her  husband  was  alive.  She  left  as  heirs 
her  son,  Henry  W.  Price,  and  Charles  H.  Fox,  the 
complainants.  It  was  not  until  Noble's  death,  in 
1886,  that  they  learned  of  the  fraud  and  com- 
menced this  suit. 

Noble  left  no  will,  ami  the  property  being  in 
his  name,  descended  to  the  defendants.  As  a 
defcn.se,  counsel  set  up  laches,  and  introduced  in 
evidence  a  receipt  purporting  to  be  signed  by  W. 
H.  Price,  October  20,  1849,  which  acknowledged 
the  receipt  of  three  hundred  and  fifty  dollars  in 
settlement  in  full  to  that  date.  Mr.  Noyes  took 
the  evidence  of  several  experts  to  show  that  the 
signature  was  a  forgery.  A  number  of  witnesses 
swore  that  in  conversations  with  Noble  the  latter 
admitted  that  he  was  simply  taking  care  of  Price's 
property  and  business.  Mrs.  Hopkins  testified 
that  Noble,  after  obtaining  the  papers  from  Mrs. 
Price,  told  her  that  he  had  "  the  deadwood  on 
Bill  Price"  and  intended  to  keep  it.  Summing 
up  the  entire  testimony,  the  court  came  to  the 
conclusion  that  Noble  held  the  property  only  in 
trust.  Considering  the  time  that  had  elapsed  and 
the   necessary  confidential   nature   of    that    trust. 


the  di.sa[)i)earance  of  Price,  the  infancy  of  the 
children,  their  absence  from  Chicago,  the  poverty 
of  the  family,  and  other  circumstances  in  evi- 
dence, the  court  said  the  case  was  proven  by  as 
much  positive  testimony  as  could  be  expected 
under  the  circumstances;  as  to  the  defense  of  the 
lapse  of  time — something  near  forty  years — it  is 
sufficient  to  say  there  is  no  statute  of  limitations 
which  will  run  against  a  trust.  The  case  was 
referred  to  a  master  in  chancery  for  an  account- 
ing, and  decree  was  entered  charging  the  trust 
with  all  of  the  rents  received  from  the  property, 
and  allowing  the  trustee  one  thousand  dollars  for 
the  first  year's  services,  and  establishing  the  title 
to  property  of  the  present  value  of  one  hundred 
and  ten  thousand  dollars  in  favor  of  the  com- 
plainants, and  an  accounting  for  rents  for  forty 
years,  which  amounted  to  sixty  thousand  more. 

The  following  case  illustrates,  to  some  degree, 
the  shrewdness  of  Mr.  Noyes  in  the  management 
of  his  cases  in  court.  It  was  the  case  of  James 
H.  Keeler  against  R.  S.  Reynolds,  of  Utica,  N. 
Y.  The  plaintiff  made  a  contract  with  the  de- 
fendant by  which  he  was  to  sell  the  latter's  fee  in 
the  property  at  the  southwest  corner  of  Lake 
street  and  Fifth  avenue,  and  the  lien  of  an  ad- 
joining lot.  The  contract  provided  that  Keeler 
should  keep  for  his  commission  all  that  the  p;'op- 
erty  brought  over  one  hundred  and  ten  thou- 
sand dollars.  He  found  an  intending  purchaser 
in  the  late  Conrad  Seipp,  who  was  to  pay  one 
hundred  and  twenty-five  thousand  dollars.  When 
the  negotiations  were  about  closing,  Mr.  Seipp 
backed  down.  Mr.  Keeler  claimed  th.it  the  sale 
was  defeated  by  Reynolds,  who  came  to  the  con- 
clusion that  he  could  get  more  than  one  hundred 
and  twenty-five  thousand  dollars,  or  that  he  could 
deal  directly  with  Mr.  Seipp  and  save  the  com- 
mission. Reynolds  claimed  that  he  had  nothing 
to  do  with  stopping  the  negotiations,  but  that 
one  Mr.  Lanz,  of  Lanz,  Owen  &  Co.,  went  to  Mr. 
Sei]ip  and  told  him  that  Keeler  was  making 
fifteen  thousand  dollars  out  of  him.  Seipp  there- 
upon refused  to  carry  out  the  contract. 

The  evidence  was  very  close  on  the  point  of 
Reynold's  agency  in  breaking  off  the  negotia- 
tions. Judge  Gresham,  before  whom  the  case 
was  being  tried,  recjuircd  Mr.  Noyes  to  show  that 
Reynolds  knew  of  the  action  of  Lanz  in  going  to 
Seipp.     At   this  point  in  the  trial   Mr.  Noyes  re- 


BIOCRAI'HICAl.  niCTIOXAKV  A.\n  POKTRAIT  CAl.I.ERV. 


485 


quested  to  be  allowed  to  sit  where  he  could  see 
defendant  while  givinj;  his  testimony.  This  was 
effected  by  changing  the  position  of  the  counsel 
at  the  tables.  A  telegram  from  a  brother  of  Mr. 
Reynolds  to  Mr.  Lanz,  relating  to  the  case, 
escaped  the  notice  of  the  defendant's  attorney, 
who  had  removed  a  bundle  of  papers  from  the 
table.  Mr.  Noyes  then  occupied  his  keen  eyes. 
and  concluded  that  those  papers  contained  valu- 
able evidence,  and  ordered  them  read  to  the  jury. 
Those    letters  and   telegrams  showed   that    Rey- 


nolds had  been  advised  to  break  off  the  deal  with 
Seipp.  Judge  Gresham  instructed  the  jury  that 
Reynolds  had  conspired  to  prevent  the  sale  to 
Seipp,  and  being  deprived  of  the  fifteen  thousand 
dollars  which  he  would  have  earned  by  the  sale, 
Keeler  had  a  right  to  recover  that  sum,  and  the 
jur\-  so  found. 

In  politics.  Mr.  Xoyes  is  a  Republican.  He 
married,  June  19,  1873,  Miss  Angelia  A.  Elmer, 
formerly  of  Belville,  Ontario.  They  have  one 
son  and  one  dauiihter. 


GEORGE  W.  WHITFIELD,   M.D.,   D.D.S. 


EV.ANSTON,   ILL. 


TH  E  subject  of  this  biography,  a  native  of 
Massachusetts,  was  born  near  Boston  in 
1S55.  and  is  the  only  child  of  the  Rev.  John 
Whitfield  and  Martha  (Kemp)  Whitfield.  His 
parents  are  both  natives  of  England,  and  the 
father  now  (1890)  eighty-four  years  of  age,  is 
vigorous  and  well  preserved.  He  was  born  in 
1806,  and  traces  his  ancestry  to  the  Rev.  George 
Whitefield  and  John  Wesley,  the  founder  of 
Methodism.  He  has  always  been  prominent  as  a 
clergyman,  and  especially  active  in  the  temper- 
ance cau.se,  participating  in  the  first  temperance 
movement  in  England.  The  mother  of  our  sub- 
ject was  born  at  Richmond,  London,  England, 
the  daughter  of  an  excise  officer,  and  belongs  to  a 
family  many  of  whom  are  government  officials  ; 
others  are  connected  with  the  army  or  navy  and 
many  are  in  the  ministry.  She  has  always  taken 
the  deepest  interest  in  benevolence  and  doing  for 
others  and  is  still  e.xtensivcly  engaged  in  chari- 
table work.  The  parents  settled  in  Aurora, 
Illinois,  during  the  son's  boyhood  and  there 
George  received  a  common  school  and  academ- 
ical education.  He  was  afterwards  employed 
as  a  book-keeper,  and  while  yet  in  his  teens 
opened  an  art  .store  at  Aurora.  For  some  time 
after  attaining  his  majority  he  was  on  the  west- 
ern plain.s.  In  1879,  being  then  twenty-five 
years  of  age.  he  settled  in  Chicago,  and  began 
his  studies  and  laboratory  work  preparatory  to 
entering  the  dental  profession.  In  the  fol- 
lowing year  he  opened  an  office  for  practice 
and    at    the    same    time    matriculated    at    Rush 


Medical  College.  Five  years  later  he  graduated 
from  the  Chicago  Dental  College  with  the  de- 
grees of  D.  D.  S.,  and  in  the  following  year,  1886, 
was  graduated  from  Rush  Medical  College  with 
the  degree  of  M.  D.,  continuing  during  these 
years  his  office  practice. 

Dr.  Whitfield  has  made  a  special  study  of 
electricity  and  its  practical  application,  and  has 
invented  several  important  instruments  now  in 
general  use.  He  takes  a  special  pride  in  the  ap- 
pointments of  his  office  and  has  what  is  recognized 
as  one  of  the  best  appointed  offices  in  this  State. 
Dr.  Whitfield  is  professor  of  electrical  therapeu- 
tics in  the  dental  department  of  the  Northwestern 
University,  and  holds  membership  in  the  Chicago 
Dental  Club,  the  Odontographic  Society,  the 
Chicago  Fllectric  Club,  and  was  a  delegate  to  the 
Ninth  International  Medical  Congress. 

Dr.  Whitfield  was  for  five  years  a  member  of 
Company  D,  Third  Regiment  Illinois  National 
Guards,  and  was  with  his  regiment  at  Braidwood 
during  the  riots  of  1887.  He  has  held  the  posi- 
tion of  aural  surgeon  at  the  Protestant  Orphan 
-Asylum,  Chicago,  and  was  assistant  surgeon 
under  the  celebrated  Dr.  Gunn,  prior  to  that 
gentleman's  death  in  1887. 

Dr.  Whitfield  has  always  had  a  fondness  for 
athletic  and  aquatic  sports  ;  is  a  lover  and  a  judge 
of  good  horses,  and  by  his  healthful  indulgence 
in  out-of-door  amusements  has  not  only  pre- 
served, but  greatly  developed  the  vigorous  con- 
stitution inherited  from  his  parents.  He  is  a 
man  of  fine  physique,  commanding  presence  and 


486 


niUGHAl'lIICAL  DICTION 'J<V  AM)  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


plcasin<(  address,  and  witha!  a  courteous  gentle-  action.  In  jiolitical  matters  he  holds  to  no  par- 
man,  cultured  and  refined.  In  his  profession  he  tv,  heliexinL;  in  supporting  and  upholding  men 
has  become  known  for  his  original  methods  of  and  principles  rather  than  political  organi/.a- 
operation,  and  wherever  known  has  not  failed  to  tions. 

impress    himself    upon    others    by    his    upright  Dr.    Whitfield     is    unmarried    and    resides    at 

character     and     independence    of     thought    and  Evanston  with  his  father  and   mother. 


ALEXANDER   H.    REVELL, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


ALEXANDER  H.  REVELL  was  born  in 
Chicago,  January  6th,  1858,  and  is  there- 
fore, at  the  time  of  this  writing,  not  yet  thirty- 
five  years  of  age.  It  is  at  about  this  time  in  a 
man's  life  that,  in  most  biographies,  he  begins  to 
show  the  promise  that  in  later  life  ripens  into 
fruition.  But  in  Mr.  Re  veil's  case,  although  his 
years  would  seem  to  indicate  that  his  great  life 
battles  were  \cV  before  him,  there  is  a  long  and 
honorable  list  of  struggles  to  be  recorded,  many 
a  victory  to  be  marked  and  a  final  achievement 
to  be  shown  such  as  would  creditably  mark  a  life 
career  of  double  the  number  of  years.  The  story 
of  Mr.  Revell's  life  is  thoroughly  American,  thor- 
oughly Chicagoan,  indeed.  It  is  a  record  of  victo- 
ries snatched  from  apparent  defeat,  of  compelling 
adverse  Fate  to  be  his  slave  and  not  his  master. 
It  is  a  glowing  example  of  what  honesty  and 
perseverance,  when  animated  by  imlomitable  will, 
can  do. 

I  lis  father  was  the  late  David  James  Re\ell,  and 
his  mother,  who  is  still  li\ing,  is  Margaret  Revell, 
me  Dorgan.  At  tlie  time  of  his  birtli  his  parents 
lived  on  Van  Buren  street,  very  near  where  the 
Board  of  Trade  building  now  stands.  Mr.  Re\ell. 
the  elder,  was  a  grocer  and  had  a  large  business. 
He  is  remembered  by  many  old  Chicagoans  as  a 
man  of  sterling  worth  and  untiring  energy.  Be- 
lieving full)-  in  tiu-  great  future  of  Chicago,  Mi'. 
Revell  invested  his  earnings  in  houses  which  In- 
built on  leased  grounds.  The  great  fire  of  iSji 
swept  away  the  earnings  of  \-ears,  autl  a  fe\s- 
months  after  the  conflagration  he  ilied. 

^'oung  Revell  was  then  but  thirteen  years  of 
age.  lie  had  been  a  steady  attendant  up  to  this 
time  at  the  old  Jones  school,  on  the  corner  of 
Clark  and  Harrison  streets.  A  new  and  greater 
problem   now  confronted   the   bo\-.      lie  had   not 


only  an  education  to  acquire  but  a  living  to  make. 
From  the  wreck  of  his  father's  fortune  there 
remained  a  horse  and  wagon.  With  these  and 
his  American  "grit"  for  capital  he  attacked  the 
hard  problem  cheerfully.  Night  schools  gave  him 
the  opportunity  to  win  an  education ;  the  day 
was  his  fighting  time  for  bread  and  butter.  For 
a  while  he  earned  money  by  delivering  trunks 
from  the  Rock  Island  depot.  This  was  not  very 
productive  work,  however,  and  the  young  lad 
then  showed  that  keen  appreciation  of  the  oppor- 
tunities at  hand  which  has  characterized  his  whole 
life.  The  streets  of  the  city  were  filled  with 
clouds  of  gritty,  sharp  dust  from  the  cinders  of 
the  great  fire,  which  was  exceedingly  annoying. 
He  started  to  sell  goggles,  and  for  a  time  did  a 
thriving  business.  He  also  distributed  hand-bills 
on  the  street ;  later  he  was  to  be  found  in  a 
lamp-factory  polishing  lanterns.  He  was  saving 
money  all  this  time,  and  next  started  a  little 
grocery-store,  shortly  after  a  flour  and  feed-store, 
and  finallv  a  small   furniture-store. 

In  1 874,  the  "hard  times"  year,  the  young 
storekee[)er.  still  alive  to  the  signs  of  the  times, 
sold  out  his  little  business  and  started  out  with 
his  horse  and  wagon  again.  His  work  was  chiefly 
delivering  goods  to  and  from  the  \arious  auction- 
houses.  He  took  a  deep  interest  in  the  goods 
he  was  liaviling  for  other  people;  soon  he  be- 
came a  purchaser  on  his  own  account  and  ileli\-- 
ered  his  own  goods.  All  was  fish  that  came  to 
his  net ;  he  invested  in  coffee,  in  books,  in  hard- 
ware, furniture,  .soap,  hats,  caps,  in  any  merchan- 
dise that  offered  him  a  profit.  A  story  of  these 
early  days  is  illustrative.  Not  long  before  Christ- 
mas he  stumbled  across  a  large  lot  of  castile  soap 
in  an  auction-house,  brought  in  from  a  bankrupt 
concern,      lie  bought  six  boxes  at  three  cents  a 


liiocRAriiicAi.  nicrioxARV  A.\n  j'oh-jh-Air  u a /././: a- i: 


489 


pound  and  started  out  to  find  a  customer.  In  a 
short  time  he  was  successful,  selling  to  a  grocery 
firm  these  six  boxes  at  six  cents  a  pound.  With 
this  money  he  returned  to  the  auction-house  and 
got  an  option  on  the  whole  .stock.  With  ;i  few 
samples  he  started  out  again  to  find  a  buyer. 
He  walked  into  a  big  wholesale  grocery  house  on 
Lake  street  and  showed  his  samples.  The  mer- 
chant tested  the  soap,  asked  a  few  questions,  and, 
surprised  at  the  youthfulness  of  his  customer, 
requested  him  to  wait  while  he  went  out  and 
looked  it  up.  Young  Revell  waited  a  half  an 
hour,  but  when  the  merchant  returned  made  his 
sale  at  seven  cents  a  pound,  netting  three  hun- 
dred and  seventy-five  dollars  by  the  transaction. 
I'art  of  this  money  made  what  might  have  been 
a  dull  Christmas  very  bright  and  cheerful  for  his 
family,  and  part  went  to  join  other  sa\'ings  in  the 
State  Savings  Institution.  A  short  time  after- 
wards this  bank  failed,  and  young  Re\ell  had  but 
his  bank-book  left — everj-  cent  was  swept  away  ; 
but  he  had  more  years  and  more  experience  and 
his  "  grit  "  was  still  with  him. 

Swallowing  down  all  useless  sighs  he  began  to 
seek  employinent  in  some  business-hou.se.  Among 
others,  he  applied  to  A.  T.  Stewart  &  Co.,  who  had 
just  opened  a  western  branch  in  Chicago.  He 
was  offered  seven  dollars  a  week  to  work  in  the 
carpet  department,  but  having  fixed  eight  dollars 
as  his  minimum  he  refused  the  offer.  Finally  he 
secured  employment  in  a  furniture  store  on  F"ifth 
avenue.  By  hard,  steady  work  he  saved  in  two 
years  three  hundred  dollars.  His  self-reliance 
found  that  capital  enough,  and  with  a  fellow- 
clerk,  J.  E.  Geohegan,  since  deceased,  he  opened, 
in  1878,  an  unpretentious  little  store  at  No.  jy 
Fifth  avenue.  Young  Revell  was  then  but  twenty 
years  of  age,  it  is  to  be  remembered.  The  little 
business  was  well  managed  and  prospered  accord- 
ingly. In  one  year  the  partners  moved  into 
ampler  quarters  in  one  of  the  .stores  now  a  part 
of  the  mammoth  establishment  of  A.  H.  Revell 
&  Co.  This  .same  year  he  bought  out  his  part- 
ner's interest.  From  that  time  the  business  has 
grown  to  the  present  vast  building  with  its  forty 
departments,  its  army  of  clerks  and  salesmen  and 
its  enormous  and  varied  stock.  Besides  the  great 
retail  establishment  that  bears  his  name,  he  is  also 
l)resident  of  the  A.  H.  Revell  Manufacturing  Co., 
which  occu])ics  a  huge  building  on  the  corner  of 


Polk  street  and  Fifth  avenue,  and  gives  employ- 
ment to  over  two  hundred  men. 

Parallel  with  his  financial  winnings  have  been 
his  social  and  educational  conquests.  The  race 
for  money  ditl  not  blind  him  to  the  necessity  for 
brain  wealth.  Mr.  Revell  is  a  director  in  sev- 
eral educational,  bcne\olent  and  social  organi- 
zations. The  Marquette  Club,  of  which  he  was 
president  in  iHSg-90,  owes  its  position  in  the 
front  rank  of  Chicago  clubs  very  largely  to  his 
excellent  judgment  and  tireless  energy.  He  is  a 
member  of  the  Chicago  Hoard  of  Education,  and 
also,  as  one  of  the  directors  and  member  of  the 
executive  committee  of  the  World's  Columbian 
Exposition,  he  is  untiring  in  his  efforts  for  tin- 
success  of  that  great  enterprise. 

He  has  traveled  cxtensi\el_\'  in  the  four  ciuar- 
ters  of  the  globe.  He  is  thoroughly  American 
and  thoroughly  alive  to  the  interests  of  his  natixc 
cit}-. 

In  politics  Mr.  Revell  is  a  Republican,  and  in- 
terests himself  actively  in  all  elections,  municipal. 
State  or  national. 

Such  is  his  public  history.  Personally  he  is  a 
genial,  frank  gentleman,  with  a  cordial,  cheery 
voice,  a  pleasant  smile  and  a  decided  firm  grasp 
of  the  hand  for  his  friends.  .\11  arc  indicative  of 
the  man.  He  is  anything  but  an  autocrat;  a  curt 
command  never  leaves  his  lips,  but  in  either  of 
his  great  establishments,  or  wherever  he  makes  a 
request,  he  finds  instant  and  willing  obedience. 
No  man  knows  better  than  he  the  trials  of  the 
workingman's  life,  and  that  knowledge  stands 
him  in  good  stead.  His  successes  have  not  been 
too  great  for  him.  He  set  out  to  succeed,  kept 
his  aim  steadily  in  view  and  reached  it. 

He  has  a  beautiful  home-life.  His  mother  is 
yec  livingto  .see  and  enjoy  the  creditability  and 
successes  of  her  boy.  Three  years  ago  he  mar- 
ried Miss  Maude  B.  Richard.son,  daughter  of 
Samuel  H.  Richard.son,  a  well-known  Chicagoan. 
They  have  one  child,  a  daughter. 

Such  is  the  history  of  his  early  manhood,  in- 
deed of  his  boyhood.  Before  him  stretches  out 
a  long  series  of  years.  Juilging  from  the  record 
of  the  past,  from  the  knowledge  of  the  present, 
it  is  safe  to  say  that  other  and  greater  honors  and 
triumphs  await  him  in  these  coming  years.  How- 
ever that  may  be,  there  is  a  great  value  in  the 
histor\-  of  his  life  for  vonn<r  n)eii. 


490 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AND  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Alexander  H.  Revell  has  to  trace  his  successes 
primarily  to  the  excellent  and  specially  American 
trait  or  characteristic  summed  up  in  the  word 
"  backbone."     Under  adversity,  failures,  setbacks. 


obstacles,  he  stood  upright,  and  with  honest  per- 
severance and  manhood  fought  steadil)-  until  he 
had  conquered  e\'ery  obstacle  to  the  success  he, 
from  the  first,  determined  to  attain. 


JOSEPH    SIDNEY    MITCHELL,   M.D. 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


THE  subject  of  our  sketch  was  born  Decem- 
ber g,  1839,  in  Nantucket,  Massachusetts. 
His  family  is  one  of  the  finest  of  that  grand  old 
State  and  has,  through  all  its  history,  been  noted 
for  its  achievements.  His  father,  Hon.  Joseph 
Mitchell,  was  for  many  years  prominent  in  Massa- 
chusetts politics.  Of  this  family  were  William 
Mitchell,  the  eminent  scientist,  and  one  of  the 
early  overseers  of  Harvard  College,  Miss  Marie 
Mitchell,  the  celebrated  astronomer,  and  Rev. 
Arthur  Mitchell,  D.  D.,  secretary  American  Board 
Commissioners,  Foreign  Missions.  His  mother 
was  a  Folger,  that  English  family  which  set- 
tled here  in  1660,  and  to  which  belonged  the 
mother  of  Benjamin  Franklin  (the  late  Secre- 
tary Folger  was  a  member  of  this  family).  Dr. 
Mitchell's  summer  residence  in  Nantucket  has 
been  in  the  F"olger  family  since  1707,  a  period  of 
one  hundred  and  eighty-five  years.  Dr.  Mitchell 
has  had  three  brothers,  all  deceased,  and  two 
sisters,  both  women  of  distinguished  ability. 
Miss  Annie  Mitchell  is  official  stenographer  of  the 
United  States  Court  at  Chicago  ;  and  Mrs.  Ellen 
Mitchell,  a  very  brilliant  woman,  well-known  as  a 
writer,  was  an  ex-president  of  the  I'^ortnightly 
Club,  and  was  the  first  woman  ever  appointed  on 
the  Board  of  Education  in  this  city. 

Dr.  Mitchell's  early  education  was  obtained  in 
the  schools  of  his  native  town  anil  in  the  English 
High  School  of  Boston.  In  1859,  when  twenty 
years  of  age,  he  entered  Williams  College,  from 
which  he  graduated  with  honor  in  186^.  Having 
now,  in  accordance  witli  his  natural  inclination, 
chosen  the  medical  profession,  he  began  a  course 
of  study  at  Bellcvue  Medical  College,  and  gradu- 
ated in  iS^i^.  lie  then  came  to  Chicago  and 
entered  upon  a  career  which  from  the  first  was 
marvelously  successful,  liefore  he  had  practiced 
a  year  he  was  appointed  to  the  Lectureship  of 
Surgical    and    ratluildgical    Anatomy    in    Hahne- 


mann Medical  College.  In  1867  he  became 
Professor  of  Physiology  in  the  same  institution  ; 
and  in  1870  was  given  the  chair  of  Theory  and 
Practice  of  Medicine.  He  was  one  of  the  j'oung- 
est  men  ever  called  to  fill  so  important  a  chair. 

In  1876  Dr.  Mitchell  withdrew  from  Hahne- 
mann College  to  engage  in  the  organization  of 
the  Chicago  Homoeopathic  Medical  College,  of 
which  he  is  the  head.  For  seven  years  he  was 
secretary  of  Illinois  State  Homoeopathic  Medical 
Association,  during  which  time  the  active  mem- 
bership doubled.  He  was  also  president  of  the 
above-mentioned  society.  He  is  physician-in- 
charge  of  the  medical  department  of  the  Chicago 
Homceopathic  Hospital,  late  attending  physician 
Cook  County  Hospital,  Dean  of  Chicago  Homce- 
opathic  Medical  College,  and  honorary  member 
of  the  Massachusetts,  Indiana  and  Kentucky 
State  Medical  associations.  In  1881,  when  the 
International  Medical  Congress  met  in  London, 
Dr.  Mitchell  was  chosen  by  his  brother  physicians 
as  one  of  the  American  delegates.  His  practice 
in  this  city  is  very  extensive,  and  no  small  part  of 
his  time  is  given  to  consultations  in  this  and  other 
States. 

As  a  lecturer  Dr.  Mitchell  has  the  reputation  of 
conveying  to  his  hearers  a  \'ery  correct  and  \ivid 
idea  of  the  subject  in  hand,  and  as  a  writer,  in  the 
language  of  a  prominent  medical  journal,  "lie 
expresses  himself  with  clearness  and  an  honesty 
and  modest)-  which  are  exceptional  and  refresh- 
ing." Dr.  Mitchell  is  ver\-  widely  known  to  the 
medical  profession  of  the  whole  civilized  world 
as  the  originator  of  what  is  now  termed  the 
"  Mitchell  method  "  for  the  treatment  of  cancer, 
which  receixes  fa\orahle  notice  from  medical 
journals.  In  a  late  issue  of  the  New  England 
Medical  Gar.cttc  we  find  the  following:  "This 
method  is  constantly  receiving  fresh  testimony  to 
its  efficacy.      We  exiiressed  our  cordial  interest  in 


THOCR.irillCAI.  DlCT/O.Wlh'V    l.xn  PORTRAIT  CAl.I.ERY. 


493 


its  possibilities  when  Dr.  Mitchell  first  commendetl 
his  method  to  the  experimental  attention  of  the 
profession,  and  we  ha\-c  with  unabated  interest 
followed  its  growth  in  professidual  favor;  it 
seems  a  method  of  treatnuiit  as  useful  as  it  is 
gentle." 

Dr.  Mitchell  has  ai\\a\s  been  a  Republican 
thouLjh  non-i)artisan  in  spirit.  In  religious  belief 
he  is  a  I'resbyterian,  liberal  and  tolerant  of  the 
views  of  others.  He  attenils  the  h'irst  Presbyte- 
rian church  of  this  city. 

A  member  of  the  Alpha  Delta  I'hi  Society  and 
of  the  Nineteenth  Century  Club,  he  is  a  well- 
known  figure  in  social  and  literary  circles — trui\- 
one  of  America's  aristocracy,  who  has  won  place 
by  his  benefits  to  mankind,  and  which  he  holds  by 
force  of  intellect  aiul  s/raciousness  of  manner. 


In  1864  Dr.  Mitchell  was  married  to  Miss  Helen 
S.  Leeds,  daughter  of  Joseph  and  Arethusa 
Leeds,  of  Philadelphia,  and  niece  of  Rev.  Dr. 
(ieorge  Leeds,  rector  of  Grace  Church,  Baltimore. 
Mrs.  Mitchell  is  a  woman  of  superior  social  and 
intellectual  qualities  and  her  beautiful  home  is 
a  center  of  refinement  and  culture.  Her  fath- 
er, Mr.  Joseph  Leeds,  won  a  national  reputa- 
tion through  his  efforts  in  behalf  of  the  pres- 
er\'ation  of  the  old  .South  Church  in  Boston,  and 
to  secure  a  monument  of  memorials  of  the  Revo- 
lution. 

Dr.  Mitchell  has  three  children  ;  Miss  Helen, 
the  eldest,  an  accomplished  vocalist,  and  a  leader 
in  societ)'  ;  Sidney,  aged  fourteen,  a  promising 
young  athlete,  and  Leeds,  aged  twelve,  who  is  an 
amateur  musician  of  rare  talent. 


PETER    A.   B.   WIDr:NER, 


I'lllI.ADKI.rillA,   PA. 


PETER  A.  B.  WIDEXER  is  a  native  of  Phila- 
delphia, Pa.,  where  he  was  born  No\ember 
13,  1834.  He  is  a  son  of  John  and  Sarah  (Falmer) 
Widener,  both  of  whom  were  natives  of  the  "  City 
of  Brotherly  Love."  Our  subject  received  his  edu- 
cation in  the  public  and  high  schools  of  his  native 
city,  and  early  in  life  acquired  those  habits  of 
industry  that  have  characterized  his  subsequent 
career.  It  was  his  habit  when  studj'  hours  were 
over  to  spend  his  spare  time  working  in  a  print- 
ing-office. Upon  attaining  his  majority  Mr.  Wid- 
ener turned  his  attention  to  the  slaughtering 
and  j)acking  business  on  a  moderate  .scale,  it 
being  a  business  which,  at  that  time,  seemed  to 
offer  the  largest  returns  to  one  with  a  limited 
capital,  an  important  consideration  to  one  engag- 
ing in  his  first  business  venture.  Ever  on  the 
alert,  with  a  view  to  bettering  himself  and  quick 
to  discern  a  good  business  chance,  he,  in  1S62, 
became  interested  in  street  railways,  and  so  im- 
pressed was  he  with  the  opportunities  which  this 
business  ofTcred,  with  its  wide  and  ever-growing 
field,  that  two  years  later,  in  1X64,  ho  withilrew 
from  the  packing  business,  in  which  he  had  been 
very  successful,  and  turned  his  attention  to  tlu' 
development  of  this  new  enterprise.  I'loni  tii.it 
time   until  the  present  this  business   has  engaged 


his  chief  attention,  and  his  interests  have  grown 
to  enormous  proportions,  he  being  now  largely 
interested  in  the  entire  street  railway  system 
of  Philadelphia,  the  Broadway  and  other  .street 
railways  of  New  York,  ihe  North  Chicago  and 
the  West  Chicago  street  railways,  and  the  Balti- 
more Traction  Company  of  Baltimore,  Md.,  and 
he  formerly,  with  others,  owned  the  South  Boston 
Street  Railway,  which  was  sold  to  the  present 
owner,  the  West  End  Company.  He  has  also 
been  interested  in  \arious  other  enterprises  and 
now  owns  a  controlling  interest  in  the  Garden 
Brick  Company,  the  largest  plant  of  the  kind  in 
the  country,  noted  far  and  wide  for  the  fine  quality 
and  great  variety  of  its  products.  Aside  from  his 
private  affairs,  Mr.  Widener  has  taken  an  active 
part  in  many  public  enterprises  connected  with 
the  welfare  and  growth  of  his  city,  and  is  known 
as  a  broad-minded,  public-spiritctl  citizen,  ready 
to  contriinite  without  stint,  of  his  time  and  energy 
and  money,  to  every  worthy  cause.  I'Vom  1867 
to  1 870  he  served  as  a  memberof  the  Board  of  Edu- 
cation of  Philadelphia.  He  was  city  and  county 
treasurer  frr)m  1870  to  1S77,  and  during  the  year 
(1890)  he  was  appointed  a  member  of  the  Park 
Commission  for  a  term  of  five  years,  and  is  also 
one  of  the  comnn'ssioiiers-at-larue  to  the  World's 


494 


niOGRAPIIlCAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Columbian  Exposition.  This  appointment  is  es- 
pecially happy  and  one  for  which  Mr.  Widener's 
extensive  travels,  both  in  Europe  and  throughout 
various  sections  of  his  own  country,  peculiarly  fit 
him  ;  for,  being  a  thorough  business-man,  a  close 
observer  and  essentially  a  man  of  affairs,  wide- 
awake,   practical    and    progressi\e,    he    brings    to 


the  councils  of  the  body  of  which  he  has  been 
honored  with  membership,  the  fruits  of  a  bu.sy, 
thoughtful  life,  and  a  rich  and  varied  expe- 
rience. Mr.  Widener  is  a  Republican  in  his  po- 
litical faith,  and  has  been  a  firm  adherent  to 
the  principles  of  that  party  since  its  organiza- 
tion in  1S56. 


CURTIS    H.    REMY, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


CURTIS  H.  REMV  is  a  native  of  Indiana,  and 
was  born  April  29,  1852,  near  the  town  of 
Hope,  in  Bartholomew  county,  the  son  of  Allison 
C.  Remy,  who  is  of  French  origin,  and  Sophia 
(Spaugh)  Remy,  of  German  ancestiy.  His  father 
made  his  own  way  in  the  world  from  the  time  he 
was  ten  years  old,  and  resides  in  Indianapolis,  Indi- 
ana, a  highly  respected  and  influential  citizen. 
Curtis  received  his  preliminary  education  in  the 
public  schools,  and  at  the  age  of  thirteen  was  sent  to 
Nazareth  Hall  School,  the  great  Moravian  school, 
in  Pennsylvania,  where  he  remained  three  years. 
Later  he  pursued  a  course  of  study  in  Transylvania 
College,  at  Lexington,  Kentucky,  graduating  in 
1 87 1,  and  afterwards  graduated  from  the  law  de- 
partment of  the  Northwestern  University  at  In- 
dianapoli.s,  Indiana,  in  1872.  While  in  the  law 
school  and  after  he  had  studied  under  the  direc- 
tion of  Judge  Byron  K.  Elliott,  now  of  the  Su- 
preme bench  of  Imliana,  and  also  with  Gen. 
Thomas  M.  Brown,  then  United  States  District 
Attorney  at  Indianapolis,  he  practically  made  his 
own  way,  and  throughout  his  years  of  prepar- 
atory study  Mr.  Remy  was  a  careful  and  pains- 
taking student,  conscientiously  seeking  to  make 
the  most  and  best  use  of  his  opportunities;  and  he 
brought  to  his  profession  a  well-disciplined  mind, 
a  sturdy  constitution,  invincible  energy,  splendid 
judgment,  indefatigable  inilustry  and  indomi- 
table will. 

Beginning  the  practice  of  his  profession  at  In- 
dianajjolis,  in  1873,  he  continued  there  with  mod- 
erate success  untill  1876,  when  he  removed  to 
Chicago.  During  his  first  three  years  here  he 
was  in  practice  by  himself,  but  in  the  fall  of  1879 
associated  himself  with  J.  C.  Chumasero,  who  had 
recenth'  come  from  Rochester.  New  York,   under 


the  firm  name  of  Remy  &  Chumasero.  This  re- 
lation continued  until  May,  1882,  at  which  time 
the  firm  was  dissolved  and  Mr.  Remy  organized 
the  firm  of  Flower,  Remy  &  Gregon,-,  which  after- 
ward ranked  among  the  most  widely-known  law 
firms  of  Chicago,  and  he  continued  in  this  firm  with- 
out change  until  the  spring  of  1889.  when  the  firm 
was  dissolved  and  Mr.  Remy  opened  his  present 
ofifice  in  the  Owings  Building. 

Though  still  a  comparatively  young  man,  Mr. 
Remy  has  attained  to  a  leading  place  at  the 
Chicago  bar,  and  maintains  the  universal  re- 
spect and  esteem  of  his  professional  brethren 
here  and  elsewhere,  and  to  his  liberal  clientage 
is  known  as  a  quick,  reliable  and  conscientious 
counselor. 

Aside  from  his  profession,  Mr.  Remy  has  taken 
an  active  interest  in  public  rnatters,  and  has  been 
called  to  numerous  positions  of  public  trust.  He 
was  for  several  years  president  of  the  Board  of 
Trustees  of  the  village  of  Evanston,  and  so  dis- 
charged the  duties  of  his  ofifice  as  to  receive  the 
highest  commendations  of  his  fellow-citizens;  but 
he  has  no  taste  for  office  and  has  declined  many 
opportunities  to  fill  public  offices. 

He  is  a  man  of  cheerful,  genial  temperament, 
high-minded,  energetic,  painstaking  in  business, 
courteous  and  cordial.  He  is  a  member  of  the 
Evanston  Blue  Lodge,  A.  F.  and  A.  M.:  the  Ev- 
anston Chapter,  R.  A.  M.,  and  the  Evanston 
Commandery  of  Knights  Templar.  He  is  also 
a  member  of  the  Bar  Association  of  Chicago, 
of  the  State  Bar  Association,  and  general  coun- 
sel, for  Illinois,  of  the  American  Bar  Association, 
and  belongs  to  the  Union  League  Club,  of  Chi- 
cago, the  Evanston  Boat  Club,  and  the  Evanston 
Club  of  I^vanston,  and  iithcr  clubs. 


liiOGRAriiicAi.  nicrioxARv  a.xd  roRTRA/r  gallery. 


497 


Mr.  Remy  is  a  staunch  Republican  and  lias 
always  taken  an  active  interest  in  political  affairs, 
and  is  frequentl\-  heard  from  in  conventions. 

In  his  relii^ious  sentiment  and  affiliation  he  is  a 
Methodist  and  a  liberal  patron  of  charities.  He 
is  a  man  of  liberal  culture,  and  has  traveled  ex- 
tensively. 


He  was  married  October  27,  1875,  to  Miss  Fan- 
nie Wheeler,  by  whcjm  he  has  one  child,  Victor. 
Mrs.  Remy  is  a  lady  of  rare  womanly  qualities, 
charming  in  manner,  attractive  in  ap[)earance,  and 
withal  accomplished  and  modest,  and  who,  with 
dignity  and  grace  presides  over  their  home,  always 
a  happ\-  center  of  friendly  hospitality. 


ROSWELL   ZHNAS    HKRRlCIv 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


MANY  of  the  hardy  sons  of  Maine,  who  ha\e 
made  Chicago  their  home,  have  become 
honored  and  respected  citizens.  Among  those 
that  have  attained  a  high  position  in  the  business 
community,  Roswell  Z.  Herrick  is  conspicuous. 
He  was  born  in  East  Corinth,  Maine,  on  Decem- 
ber 28,1846.  His  parents,  Joshua  M.  and  Hetse}- 
(Stinchfield)  Herrick,  were  both  descendants  of 
old  Colonial  families.  The  paternal  ancestor 
from  whom  the  Herricks  in  the  United  States 
are  descended,  was  Henrj^  Herrick,  who  settled  in 
Beverly,  Massachusetts,  about  the  year  1629. 
Henry  Herrick,  born  in  1604,  was  the  fifth  son  of 
Sir  William  Herrick,  a  celebrated  goldsmith  and 
money-lender  of  London;  Sir  William  was  born 
in  1557.  He  was  a  member  of  Parliament  from 
1601  to  1620,  and  was  knighted  by  King  James  I 
in  1605.  His  son  Henry,  who  was  delegated  to 
investigate  his  mercantile  affairs  in  the  Colony  of 
Virginia,  finally  located  permanently  in  Ikverly, 
Massachusetts.  Our  subject  is  a  descendant  of  Sir 
William  in  the  tenth  generation.  The  grand- 
father of  Roswell  settled  in  East  Corinth,  Maine, 
in  1807,  being  one  of  the  pioneers  of  that  place. 
Here  Joshua  M.  Herrick,  our  subject's  father,  a 
hearty,  healthy  old  gentleman  of  seventy-si.x,  still 
resides.  The  Herricks  are  known  as  a  family  of 
prominence  in  England  even  now,  and  lieaumanor 
Park,  Leicestershire,  England,  the  abode  of  the 
English  branch  of  the  family,  is  an  object  of  inter- 
est to  all  European  touri.sts.  The  celebrated 
British  poet.  Herrick,  was  a  nephew  of  Sir  William 
Herrick.  Our  subject's  maternal  ancestors,  the 
Stinchfields,  were  prominent  residents  of  Cumber- 
land county,  Maine,  and  they  can  also  trace  their 
descent  to  the  Anglo-Saxon  race. 

Roswell  obtained    his  earlier   education  in  the 


academy  at  East  Corinth,  Maine.  His  first  ex- 
perience with  the  business  world  was  in  a  minor 
position  in  the  office  of  the  Register  of  Deeds  at 
Bangor,  Maine,  he  entering  the  business  as  copy- 
ing clerk,  and  when  he  retired  had  charge  of  the 
office.  In  the  winter  of  1868  and  1869  he  was  en- 
gaged by  the  firm  of  Dwinel  &  Dennett,  lumber- 
dealers  at  Bangor,  for  office  work,  but  in  May, 
1869,  he  removed  to  Chicago,  and  has  resided 
there  ever  since.  Upon  his  arrival  in  Chicago  he 
accepted  a  position  as  messenger  in  the^  Union 
Stock  Yards  National  Bank,  which  had  been 
organized  in  1868,  with  Mr.  S.  M.  Nickerson  as 
president,  and  the  late  Mr.  E.  S.  Stickney  as 
cashier.  He  adapted  himself  to  his  new  surround- 
ings, and  soon  became  bookkeeper,  and  later 
paying-teller.  He  occupied  the  latter  position 
for  fourteen  years,  and  then  became  general  man 
around  the  bank,  being  able  to  fill  any  position  in 
the  institution.  Upon  the  organization  of  the 
National  Live  Stock  Bank,  which  succeeded  the 
older  institution  on  March  i,  1888,  he  became 
cashier,  and  in  January,  1890,  was  elected  a  direc- 
tor of  the  bank  ;  he  has  filled  both  of  his  positions 
satisfactorily  since.  Mr.  Herrick  has  interested 
himself  but  very  little  in  matters  outside  of  the 
bank,  but  was  one  b^  the  organizers,  and  is  presi- 
dent of  the  Dre.xel  Building  and  Loan  Association. 
He  is  a  member  and  tru.stee  of  the  Forty-first 
Street  Presbyterian  Church.  He  is  a  prominent 
Mason,  having  joined  the  Olive  Branch  Lodge,  A. 
F.  and  A.  M.,  of  Charleston,  Maine,  in  1868.  He 
has  always  taken  a  deep  interest  in  Masonry,  and 
is  now  a  member  of  Home  Lodge,  508,  A.  F.  and 
A.  M.,  Chicago  Chapter,  127,  R.  A.  M.,  and 
Chevalier  Bayard  Commandery,  52,  K.  T.  In  all 
of  these  bodies  he  has   held   the   highest  oflficial 


498 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIO.XARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


positions.  He  also  takes  the  deepest  interest  in 
his  home  and  family,  and  does  not  desire  to  ap- 
pearprominently  in  social  life.  However,  he  is  a 
member  of  the  Oakland  Club,  Bankers'  Club  and 
and  one  of  the  directors  of  "The  .Society  of  the 
Sons  of  Maine." 

Politically  Mr.  Herrick  is  a  Republican,  and  for 
two  years,  1880  and  1881,  he  was  treasurer  of  the 
village  of  Hyde  Park.  He  was  president  of  the 
Hyde  Park  Board  of  Education  for  two  terms, 
when  his  ofifice  was  discontinued  on  account  of 
the  annexation  of  the  village  of  Hyde  Park  to 
the  city  of  Chicago. 

On  October  28,  1873,  he  was  married  to  Miss 
Martha  E.  Thurston,  daughter  of  Mark  Thurston, 
of  Bangor,  Maine.  The  Thurston  family  is  one  of 
the  oldest  and  most  respected  in  New  Hampshire, 
where    they  have    been    prominent   residents    for 


more  than  two  hundred  )-ears.  The  couple  are 
blessed  with  one  child,  a  daughter,  named  Ger- 
trude T. 

Mrs.  Herrick  is  an  esteemed  lady  of  refinement  ; 
she  was  educated  in  the  High  School  of  Bangor, 
Maine,  and  is  possessed  of  those  many  charms 
that  are  natural  to  a  happy  wife  and  mother. 

Such  is  a  brief  outline  of  his  life.  That  he 
stands  well  in  the  community  is  evidenced  by  the 
fact  that  he  is  now  cashier  of  one  of  the  largest 
financial  institutions  of  Chicago,  and  in  which  he 
has  filled  positions  of  trust  for  nearly  a  quarter  of 
a  century.  He  has  always  endeavored  to  treat 
others  as  he  would  have  them  treat  him,  and  be- 
sides enjoying  in  a  high  degree  the  confidence  and 
esteem  of  both  stockholders  and  patrons  of  the 
bank,  he  is  respected  as  an  honorable,  upright 
man  by  all  who  know  him. 


FRANCIS   L.   WADSWORTH,   M.D. 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


IN  our  country's  earliest  history  the  name  of 
Wadsworth  is  well  known.  Among  the 
English  immigrants  sailing  in  1640  in  the  ship 
Lyon,  there  landed  at  Plymouth  and  settled  at 
Dukesbury,  Massachusetts,  three  brothers,  whose 
descendants  are  the  Wadsworths,  of  Maine, 
Connecticut  and  New  York.  We  all  remember 
General  Peleg  Wadsworth,  to  whom  was  allotted 
the  town  of  Hiram,  Maine,  in  recognition  of  his 
gallant  service  in  the  Revolutionary  War  ;  Brig- 
adier-General William  Wadsworth  of  the  New  York 
militia,  who  distinguished  himself  in  the  assault 
on  Oueenstown  Heights  in  the  war  of  181 2, 
and  later,  in  the  civil  war,  General  James  S. 
Wadsworth,  one  of  the  heroes  who  fell  in  the 
battle  of  the  Wilderness.  Such  is  the  noble  rec- 
ord and  proud  heritage  in  the  family  which  for 
twenty  years  has  been  so  worthily  represented  in 
our  city  in  the  person  of  Dr.  Francis  L.  Wads- 
worth. 

Born  in  Hiram,  Oxford  county,  Maine,  June  18, 
1833,  he  was  the  son  of  John  L.  Wadsworth,  a 
farmer  and  lumberman,  and  a  man  of  great  integ- 
rity and  strength  of  character,  from  whom,  doubt- 
less, he  derived  the  sturdy  excellence  which  charac- 
terized  him.       His  mother,    Mary   Iknton  Wads- 


worth, is  the  daughter  of  an  old  and  eminent 
physician  of  Maine,  and  from  this  side,  undoubt- 
edly, he  inherited  something  of  his  taste  for 
medicine. 

Out  of  a  family  of  nine  children,  four  sisters 
and  five  brothers  (of  whom  the  youngest  fell  at 
Gettysburg"),  there  remain  but  two,  a  sister  and 
a  brother.  The  former,  Bethiah,  is  the  wife  of 
Wm.  II.  Warren,  of  Norway,  Maine,  and  the 
latter,  Samuel  D.,  formerly  State  Senator  from 
Maine,  now  resides  on  the  old  homestead. 

Dr.  Wadsworth  received  his  early  education  in 
the  common  schools  and  at  the  high  school  of  his 
native  town.  At  si.xteen,  with  a  sound  basis  of 
practical  knowledge,  he  made  a  start  in  life  by 
working  as  shop-boy  in  a  wholesale  and  retail 
tailoring  establishment,  where  he  remained  until 
1857.  He  then  came  West"  prospecting,"  traveled 
extensively,  finally  becoming  associated  with  an 
Eastern  publishing-house  as  Western  traveling 
agent.  He  remained  connected  with  publishing 
enterprises  until  1866,  when  he  settled  in  Chicago 
and  began  to  study  medicine. 

There  had  always  been  a  secret  leaning  to- 
ward the  medical  profession,  and  now,  though 
beginning    its    studv    later  than   is  common  with 


-^.   C^.    /^^^L^-ct^^^cr^^^^T^-- 


BIOGRAPIIICAr.   lUCTlOXARV  AXP  POK TRAIT  GALLERY. 


501 


successful  physicians,  ho  brought  to  it  all  the  zest 
of  one  who  has  found  his  true  vocation.  In  1867 
he  entered,  and  in  iS6c)  graduated  from  Rush 
Medical  College.  After  graduation  Dr.  Wads- 
worth  acted  as  assistant  in  the  laboratory  under 
the  great  chemist,  Dr.  James  Van  Zandt  Blaney, 
and  also  assisted  Dr.  J.  W.  Freer  in  a  series  of 
ver\'  important  experiments  in  investigative  physi- 
ology phenomena  by  vivisection,  etc.  He  was 
also  adjunct  professor  of  physiology  and  histology 
in  Rush  Medical  College,  from  1870  until  1880. 
In  1880  he  assumed  the  chair  of  physiology  and 
histology  in  the  Woman's  Medical  College, 
serving  until  1888,  when  he  was  appointed  pro- 
fessor of  the  theory  and  practice  of  medicine, 
which  i^osition  he  held  up  to  the  time  of  his 
death— 1 89 1. 

Dr.  Wadsworth  was  physician  in  charge  of  St. 
Joseph's  hospital,  and  a  member  of  the  Chicago 
Medical  Society,  and,  among  organizations  of  a 
social  character,  was  prominently  connected  with 
the  Union  Club  and  the  Historical  Society. 

In  politics  Dr.  Wadsworth  was  always  a  Repub- 
lican, having  cast  his  first  vote  for  General  John 
C.  Fremont.  Nevertheless  he  preferred  principle 
to  party.  During  the  war  he  was  a  strong  Abo- 
litionist, very  active  in  local  politics,  and  was  well 
acquainted  with  Garrison,  Phillips  and  John 
Urown. 

Dr.  Wadsworth  was  married  in  1868  to  Miss 
Nye,  of  Richmond,  Indiana,  who  died  a  few  years 


later.  She  was  a  devoted  mother  and  was  of  a 
thoroughly  domestic  nature. 

In  1872  Dr.  Wadsworth  was  married  to  Miss 
Sarah  Robinson,  daughter  of  Russell  Robinson, 
Esq.,  of  Pawtucket,  Rhode  Island,  anil  descendant 
of  one  of  the  old  New  England  families.  The 
doctor  has  two  sons  living,  Charles  Freer  and 
Frank  Russell, 

Mrs.  Wadsworth  is  tspccial!)'  dcvtited  to 
the  happiness  and  comfort  of  her  home, 
although  she  is  a  woman  of  strong  literary  tastes, 
an  extensive  reader,  and  possessed  of  a  decided 
talent  for  painting.  She  was  interested  and  al- 
ways absorbed  in  the  doctor's  professional  work 
and  welfare,  and  was  to  him  lli.it  rarest  and  best 
of  gifts,  a  helpmate. 

In  speaking  of  the  personal  character  of  Dr. 
Wadsworth,  we  can  pay  no  higher  tribute  to  his 
worth  than  that  contained  in  the  hearty  words 
and  disinterested  testimony  of  a  contemporaneous 
and  eminent  physician:  ''  Dr.  Wadsworth  is  a 
thoroughly  good,  reliable,  scientific  man,  who  has 
tile  confidence  of  everybody,  and  attends  ridi  antl 
poor  alike.  There  is  but  one  side  to  his  nature — 
he  cannot  be  hired  to  do  any  wrong,  and  in  short, 
'  He  is  an  Israelite  in  whom  there  is  no  guile.' 
He  was  a  painstaking  student,  and  through  sheer 
force  of  character,  industry  and  ability  has  he 
gained  wealth,  friends  and  reputation  and  risen 
second  to  no  man  in  the  cit\-,  and  one  of  the  first 
physicians  in  Illinois." 


GEORGE   V.    MASSEY, 


DOVER,   DEL. 


THE  selection  of  George  V.  Massey  as  a  com- 
missioner of  the  World's  Columbian  Expo- 
sition was  not  only  a  commendable,  but  also  a 
most  natural  one.  Though  a  comparatively 
young  man,  he  has  had  a  wide  range  of  experi- 
ences and  brings  to  this  honorable  office,  as  to  all 
his  varied  public  and  i)rivate  trusts  and  interests, 
abilities  of  a  very  high  order. 

He  is  a  native  of  Chester  county,  Pennsylvania, 
and  was  born  in  1841.  He  became  a  resident  of 
Delaware  in  1848.  He  received  a  thorough 
education,  and  fitted  himself  for  the  legal  pro- 
fession,   and   in    1862   was   admitted    to   the   bar. 


During  the  same  year  he  enlisted  in  the  First 
Regiment  Delaware  Volunteers,  cavalry,  and 
entered  the  Union  service  and  served  with  dis- 
tinction as  first  lieutenant,  and  subsequently  was 
attached  to  the  adjutant-general's  department 
with  the  rank  of  lieutenant-colonel.  He  returned 
to  Dover  in  1864  and  resumed  his  profession,  ami 
from  that  time  to  the  present  (1892)  has  devoted 
himself  steadily  to  it,  and  for  many  years  has 
held  a  leading  place  among  the  foremost  lawyers 
of  the  Delaware  bar.  He  is  especially  noted  as  a 
cor])oration  lawyer,  and  is  counsel  for  the  Penn- 
sylvania Railroad  Company,  by  which,  as  well  as 


502 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


by  otlier  large  corporate  bodies,  his  advice  and 
opinions  are  often  sought.  Mr.  Massc\-  has 
amassed  a  handsome  fortune  and  is  counted 
among  the  wealthy  men  of  his  city.  He  is  a 
man  of  generous  impulses,  large-hearted,  high- 
minded  and  charitable,  and  contributes  liberally 
to  all  worthy  causes  and  objects.  He  is  a  man  of 
scholarly  attainments,  is  well  versed  in  general 
literature,  and  keeps  himself  in  touch  with  the 
trend  of  current  thought  and  events,  and  withal 


is  characterized  by  integrity  of  purpose  and 
nobility  of  character.  He  has  taken  a  commend- 
able part  in  the  politics  of  his  State,  and  in  1888 
rendered  efficient  service  in  securing  the  remark- 
able Republican  victory  of  that  year,  and  himself 
lacked  but  one  vote  of  being  elected  to  the 
United  States  Senate.  His  election  to  that  high 
office  at  a  future  time  would  be  but  a  fitting 
recognition  of  his  faithful  service  and  splendid 
abilities. 


WASHINGTON    PORTER, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


WASHINGTON  PORTER,  one  of  the 
forty-five  Directors  of  the  World's  Colum- 
bian Exposition,  and  a  member  of  the  Ways  and 
Means  Committee,  was  born  in  Boone  county, 
Illinois,  October  26,  1846.  His  parents,  Thomas 
W.,  and  Charlotte  (Lane)  Porter,  immigrated 
from  England  about  1830,  and  settled,  locating 
at  Buffalo,  New  York,  where  the  father  engaged 
in  merchandising.  They  came  to  Illinois  in  1838 
and  bought  a  farm  in  Boone  county,  where 
they  lived  until  the  death  of  the  husband  and 
father,  which  occurred  when  he  was  seventy-nine 
years  of  age.  Mrs.  Porter  died  at  the  age  of 
seventy-three.  The  couple  had  nine  children,  six 
boys  and  three  girls,  all  of  whom  are  now  living 
excepting  F.  C,  who  died  July  15,  1885,  and  Miss 
Anna,  who  died  some  years  previous  to  the  de- 
mise of  her  parents. 

Washington  Porter  remained  on  the  farm  and 
went  to  school  until  he  was  sixteen,  when  he  en- 
listed in  Company  B,  Ninety-fifth  Regiment  Vol- 
unteers, infantry,  and  served  as  a  private  with 
General  Grant  in  the  West.  He  was  in  many 
hard-fought  battles ;  among  others,  those  of 
Champion  Hills  and  the  siege  of  Vicksburg,  and 
underwent  the  hardships  of  the  Red  River  Expe- 
dition. He  was  wounded  in  the  shoulder  by  a 
minie-ball  at  the  battle  of  Guntown,  Mississippi, 
which  sent  him  to  the  hospital  for  a  month.  A 
furlough  of  sixty  days  was  then  given  him,  and 
upon  his  return  he  was  placed  on  detached  service 
at  Memphis,  where  he  remained  until  his  term 
expired.  In  May,  1865,  he  was  mustered  out  of 
service  and  returned  to  the  home  farm  in  Illinois. 


The  following  winter  he  attended  school  in  Belvi- 
dere  and  then  began  his  successful  business  career. 

He  engaged  in  farming  for  three  years  and  then 
purchased  a  business  in  Belvidere,  which  he  sold, 
after  conducting  it  one  year,  at  a  handsome  profit. 
Prompted  by  a  spirit  of  enterprise  he  went  West, 
prospecting,  and  upon  his  return  endeavored  to 
organize  a  colony  to  locate  in  Kansas.  The  peo- 
ple were  reluctant  to  invest  in  the  enterprise  and 
it  was  abandoned.  The  wisdom  of  the  movement, 
as  proposed  by  Mr.  Porter,  has  since  been  well 
demonstrated  in  the  fact  that  the  city  of  Newton 
now  stands  where  it  was  proposed  to  locate  the 
colony. 

During  this  time  he  and  his  brother,  F.  C. 
Porter,  started  a  California  fruit  trade.  They 
were  the  pioneers  in  this  line,  shipping  the  first 
full  car  of  fruit  in  1869,  the  year  of  the  comple- 
tion iif  the  transcontinental  railroad.  This  busi- 
ness, which  they  began  with  a  very  small  capital, 
has  grown  to  enormous  proportions,  supporting 
branch  houses  in  Omaha,  Minneapolis  and  New 
York  City,  besides  packing-houses  in  various 
towns  and  cities  of  California,  with  a  main  office 
in  Chicago.  The  yearly  increasing  profit  of  their 
fruit  trade  has  made  them  both  wealthy.  Janu- 
ary I,  1885,  the  business  was  incorporated  under 
the  name  of  The  Porter  Brothers'  Company,  with 
Mr.  Washington  Porter  as  president,  which  office 
he  still  holds.  It  is  the  largest  concern  of  its  kind 
in  the  United  States,  if  not  in  the  world. 

Mr.  Porter  was  one  of  the  most  valuable  mem- 
bers of  the  committee  sent  from  Chicago  to 
Washington  to  urge  the  advantages  and  claims  of 


^ 


^<t/vi 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


505 


the  western  metropolis  as  a  site  for  the  World's 
Columbian  Exposition  in  1893.  He  has  the 
credit  of  having  done  the  most  effective  work  at 
that  heated  contest,  and  the  earnest  labor  and  un- 
tiring interest  that  he  showed  in  advocating  their 
cause  will  be  long  remembered  by  Chicagoans. 

An  extract  from  the  letter  of  an  eminent  man 
says  of  him:  "  He  remained  at  Washington 
nearly  all  last  winter,  at  his  own  expense,  in  the 
interest  of  Chicago.  It  is  impossible  to  estimate 
the  value  of  his  services  in  this  connection.  He 
did  all  that  any  one  could  do,  and  was  specially 
fitted  for  the  work. in  hand." 

A  prominent  officer  of  the  National  Commis- 
sion writes:  "It  gives  me  great  pleasure  to  say 
that  from  my  personal  knowledge,  Mr.  Porter  ren- 
dered invaluable  aid  to  Chicago  in  that  memor- 
able contest.  There  were  very  few  men  who  did 
as  effective  service  for  Chicago  as  he.  A  prosper- 
ous man,  with  the  suave  and  pleasant  manners 
which  he  possesses,  is  bound  to  be  a  power  in  what- 
ever he  undertakes,  and  I  often  heard  Direc- 
tor-General Davis  say  last  winter  in  Washington, 
during  the  great  contest  for  the  location  of  the 
Worlds  Fair,  that  a  man  like  Washington  Porter, 
for  good  effective  service,  was  worth  a  dozen  ordi- 
nar}-  men.  For  myself,  there  are  very  few  men 
whom  I  know  that  I  regard  as  highly." 

From  a  fellow-member  of  the  Chicago  Com- 
mittee: ■•  I  know  Mr.  Porter  well  ;  he  is  one  of 
the  brightest  business  men  that  I  have  ever  met. 
Public-spirited  and  well  informed,  he  spent 
several  weeks  in  Washington  during  the  contest 
before  Congress  on  the  location  of  the  World's 
Fair.  He  was  earnest  and  untiring  in  his  ad- 
vocacy of  Chicago,  and  rendered  valuable  service. 
He  should  be  gratefully  remembered  by  Chicago 
for  his  efforts  in  securing  the  World's  Fair." 


Another,  in  speaking  of  Mr.  Porter's  efforts, 
said:  "  Mr.  Porter  was  called  to  Washington 
early  in  December,  and  from  that  date  until  the 
final  action  of  Congress,  his  time  and  services 
were  freely  given  to  the  committee.  His  large  and 
favorable  acquaintance  with  the  senators  and 
members  of  congress  of  the  Pacific  States  made 
his  services  valuable,  and  to  him  more  than  to 
any  other  member  of  the  committee  Chicago  is  in- 
debted for  the  favorable  action  and  practically 
unanimous  vote  of  the  senators  and  congressmen 
of  the  Pacific  Coast.  In  all  the  work  of  the  com- 
mittee in  Washington  he  was  at  all  times  zealous 
and  effective,  and  all  his  friends  in  this  city 
thoroughly  appreciate  his  invaluable  services." 

A  well-known  and  able  Congressman  writes  : 
"  Without  detracting  one  jot  from  others  on  the 
committee  to  secure  the  World's  Fair,  I  can  say, 
without  fear  of  contradiction,  that  the  claims  of 
Chicago  were  presented  by  no  one  more  ably  and 
zealously  than  by  Mr.  Porter.  His  genial  man- 
ner, his  terse  business  way  of  talking,  coupled 
with  his  great  knowledge  of  the  country  and  his 
love  for  Chicago,  made  many  converts.  He  en- 
listed me  long  before  the  session  commenced ;  his 
personal  friend  for  years,  I  made  his  cause  mine. 
Chicago  owes  him  a  debt  of  gratitude,  which  I 
know  she  will  delight  to  rcpa)-.  Too  much  honor 
cannot  be  given  him." 

Mr.  Porter  has  made  heavy  investments  in  real 
estate,  and  owns  some  of  the  choicest  and  most 
desirable  property  in  the  city. 

He  is  a  member  of  several  of  the  most  |)romi- 
nent  clubs  of  the  city  ;  he  is  also  a  member  of  the 
Masonic  fraternity.  His  travels  abroad  have  been 
very  extensive.  A  charm  of  manner,  together 
with  a  world-wide  knowledge,  make  him  a  man  to 
comniand  tlic  respect  of  all  who  know  him. 


HON.   THOMAS    M.   WALLER, 

NliW    LONDON,  CONN. 

TIIF  name  of  the  gentleman  who  heads  this  Y'ork  City.  At  an  early  age  he  removed  to  New 
sketch  is  not  only  familiar  to  all  of  the  citizens  London,  Connecticut,  where  he  received  his  edu- 
of  his  own  State,  but  no  man  is  more  widely  and  cation,  studied  law  and  was  admitted  to  the  bar  in 
favorably  known  throughout  the  United  .States  i86j.  He  attained  a  leading  position  in  his  pro- 
than  the  Hon.  Thomas  M.  Waller,  of  Connecticut,  fession  in  his  St.ite  ;  his  practice  became  very  ex- 
He  is  fifty-tw(j  years  old,  and  was  born   in    New  tensive  in  both  the  State  anil  I""ederal  courts,  and 


5o6 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


while  he  is  celebrated  as  a  brilliant  athocatc  of 
i^reat  power,  he  is  also  very  learned  in  the  law, 
and  in  the  circle  of  his  practice  at  the  bar  he  is 
as  much  admired  for  his  lethal  acumen  as  for  the 
remarkable  gift  of  oratory  which  has  given  him  a 
world-wide  fame. 

Mr.  Waller  was  elected  Mayor  of  New  London 
tu(i  terms  of  two  years  each,  and  was  elected  to 
the  State  Legislature  four  times.  In  1870  he  was 
made  Secretary  of  State  and  Speaker  of  the 
House  of  Representatives  in  1876,  and  Governor 
of  the  State  in  1884,  serving  two  years.  He  was 
renominated  by  his  party,  receiving  a  plurality  of 
votes,  but  the  law  requiring  a  majority,  his  oppo- 
nent was  elected  by  the  Legislature.  Mr.  Waller 
ably  represented  this  country  as  Consul-General 


to  London  under  President  Cleveland,  who,  it 
will  be  remembered,  received  Mr.  Waller's  sup- 
port in  the  Chicago  con\ention  that  nominated 
President  Cleveland,  in  one  of  the  most  effective, 
eloquent  and  telling  speeches  made  in  that  con- 
vention. Governor  Waller  is  first  vice-president 
of  the  World's  Columbian  Commission,  and  the 
ease,  dignity  and  grace  with  which  he  presides 
over  the  deliberations  of  that  body  prove  that  the 
selection  was  wisely  made. 

He  is  married,  and  in  politics  a  Democrat  ;  his 
star  is  still  rising.  At  present  he  is  a  member  of 
the  firm  of  Waller,  Cook  &  Wagner,  15  W'all 
street,  corporation  attorneys.  Mr.  Cook,  his  part- 
ner, is  the  author  of  "Cook  on  Corporations,"  a 
w  ork  of  acknowledged  authority  on  corporations. 


ABRAM    M.   ROTHSCHILD, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


IN  the  German  village  of  Nordstetten,  which 
the  novelist  Berthold  Auerbach,  whose  birth- 
place it  was,  has  glorified  with  the  light  of  his 
genius,  Abram  M.  Rothschild  was  born,  in  1853. 
There  he  spent  his  earlier  years  until  1866,  when 
he  came  to  America,  going  direct  to  Davenport, 
Iowa,  where  he  joined  his  eldest  brother,  Eman- 
uel, who  had  establislied  himself  there  several 
years  before.  At  first  he  worked  in  his  brother's 
store,  and  to  such  good  use  did  he  put  his  ener- 
gies that  in  1867,  at  the  age  of  seventeen,  he  was 
admitted  as  a  partner  to  the  firm,  which  then 
became  E.  Rothschild  &  Brothers. 

During  the  time  he  was  laying  the  foundation 
for  his  future  business  career,  he  was  also  industri- 
ously supplementing  the  education  he  received  in 
the  little  German  village  from  which  he  had 
come,  by  attending  the  night  schools  in  Da\en- 
]5ort.  Notwithstanding  the  diflficulties  under 
which  he  labored,  he  proved  himself  an  apt  and 
progressive  student,  and  soon  succeeded  in  obtain- 
ing a  thorough  common  school  education.  In 
1 87 1,  when  Chicago  lay  in  ruins,  Mr.  Rothschild 
and  his  brothers,  foreseeing  clearly  the  wonderful 
success  to  which  the  Garden  City  must  soon  at- 
tain, resolved  to,  and  did  ojjen  a  branch  of  their 
business  here  in  connection  \\  itli  the  one  in 
Da\eiiport.       Their  confidence  in  Chicago,  partic- 


ularly as  a  manufacturing  and  business  center, 
grew  with  their  business  successes,  and  accord- 
ingly, in  1875,  the  firm  of  E.  Rothschild  &  Broth- 
ers withdrew  altogether  from  the  retail  business, 
and  began  the  manufacture  and  sale  of  clothing 
on  an  extensive  scale.  In  1875  Mr.  Rothschild 
left  Davenport,  and  taking  up  his  residence  per- 
manentlj-  in  Chicago,  at  once  devoted  himself 
with  characteristic  energy  and  enthusiasm  to  the 
dexclopment  of  the  business. 

The  large  building  on  Madison  .street,  near 
Market,  soon  became  too  cramped,  and  accord- 
ingly the  firm  took  a  lease  of  more  commodious 
quarters  on  Wabash  avenue.  These,  too,  soon 
proved  inadequate,  and  in  1881  the  firm  moved 
to  its  own  immense  double  building  at  203  and 
205  East  Monroe  street,  where  it  has  continued 
its  successful  development.  It  is  not  so  much  of 
the  wonderful  growth  from  a  retail  business  in 
Davenport  to  a  great  jobbing  and  manufacturing 
concern  doing  a  business  of  several  million  dol- 
lars a  year,  that  Mr.  Rothschild  is,  as  he  has  rea- 
son to  be,  so  proud,  but  more  of  the  high  financial 
and  commercial  standing  which  his  house  has 
attained  with  the  business  public,  its  popularity 
with  its  trade  competitors  and  its  thousands  of 
customers  throughout  the  country.  To  this 
growth    Mr.   Kothschilil    has  in   no   small   degree 


lUOuRM'lIICAI.  incriOXARV  AXD  I'OKTRAIT  CAl.I.ERY. 


509 


contributed.  His  executive  capacity,  his  tireless 
energy,  his  remarkable  enthusiasm,  have  placed 
him  in  the  front  rank  of  the  progressive  business 
men  of  a  most  progressive  city,  while  his  loyalty, 
his  genuineness  and  his  straightforward  manliness 
have  made  him  friends  everywhere. 

In  addition  to  his  partnership  in  the  firm  of  K. 
Rothschild  &  Brothers,  Mr.  Rothschild  has  nu- 
merous other  business  interests  of  magnitude.  I  le 
organized  and  is  president  of  the  Palace  Clothing 
Company,  a  corporation  which  has  the  leading 
establishment  in  Minneapolis,  Kansas  City  and 
other  places.  He  is  also  a  director  and  officer  in 
several  large  local  corporations,  and  on  July  13, 
1 891,  he  was  elected  vice-president  of  the  Na- 
tional liank  of  the  Republic,  a  new  institution, 
with  a  capital  of  a  million  dollars.  In  March, 
1891,  Mr.  Rothschild  was  chosen  to  occupy  a 
director's  chair  on  the  board  of  the  World's 
Columbian  Exposition,  and  hokls  important  com- 
mitteeships, to  which  he  brings  a  mind  will 
stored  with  valuable  information  gaineii  1)\-  his 
broad  business  experience  and  enriched  by  exten- 
sive travel,  both  in  Europe  and  America.  Mr. 
Rothschihl   is   a    member   of    the   Standard    Club 


and  other  social  organizations,  also  of  Sinai  Con- 
gregation and  several  charitable  aid  societies. 

In  December,  1882,  Mr.  Rothschild  was  mar- 
ried to  Miss  Gusta  Morris,  daughter  of  Mr.  Nel- 
son Morris,  one  of  America's  most  successful 
men.  The  couple  are  blessetl  with  (jne  child — 
Melville  Nelson  Rothschild. 

Although  Mr.  Kothschild  is  a  native  of  Ger- 
man}-, he  is  nevertheless  distinctively  and  thor- 
oughly ^\merican.  In  love  for  this  country  and  its 
institutions  there  is  no  one  who  exceeds  him,  and 
he  is  devoted  in  the  discharge  of  his  duties  as  a  citi- 
zen. Such  is  the  biography  of  a  man  who  began 
the  struggle  for  existence  with  nothing  but 
health,  ambition  and  energy.  h'rom  them  and 
the  honorable  principles  which  have  been  his 
guides  have  come  that  success  which  has  given 
him  the  name  of  a  great  merchant.  With  a  repu- 
tation for  the  highest  possible  integrity,  a  record 
of  splendid  successes,  an  ample  fortune,  a  large 
and  increasing  business,  a  warm  circle  of  devoted 
friends,  and  above  all,  a  happy  home,  Mr.  Roth- 
schild stands,  at  thirty-eight,  a  public-spirited  citi- 
zen worthy  of  the  high  place  he  occupies  among 
the  rcprcsentati\e  men  of  a  great  community. 


STEPHEN    A.    REYNOLDS, 


CHICACKJ,    ILL. 


THE  gentleman  whose  name  heads  this  sketch 
is  one  of  the  most  prominent  of  the  younger 
members  of  the  Chicago  bar.  He  is  distin- 
guished for  his  ability  to  analyze  a  case,  for  un- 
tiring devotion  to  his  clients'  cause,  and  for  a 
quickness  of  perception  that  is  unusual.  As  a 
speaker  he  is  convincing,  ready  and  not  easily 
surprised,  and  is  noted  for  clearness  of  statement 
and  facility  of  logical  and  concise  expression. 
Having  a  high  sense  of  professional  honor,  he 
never  knowingly  misstates  a  fact  or  proposition  of 
law,  and  as  a  consequence,  courts  place  great  re- 
liance upon  his  arguments.  Mr.  Reynolds  was 
born  July  6,  1849,  in  Waukesha  County,  Wiscon- 
sin, and  is  the  son  of  Edward  H.  and  Olive  (Hid- 
well)  Reynolds. 

Stephen  A.  remo\ed  willi  his  parents  in  1S56 
to  Behidere,  Illinois,  where  he  attended  the  pub- 
lic schools,  and  in  1S6S  he  entered  the  University 


of  Illinois,  at  Champaign,  and  was  graduated  from 
that  institution  in  1872.  He  read  law  at  Belvi- 
dere.  and  was  admitted  to  the  bar  in  1875. 

lie  was  clcctcil  a  Justice  of  the  Peace  in  Boone 
County,  111.,  in  1S73,  holding  that  office  three 
years.  He  came  to  Chicago  in  1876,  and  entered 
at  once  into  a  successful  practice  of  the  law.  He 
resides  at  Jefferson,  and  in  1883  was  elected  Vil- 
lage Clerk  of  that  place,  which  position  he  held 
two  years.  He  was  elected  to  the  Illinois  Legis- 
lature in  1886,  and  served  with  great  credit  to 
himself  two  terms.  He  was  an  industrious  mem- 
ber, and  was  on  the  Judiciary  Committee 
and  al.so  on  the  committees  on  Municipal 
Corporations,  Penitentiaries,  Drainage,  Geology 
and  Science.  He  was  identified  with  several 
im])ortant  measures,  and  was  chiefly  instru- 
mental in  jjushing  through  the  late  law  on 
banks  antl  banking.      In  social  life    Mr.    Reynolds 


5IO 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


is  genial  and  companionable,  warm  in  his  attach- 
ments and  firm  in  his  friendships  ;  a  gentleman 
liberal  in  all  his  views,  and  of  culture  and  refine- 
ment, a  pleasing  conversationalist,  and  always  the 


life  of  the  social  circle,  and  he  can  express  his 
views  forcibly  and  elegantly  when  the  occasion 
requires.  He  was  married  May  6,  1876,  to  Miss 
Delia  Filmore. 


HENRY    EXALL, 


DALLAS,  TEX. 


THE  subject  of  this  sketch  was  born  at  Rich- 
mond, Virginia,  August  30,  1848.  His  father 
is  Rev.  George  G.  Exall,  a  Baptist  minister,  well 
known  in  Virginia  and  the  South,  who  moved 
from  England  when  but  a  child.  His  paternal 
grandfather  was  an  English  astronomer  and  divine 
of  considerable  renown.  His  mother  is  Angy  E. 
(Pierce)  Exall,  daughter  of  Joseph  Pierce,  who 
was  a  shipbuilder  of  Philadelphia,  and  the  repre- 
sentative of  a  family  long  prominent  in  naval 
construction  in  this  country.  Both  branches  of 
his  family  have  an  ancient  and  honorable  lineage 
that  extends  to  a  very  early  period  in  American 
and  English  history.  Mr.  Exall's  early  educa- 
tion, interrupted  when  he  was  thirteen  years  of 
age  by  the  civil  war,  was  acquired  at  his  father's 
academy.  Two  years  later  his  strong  .Southern 
sympathies  made  him  a  soldier  in  the  cause.  He 
was  the  boy  of  his  brigade,  but  his  brave  and 
brilliant  soldiership  marked  him  even  then  as 
the  child  of  destined  success.  At  the  battle  of 
Ream's  Station  his  brigade  commander  presented 
him  with  a  swonl  in  recognition  of  his  gallant 
services. 

At  the  close  of  the  war  he  studied  law,  but 
very  soon  abandoned  it  ft>r  the  wider  and  more 
active  field  of  commercial  life.  In  1867  he  moved 
from  Virginia  to  Kentucky,  where  he  engaged  in 
merchandising  and  the  manufacture  of  woolen 
goods.  In  iSGg  he  was  married  to  Miss  luiima 
Warner,  of  Owensboro,  Kentucky.  Three  eliiid- 
ren  were  born  to  them,  all  of  whom  died  when 
quite  young,  and  in  1875  his  wife  also  tlied.  In 
1877  business  affairs  brought  him  on  a  visit  to 
Texas.  When  he  surveyed  the  great  possibilities 
of  the  grand  State,  for  whose  industrial  develop- 
ment he  was  to  do  so  much,  he  determined  to 
sever  his  ties  of  residence  with  old  Kentucky  and 
become  a  Texan.  He  has  rejjresented  the  State 
of    Te.xas  at   conventions   of    cattlemen,   bankers' 


associations,  commercial  congresses  and  expo.si- 
tions  and  political  conventions  at  many  and 
various  times.  In  1884  he  was  one  of  the  repre- 
sentatives of  the  State  in  the  convention  that 
nominated  Mr.  Cleveland  for  the  presidency.  This 
same  year  he  was  a  delegate  to  the  cattlemen's 
convention  which  met  at  St.  Louis.  He  was 
appointed  vice-president  for  Texas  of  the  Cotton 
Centennial  held  at  New  Orleans  in  1885,  and  this 
year  was  alsa  appointed  colonel  and  quarter- 
master-general of  the  Texas  volunteer  troops. 
In  1887  he  was  elected  vice-president  for  Texas 
of  the  American  Bankers'  Association,  held  at 
Pittsburgh,  Pennsylvania.  This  year  he  assisted 
in  the  organization  of  the  North  Texas  National 
Bank,  of  Dallas,  of  which  he  is  vice-president. 
He  was  chairman  of  the  State  Democratic  Exec- 
utive Committee  during  the  stormy  time  that  pro- 
hibition promised  to  split  the  Democratic  party  in 
twain.  In  1889  he  was  president  of  the  Texas 
State  Fair  and  Dallas  Exposition,  one  of  the  most 
successful  institutions  of  its  character  in  the  coun- 
try. In  all  these  places  he  has  reflected  credit  on 
himself  and  on  his  State,  and  whether  in  a  State 
or  national  convention  his  conspicuous  superiority 
as  a  man  of  force,  fearlessness  and  character  has 
made  him  a  figure  of  attraction  and  given  him  a 
place  as  the  equal  of  the  best  of  his  fellows. 

In  the  discharge  of  his  duties  as  a  representa- 
tive he  displays  the  enthusiastic  interest  of  a  per- 
sonal champion  of  a  ])crs(inal  friend,  and  always, 
whether  acting  for  himself  or  for  others,  his  task 
commands  his  best  ability.  He  is  a  faithful  be- 
liever in  the  future  of  his  State.  He  has  told  the 
story  of  her  undeveloped  greatness  to  the  mon- 
eyed men  of  the  East  and  to  the  traveler  from 
all  sections,  and  has  been  the'  means  of  develop- 
ing this  greatness  above  and  beyond  any  other. 
In  that  development  his  personal  accumulations 
have  approximated  a  million  dollars,  a  purse  that 


/^-^^^^^ 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIO.XARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


513 


is  touched  with  no  sparing  hand  when  the  enter- 
prises of  his  State  need  encouragement.  It  maj- 
be  said  with  truth,  that  every  dollar  of  all  that 
fortune  that  he  has  made  for  himself  is  repre- 
sented by  ten  dollars  made  for  tiie  people  among 
whom  he  lives. 

Mr.  Exall  has  just  finished  the  construction  of 
one  of  the  most  majestic  and  costly  buildings  in 
the  South.  During  its  construction  he  miglu 
have  been  seen  on  any  day  in  light  conversation 
with  the  men  who  drove  the  nails  and  laid  the 
brick,  and  attending  to  the  details  of  the  work. 
His  mind  is  so  comprehensive  that  even  the 
smallest  particulars  do  not  escape  its  notice.  This 
mental  scope  has  made  Mr.  Exall  a  successful 
exponent  of  all  the  industrial  enterprises  that  he 
has  originated  and  promoted.  In  the  city  of 
Dallas,  whore  he  lives,  everybody  is  his  friend. 
Here,  in  1887,  he  married  his  second  wife,  nee 
Miss  May  Dickson,  a  most  attractive  and  accom- 
plished lady,  who  makes  their  home  a  veritable 
haven  of  rest  from  the  many  cares  of  his  busy  life. 

His  public  expressions  are  always  the  embodi- 
ment of  earnest  consideration  for  the  betterment 
of  all  alike,  and  when  they  contain  advice  as  to  a 
line  of  action  every  word  is  tinged  with  a  heart's 
sincerity. 

Omission  of  the  mention  of  the  tenderness  that 
characterizes  the  domestic  relations  of  the  subject 
of    this   sketch,  and   the   filial    regard    shown    his 


aged  parents,  would  render  it  incomplete.  Inci- 
dents in  illustration,  without  number,  might  be 
given  by  the  writer,  but  it  is  sufficient  to  say  that 
it  has  been,  and  still  is  one  of  his  chief  pleasures 
to  minister  to  the  every  want  of  the  venerable 
couple  who  nurtured  him  in  infancy  and  inspired 
his  youthful  heart  with  high  principles  and  aspi- 
rations which  have  been  realized  by  the  force  of 
his  own  efforts.  He  is  not  known  as  the  donor  of 
any  conspicuous  gift  in  charity,  but  he  is  the  quiet 
distributor  of  more  alms  to  worthy  objects  than 
the  average  man  of  twice  his  wealth.  And  while 
in  his  modesty  he  prefers  to  remain  the  sole 
repository  of  the  secrets  of  his  own  benevo- 
lence, it  is  known  to  all  that  no  man  ever  dis- 
closed to  him  a  worthy  cause  with  a  request  for 
help  that  he  did  not  receive  a  prompt  and  liberal 
response. 

He  has  been  repeatedly  urged  by  both  press 
and  people  to  allow  himself  to  become  a  candi- 
date for  governor,  but  he  has  always  declined. 

As  a  Democratic  comniissioner-at-Iarge  for  the 
United  States  (appointed  by  President  Harrison  I 
to  the  World's  Columbian  E.xpositioir,  he  will 
bring  to  bear  upon  its  organization  and  develop- 
ment rare  business  abilities,  and  such  as  cannot 
fail  to  be  of  great  value  and  assistance  to  his 
fellow-commissioners,  the  people  of  the  United 
States  at  large  and  to  the  people  of  Texas  in 
particular. 


ROBERT   WILKINSON    FURNAS, 


BRO\VN\ILLK,  NEB. 


ROBERT  WILKINSON  FURNAS  was 
born  at  Troy,  in  Miami  county,  Ohio,  May 
5,  1824.  He  is  of  English  origin.  Mis  great- 
grandparents  were  natives  of  England,  while  his 
grandparents,  and  his  father  and  mother,  were 
bom  and  raised  in  South  Carolina.  On  both 
sides  he  is  descended  from  old  Puritan  ancestry, 
being  able  to  trace  his  descent  as  far  back  as 
1637  very  clearly. 

At  fourteen  years  of  age,  young  Furnas  was 
apprenticed  to  a  tin-smith  for  two  years.  He 
then  learned  the  printers"  trade  at  Covington, 
Kentucky,  serving  a  four  years' apprenticeship,  one 
year  as  "  roller  boy,"  one  year  at  the  "  case,"  one 


"at  press,"  and  one  as  "foreman."  Having 
completed  his  time,  he  became  the  proprietor  of 
a  book  and  job  printing  concern  at  Cincinnati, 
Ohio;  then  editor  and  publisher  of  the  Times, 
in  his  native  town.  He  afterwards  became  a 
railroad  conductor,  and  then  a  railroad  express 
agent. 

In  1855  he  settled  in  his  present  home,  and 
became  editor  and  publisher  of  the  Nebraska 
Advertiser,  and  from  that  time  until  the  present 
has  been  a  prominent  figure  in  the  affairs  of  his 
State.  For  four  years  he  was  a  member  of  the 
Council  branch  of  the  Territorial  legislature. 
Immediately  preceding  the  war  of  the   rebellion 


514 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


he  was  Brigadier  General  of  the  State  Militia. 
At  the  opening  of  the  war  he  was  commissioned 
by  President  Lincoln  as  a  Colonel.  He  ren- 
dered valuable  services  by  recruiting  and  com- 
manding a  body  of  friendly  Indians  from  the 
Indian  Territory.  Resigning  this  command  he 
was  appointed  by  the  Governor  of  Nebraska, 
Colonel  of  the  Second  Regiment  Nebraska 
Cavalrj',  and  served  under  General  Alfred  Sully 
in  the  Northern  Indian  campaign  up  the  Mis- 
souri river. 

At  the  expiration  of  this  service  he  was 
appointed  by  President  Lincoln  agent  for  the 
Omaha  and  Winnebago  Indians.  In  1872  he  was 
elected  Governor  of  Nebraska. 

While  in  the  legislature,  amongst  his  other 
works,  he  framed  and  secured  the  passage  of  the 
first  educational  law  in  Nebraska.  Mr.  Furnas 
has  been  a  member  (and  has  held  the  secretarj-- 
ship  for  over  six  years)  of  the  State  Board  of 
Agriculture  from  its  origin,  and  was  once  the 
president.  He  built  the  first  school-house  in 
Nebraska,  and  was  President  of  the  first  Terri- 
torial Educational  Convention.  He  has  been 
secretar}^  and  president  of  the  Nebraska  Horti- 
cultural Society,  and  has  been  president  of  the 
State  Soldiers'  Union.  He  is  the  present 
president  of  the  State  Historical  Society,  and 
was   one   of  the  State  University  Regents,  and  is 


a  commissioner  at  large  of  the  World's  Columbian 
Exposition. 

He  is  a  member  of  the  Masonic  Order,  and  has 
been  Grand  Master,  High  Priest,  Master  of  the 
Grand  Council,  R.  and  S.  M.,  Commander  of  the 
Grand  Commander)-,  K.  T.,  and  Grand  Patron  of 
the  Grand  Chapter.  O.  E.  S.,  and  President  of  the 
Grand  Council,  Order  of  High  Priesthood,  all  of 
the  State  of  Nebraska,  while  he  is  also  Hon.  Sov. 
Gr.  Ins.  Gen.,  thirty-third  degree,  of  the  Supreme 
Council,  A.  and  A.  S.  R.,  Southern  Jurisdiction, 
Grand  Intendant  Gen.  for  Nebraska,  Knights  of 
tlie  Red  Cross  of  Constantine.  In  addition  to 
being  a  member  of  si.x  local  lodges,  one  of 
which  bears  his  name,  he  is  also  verj-  prom- 
inent amongst  the  Odd  Fellows  of  the  State, 
and  has  held  many  offices  in  that  Order. 

In  politics,  originally  a  Whig,  he  is  now  a 
Republican  ;  while  in  religious  faith  he  is  a  Pres- 
byterian. 

?ilr.  Furnas  married,  in  1S45,  Miss  Man,-  E. 
McCornas,  of  Cincinnati,  Ohio.  Of  eight  children 
born  to  them  three  sons  and  two  daughters  survi\e. 

Since  1868  Mr.  Furnas  has  been  engaged  in 
farming  and  fruit-raising. 

Nebraska  has  manj'  public-spirited  and  honored 
cftizens,  but  none  are  more  wideh*  known,  more 
worthily  esteemed,  or  more  ready  to  serve  her 
interests  than  he. 


FRANCIS   J.    KENNETT, 


CH1CA(;0,   ILL. 


FR.ANCIS  J.  KENNETT  was  born  in  St. 
Louis,  Missouri,  December  10,  1847.  He 
is  justly  proud  of  his  ancestry-,  being  descended 
from  an  old  and  honorable  English  family.  Sir 
John  Kennett  came  to  America  in  1642,  being 
obliged  to  leave  England  when  Cromwell  came  into 
power  for  refusing  to  renounce  allegiance  to  the 
King,  and  swear  fealty  to  the  new  regime.  He 
was  made  a  prisoner,  his  estates  confiscated  and 
ultimately,  being  allowed  to  leave  England,  he 
sailed  for  the  Colony  of  Virginia  and  settled  near 
Norfolk,  the  family  remaining  for  many  years  in 
the  \icinity  of  Norfolk  and  on  the  eastern  shore 
of  Maryland,  the  great-grandfather  of  Mr.  Kennett 
finally  coming  West   and   settling   in    Kentucky, 


near  Falmouth,  where  Luther  M.  Kennett,  his 
father,  was  born  in  1807.  In  1818  his  father  was 
appointed  a  midshipman  in  the  navy,  but  shortly 
afterward  was  thrown  from  a  horse,  breaking  his 
arm  and  sustaining  other  injuries  which  made  it 
impossible  for  him  to  pass  the  necessary  physical 
examination,  and  obliged  him  to  renounce  a  sea- 
faring life.  He  afterward  studied  law  in  the  office 
of  his  cousin,  General  Taylor,  and  early  in  1825 
removed  to  St.  Louis,  where,  in  1842,  he  married 
his  cousin.  Miss  Agnes  Kennett.  His  abilit\-. 
energy  and  honesty  soon  won  him  recognition,  and 
in  addition  to  success  in  commercial  enterprises, 
he  became  a  member  of  Congress,  was  three  times 
elected  ma\'or  of   St.  Louis,  was  president   of   the 


^^^U^CL^ 


KIOGKAPHICAL  DICTIOXARV  A\H  J'OKT/^A/T  GALLERY. 


517 


Missouri  Pacific  and  Iron  Mountain  Railroads,  a 
director  in  several  banks,  and  a  man  of  social 
prominence.  He  died  in  Paris,  France,  in  1873,31 
the  a<^e  of  sixty-six.  leaving  seven  sons,  the  second 
of  whom  is  the  subject  of  this  sketch.  The  early 
education  of  l-Vancis  Kennctt  was  conducted  by 
governesses  and  tutors  at  his  father's  coiintrv- 
seat  near  St.  Louis.  Later  he  attended  Washing- 
ton Univcrsit)-,  St.  Louis,  and  Seton  Hall  Col- 
lege, New  Jersey,  and  in  1866  he  went  to  Europe 
and  spent  several  years  in  travel  and  stud\-,  be- 
coming proficient  in  French  and  German,  and 
acquiring  a  taste  for  art  and  literature.  In  1874 
he  married  Ella  Frances  Durand,  only  daughter 
of  J.  ^L  Durand,  Esq.,  of  Chicago,  and  in  1878 
he  engaged  in  business  on  the  Board  of  Trade. 
During  the  first  years  of  his  business  career  he 
met  with  serious  reverses,  but  by  perseverance, 
close  application  and  a  strict  adherence  to 
cautious,  conservative  methods,  he  soon  overcame 
all  obstacles,  and  became  a  prominent  figure  in 
the  front  rank  of  the  .shrewd,  active  business 
men  who  have  made  the  Hoard  of  Trade  of 
Chicago  the  greatest  and  most  influential  com- 
mercial botly  of  its  kind   in   the    world.     To-day 


Mr.  Kennctt  is  the  senior  partner  in  the  large 
banking  and  commission  house  of  Kennett,  Hoj> 
kins  &  Co.,  of  Chicago  and  New  York,  and  his 
name  is  added  to  the  list  of  those  to  whose 
energy  and  enterprise  Chicago  owes  her  phenom- 
enal prosperity.  Modest  and  retiring  in  dis- 
position, lu-  has  never  taken  an  active  part  in 
political  or  niunici])al  affairs,  biit  has  always 
been  a  quiet  and  untiring  supporter  of  men  whose 
reputation  and  character  were  calculated  to  purify 
public  office,  lie  isan  unostentatious,  though  free 
contributor  to  charity,  and  in  his  family  circle 
and  among  his  intimate  friends  his  hospitality 
and  liberality  are  proverbial.  A  marked  char- 
acteristic is  his  tender  regard  for  and  devotion 
to  his  mother,  a  very  highly  educated  and  cul- 
tivated lady.  His  home  is  embellished  with  those 
luxuries  and  comforts  which  are  the  evidences  of  a 
refined  taste,  combined  with  worldly  prosperity, 
and  he  is  happy  in  the  possession  of  a  devoted 
wife  and  five  lovelj-  children.  Though  not  a 
club-man  in  its  broadest  sense,  Mr.  Kennett  is  a 
member  of  the  Chicago  and  Washington  Park 
clubs  of  Chicago,  and  of  the  Manhattan  and 
New  York  clubs  of  New  \'ork. 


AUGUSTUS   GEO.    BULLOCH, 


WORCKSTER.    .MASS. 


AUGUSTUS  GEO.  BULLOCH.  Commis- 
sioner-at-Large,  was  born  at  Enfield,  Con- 
necticut, June  2,  1847.  Resides  now  and  always 
resided  at  Worcester,  ^L'^ssachusetts. 

Son  of  Ale.xander  Hamilton  Bulloch  and  Elvira 
(Hazard)  Bulloch.  Ale.xander  Hamilton  Bulloch, 
who  died  in  January,  1882,  was  one  of  the  best 
known  men  in  Massachusetts,  where  he  was  for 
many  years  prominent  in  literarj-  and  political 
circles.  He  was  Speaker  of  the  House  of  Rep- 
resentatives of  Massachusetts  for  five  years,  a 
member  of  its  senate,  one  of  the  judges  of  its 
court,  and  finally  Governor  of  Massachusetts  in 
the  years  1866,  1867  and  1868.  He  was  tendered 
the  ministry  to  England  by  President  Hayes,  but 
was  obliged  to  decline  it  on  account  of  ill  health. 
He  received  the  degree  of  LL.D.  from  Amherst 
and  Harvard  Colleges.  He  was,  perhaps,  the  finest 
orator  Massachusetts  has  produced   since  Edward 


Everett,  and  his  orations  and  addresses  ha\e  been 
collected  and  published. 

Augustus  Geo.  Bulloch,  the  subject  of  this 
sketch,  entered  Harvard  College  in  1 864,  was  grad- 
uated in  1868,  receiving  the  degree  of  A.l^.  and 
three  years  later  took  the  degree  of  A.^L 

After  graduation  he  traveled  in  Europe  for  a 
year,  and  on  his  return  home,  wishing  to  learn 
something  of  practical  business,  connected  himself 
for  a  year  or  so  with  a  banking  house.  But  the 
natural  tendency  of  his  mind,  his  taste  and  inclin- 
ations was  rather  towards  a  study  of  law  and  lit- 
erar)'  and  scholastic  pursuits.  After  several  j'ears 
of  study  he  was  admitted  to  the  bar  of  Worcester 
county.  He  practiced  law  for  seven  years,  during 
most  of  which  time  he  was  associated  with  Senator 
Hoar  and  Judge  Nelson  of  the  United  District 
Court,  who  at  that  time  were  practicing  in  Wor- 
cester.    In  18S3  the  Directors  of  the  State  .Mutual 


5i8 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AND  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Life  Assurance  Company,  wishing  to  develop  and 
enlarge  its  business,  determined  to  select  some 
young  man  of  acknowledged  ability  and  reputa- 
tion to  be  at  the  head  of  it,  and  offered  to  Mr. 
Bulloch  the  presidency  and  treasurcrship.  The 
State  Mutual  is  a  very  old  company  with  large 
surplus,  and  the  highest  reputation  for  conserv- 
atism and  strength — one  of  the  most  prominent 
financial  institutions  of  New  England.  It  was  not 
an  offer  to  be  declined.  Mr.  Bulloch  accepted  it 
January,  1883,  and  now  holds  the  offices  named. 
During  his  administration  the  assets  of  the  com- 
pany have  more  than  doubled,  and  the  business  of 
the  company  is  being  pushed  in  all  directions  in  a 
very  profitable  manner.  It  has  a  large  business  in 
the  principal  cities  of  the  West,  notably  Chicago. 
A  great  many  of  its  investments  have  been  made 
in  Chicago  ■  in  mortgages  on  improved  business 
property.  Most  of  these  have  been  placed  under 
Mr.  Bulloch's  supervision.  He  has  had  for  many 
years  a  large  acquaintance  among  Chicago  busi- 
ness men,  and  is  well  known  also  socially.  His 
acquaintance  and  personal  relations  thus  admi- 
rably qualify  him  to  aid  in  all  the  work  relating  to 
the    Exposition.      His   relations    to    nian_\'  of    the 


members  of  the  Chicago  Directory  are  of  an  in- 
timate personal  character,  and  they  have  always 
had  his  hearty  co-operation  and  enthusiastic  sup- 
port from  the  first  session  of  the  Commission  as 
they  undoubtedly  will  have  until  the  last. 

Mr.  Bulloch  is  a  member  of  various  literary 
societies,  among  them  the  American  Bar  Associa- 
tion, the  Archaeological  Institute  of  America,  the 
American  Antiquarian  Society,  etc.  He  is  presi- 
dent and  treasurer  of  the  State  Mutual  Life  Assu- 
rance Company  of  Worcester,  Massachusetts, 
director  in  several  banks,  railroads  and  other 
business  corporations. 

He  is  a  Democrat  in  politics  and  has  been  from 
the  first,  but  has  but  little  time,  and  perhaps  in- 
clination, to  take  an  active  part  in  politics.  He  is 
the  only  Commissioner-at-Large  appointed  from 
New  England.  As  chairman  of  the  Committee 
on  Fine  Arts  Mr.  Bulloch  has  a  very  important 
duty  to  perform  in  the  formation  and  administra- 
tion of  the  Exposition,  which  his  taste  and  edu- 
cation eminently  qualify  him  to  perform. 

He  married  in  1871  Mary  Chandler,  daughter  of 
Dr.  Geo.  Chandler  of  Worcester,  and  they  have 
three  sons,  the  oldest  a  student  at  Harvard  College. 


HENRY  CLAUSSENIUS. 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


HENRY  CLAUSSENIUS,  a  prominent  busi- 
ness man  of  Chicago,  for  many  years  Ger- 
man consul  and  now  Austrian  consul,  was  born 
on  the  first  of  February,  1825,  at  Eschwege, 
Electorate  of  Hessen — since  1868  province  of 
Hesse-Nassau — kingdom  of  Prussia,  and  is  the 
son  of  Anton  Wilhelm  Claussenius  and  Maria 
Louisa,  me  W^^gner.  His  father  was  a  justice  of 
the  circuit  court  at  Eschwege  and  Bischhausen, 
and  died  February  5,  1831.  His  mother  was  a 
native  of  Cassel,  and  died  in  1867.  His  grand- 
parents were  Rev.  William  Claussenius,  of  Allen- 
dorf,  and  Christian  Wagner,  of  Cassel,  court  sta- 
tioner of  the  Elector  of  Hesse  and  the  King  of 
Westphalia. 

After  the  death  of  his  father,  which  occurred 
when  he  was  six  years  old,  his  mother  was  sup- 
ported by  a  pension,  and  with  him  removed  to 
her    home    in    Cassel,    where    he    was    educated 


at  the  expense  of  his  near  relatives,  all  of 
whom  were  high  officials  of  the  government  of 
Hesse.  Among  them  were  William  Eicken- 
burg,  presiding  judge  of  the  Court  of  Appeals 
and  William  Becher,  privy  secretary  of  the 
treasury. 

After  receiving  his  primary  education  he  at- 
tended the  Gymnasium  and  State  Seminary,  and 
qualified  himself  for  teaching,  to  the  entire  satis- 
faction of  his  professors.  At  the  close  of  his 
studies  he  was  appointed  teacher  for  Bischhausen, 
receiving  a  compensation  of  about  one  hundred 
thalers  per  annum.  Owing  to  his  meagre  salary 
he  left  this  position,  and  became  private  in- 
structor and  companion  of  Comte  de  Viomeiiil, 
of  Rouen,  who  desired  to  learn  the  German  lan- 
guage. With  him  he  traveled  through  Germany, 
Italy  and  France,  and  on  leaving  the  position,  in 
1847,  established  a  private  school  at  Bischhausen, 


V^'^ 


'^^  ^^^'t:  -^  ^e/r  J  7  t^c^  ^  y 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


521 


which  he  conductoii  with  success  till  the  revolution 
of   184S. 

In  March  of  this  year  he  went  to  Erfurt,  thence 
to  Cassel,  seeking  in  vain  for  employment,  and 
finally,  in  1850,  dissatisfied  with  the  political  con- 
dition of  his  countrj\  determined  to  cmi<;rate  to 
the  United  States  of  America.  Accordingh",  on 
the  13th  of  June,  he  took  passage  on  the  Bremen 
sailing-vessel  Agnes,  and,  after  a  trip  of  sixty- 
three  days,  landed  in  New  York  with  three  Prus- 
sian thalers  in  his  pocket. 

He  immediately  found  work,  engaging  in  vari- 
ous kinds  of  employment — as  paper-hanger  and 
journeyman  in  an  umbrella  factory,  sign  and  win- 
dow-shade painter,  and  as  a  carver.  Being  a  good 
draughtsman,  he  was  quite  successful  in  this  last 
employment. 

Knowing  something  of  the  English  language, 
and  understanding  the  German  and  French  per- 
fectly, his  condition  steadily  improved,  and  he 
never  had  occasion  to  repent  coming  to  a  republic 
whose  peculiar  institutions  afford  so  many  chances 
for  the  development  and  advancement  of  the 
youth  of  other  countries. 

On  the  2d  of  May,  1854,  he  married  Miss 
Johanna  Tilly,  at  which  time  he  was  doing  a  good 
paying  business,  employing  five  carvers  and  two 
apprentices,  and  clearing  from  twenty  to  thirty 
dollars  per  week,  which  then  represented  much 
more  than  at  present. 

His  wife,  who  died  a  few  years  ago,  was  of 
a  highly  respectable  family  in  the  former  Duchy 
of  Nassau  (her  father  having  been  a  court  offi- 
cial, who  died  early,  leaving  little  means  for 
the  education  of  his  three  children),  and  through 
her  acquaintance  Mr.  Claussenius  was  intro- 
duced to  some  American  families  in  New  York 
of  highest  financial  and  social  standing,  and  also 
to  the  former  consul-general  of  Prussia,  Sa.x- 
ony,  Baden,  etc.,  the  Hon.  J.  W.  Schmidt, 
who  was  at  that  time  senior  partner  of  one  of 
the  oldest  German  mercantile  firms  of  New 
York  City.  Early  in  1855,  Mr.  .Schmidt  being 
about  to  make  a  visit  to  Europe,  induced  Mr. 
Claussenius  to  accept  a  position  as  private  secre- 
tary in  his  consulate  office,  and  give  up  his  carv- 
ing-shop to  his  brother  George.  Upon  Mr. 
Schmidt's  return  from  Europe  he  appointed  Mr. 
Claussenius  chancellor  of  the  consulate-general, 
which  position  he  occupied  until  May,  1864,  when 


he  was  ap])ointed  by  the  Prussian  government 
consul  for  Chicago,  being  recommended  for  the 
place  by  Baron  Von  Gerolt,  the  well-known  Prus- 
sian minister,  for  many  years  at  Washington  ;  by 
liaron  Edward  Yon  der  Hcydt  (son  of  the  Prus- 
sian minister  of  finance),  and  by  consul-general 
Schmidt. 

Arri\ing  at  Chicago  he  was  further  appointctl 
consul  of  Sa.xony,  Mecklenburg,  Duchy  of  Alten- 
burg,  the  Thuringian  Principalities,  Schwarzburg, 
Rudolstaat  and  .Sondershausen,  Duchy  of  Anhalt 
and  Grand  Duchy  of  Baden,  etc. 

After  the  war  of  Prussia  against  Austria,  in 
1866,  he  was  appointed  consul  of  the  North  Ger- 
man Confederation,  and  after  the  I'ranco-German 
war (1870-71 )  he  was  again  appointed  consul  of 
the  German  Empire,  including  Alsace  and  Lor- 
raine. He  has  always  been  very  successful  in 
discharging  his  duties  to  the  satisfaction  of  the 
German  government,  and  at  the  same  time  car- 
ried on  a  private  business  of  his  own,  both  at 
New  York  and  Chicago. 

In  October,  1864,  he  established  with  but  little 
capital  a  passage  ticket,  foreign  exchange  and  col- 
lecting-house in  Chicago,  based  on  his  own  good 
name  and  credit.  Doing  only  legitimate  trans- 
actions on  a  small  scale,  his  business  is  not  one 
of  the  largest  of  Chicago,  but  is  progressing 
slowlj'  and  surely.  The  great  fire  of  1871  swept 
away  his  house  and  office,  library,  etc.,  involving 
a  loss  to  him  of  eighteen  thousand  dollars. 

The  panic  of  1873-74  caused  many  a  wealthier 
house  to  totter  and  fall,  yet  Mr.  Claussenius  has 
steadily  prospered  and  rebuilt  his  private  resi- 
dence, eighty  by  one  hundred  feet,  on  the  corner 
of  Cass  and  Superior  streets,  where  he  now  resides. 

He  has  six  children — Adolph,  Edward,  George, 
Henry,  Mina  and  Bismarck,  of  whom  Adolph, 
Edward  and  Geotge  are  in  his  business. 

Since  the  death  of  his  partner,  Robert  Schnitz- 
ler,  in  1873,  Mr.  Claussenius  has  been  the  sole 
proprietor  of  the  firm  of  H.  Claussenius  &  Co. 

P'or  his  official  services  he  has  been  honored  by 
the  respective  governments  with  the  following 
decorations,  namely  :  First,  Comthur's  cross,  first 
class  of  the  Order  of  .-Xlbrecht  the  Brave,  King  of 
Saxony;  second,  knight's  cross,  first  class  of  the 
Order  of  Lion  of  Zaeringin,  Grand  Duke  of  Ba- 
den ;  third,  knight's  cross  of  the  Order  of  the 
Ernestinian   House,  Duke  of  .\ltenburg  ;    fourth. 


522 


BrOGRAl'inCAL  DICTIONARY  A.\D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


kniglit's  cross,  first  class  of  Order  of  Francis 
Joseph,  Emperor  of    Austria. 

In  social  life,  in  establishin<j  schools,  benevolent 
societies,  glee  clubs,  etc.,  he  has  taken  an  active 
part.  He  has  been  a  member  of  the  German 
Society,  of  New  York,  since  1863,  also  of  other 
musical  organizations,  including  the  Liederkranz 
and  the  Arion,  two  of  the  best  known  in  the 
United  States:  member  of  honor  of  both  socie- 
ties. 

He  was  one  of  the  founders  of  the  Nineteenth 
Ward  School,  and  first  vice-president  of  the  board 
of  directors ;  was  also  one  of  the  founders  of  the 
Northeastern  Dispensary  of  New  York,  of  which 
he  was  German  director  and  member  of  financial 
committee. 

Like  his  own  government,  his  views  are  anti- 
slavery,  but  he  has  taken  no  prominent  part  in 
American  politics. 

In  1865,  in  connection  with  a  few  German 
friends,  he  organized  the  old  Germania  Ma;nner- 
chor,  of  which  he  was  first  president,  and  several 
times  re-elected.  He  was  also,  in  1868,  president 
of  the  grand  singer  festival  of  Chicago,  which 
proved  such  a  financial  and  artistic  success.  He 
assisted  in  forming  the  German  Relief  and  Aid 
Society  for  Emigrants,  in  order  to  keep  them  in 
the  State,  being  aware  that  every  able-bodied 
individual  is  a  capital  to  the  State  in  which  he 
resides.     He  has  several  times  been  president  or 


vice-president  of  the  Germania  Society.  In  1870 
he  was  appointed  chairman  of  the  central  com- 
mittee for  the  relief  of  German  soldiers  disabled 
in  the  Franco-German  war,  which  position  he 
subsequently  resigned.  He  is  also  director  of  the 
German-American  Dispensary. 

Mr.  Claussenius  visited  his  native  land  in  1875, 
and  was  received  with  great  distinction  by  all  the 
ministers  and  high-standing  counselors  at  Berlin, 
Dresden,  Munich,  etc.  Since  then  he  has  fre- 
quently visited  Europe. 

He  is  not  a  member  of  any  church,  but  his 
religion  may  be  defined  in  his  own  words — "  Hon- 
esty toward  all  men  ;  live  and  let  live." 

In  the  year  1878,  when  the  German  government 
had  made  Chicago  a  diplomatic  consulate  (con- 
sul missur),  which  would  not  be  allowed  to  do  a 
mercantile  business,  and  obliged  the  incumbent 
to  be  sent  to  any  foreign  place,  in  Australia,  Asia, 
etc.,  etc.,  Mr.  Claussenius  resigned,  and  became 
immediately  after  appointed  imperial  and  royal 
consul  of  Austria-Hungary,  which  office  and 
position  he  still  holds.  And  here  we  can  say  that 
Mr.  Claussenius  is  in  the  consular  service  of  the 
"Holy  Roman  Empire  of  the  German  Nation" 
thirty-seven  years  (March  22,  1892).  In  the  same 
year,  1878,  Mr.  Claussenius  was  appointed  gen- 
eral Western  agent  for  the  North-German  Lloyd 
Steamship  Companj-,  of  Bremen,  which  office  he 
still  holds. 


J.    M.  W.   JONES, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


IX  this  city  of  marxelous  growth,  botJi  in 
wealth  and  in  i)ii])nlation,  we  luuc  no  hesi- 
tation in  sa\'ing,  tliat  of  our  repi-csintati\e  uilmi 
four-fifths  are  our  countr\-  neighbors.  Physical 
development,  power  of  endurance,  indomitable 
courage,  together  with  intellectual  vigor,  business 
instinct  and  inventive  genius,  gather  into  this 
great  center  from  country  homes.  Poor,  indeed, 
would  be  the  mental  and  physical  status  of  the 
urban  population  were  it  not  for  the  constant 
infiux  of  the  agriculturist  class.  Like  many  of 
our  best  business  men,  tlie  svibject  of  this  sketch, 
|.  M.  W.  Jones,  was  born  in  humble  circumstances 
on  a  New  York  farm.      His   capital    in    life's   start 


consisted  only  of  robust  health,  great  energy, 
iiulomitable  perseverance  and  sterling  honesty. 
With  this  capital  and  a  limited  education,  young 
Jones  started  life.  To-day  he  is  one  of  Chicago's 
most  prominent  and  respected  business  men. 

He  was  born  in  1821  at  Hoosac,  Rensselaer 
county,  New  \'ork,  and  comes  from  a  family 
remarkable  for  longevity— his  great-grandmother 
having  livetl  to  the  age  of  one  hundred  and  six- 
years  ;  his  grandmother  to  the  age  of  ninety-seven, 
and  his  mother,  who  is  still  living,  has  attained 
her  ninety-fifth  >ear.  I-le  was  the  eldest  son  of 
a  family  of  nine  children,  and  received  his  early 
education    in    the   district   school    and    from    such 


^^^^ 


mOGRAI'mCAL   DICTIOXAIiY  AXn  PORTRAIT  CAU.ERY. 


525 


help  as  is  usual  in  a  country  home.  His  da\s 
were  those  of  most  country  boys  willing  and  able 
to  work.  At  the  age  of  eighteen  he  removed  to 
Troy,  and  for  seventeen  years  was  engaged  the 
greater  part  of  that  period — either  as  employo  or 
employer  in  the  book  and  stationery  business. 
As  the  proprietor  of  tlic  Troy  liook  Store,  Mr. 
Jones  was  widely  know  11  and  highly  respected. 
In  the  moments  stolen  from  his  business,  he 
devoted  himself  diligently  to  study  and  succeded 
in  making  up  for  the  loss  of  a  more  liberal 
education  in  early  life.  Possessing  an  excellent 
memorj-  and  an  inquiring  mind,  Ik  will  to-ila\- 
compare  favorably  with  those  who  ha\c  had  the 
advantages  of  a  college  course.  Having  acquired 
a  thorough  business  training  and  knowledge,  Mr. 
Jones  took  Horace  Greeley's  advice  to  go  west. 
In  1857  he  removed  to  Chicago,  where  he  deter- 
mined to  commence  business.  For  that  purpose  he 
purchased  the  business  of  Messrs.  Rurley  &  Co., 
a  blank  book  and  stationery  firm,  122  Lake  street. 
This  house  had  been  established  in  1835,  before 
the  city  had  been  incorporated.  The  J.  M.  W. 
Jones  Company  is  the  lineal  descendent  of  the 
old  house  and  is,  we  believe,  the  oldest  and  most 
complete  manufacturing  firm  of  the  kind  in 
Chicago  to-day.  For  ten  years  Mr.  Jones  carried 
on  business  with  energy  and  success  in  the  Lake 
street  house,  but  in  1867  he  removed  to  larger 
premises  to  accommodate  his  increased  business. 
He  again  enlarged  in  1869.  The  great  strain  and 
constant  business  anxiety  began  to  tell  on  his 
health,  and  in  obedience  to  medical  ad\ice  .md  his 
family's  wishes  he  took  a  vacation  in  Europe. 
Renewed  in  health  and  energy,  he  returned  only 
to  work  more  closely.  The  fire  of  iS/r  brought 
disaster  to  Mr.  Jones,  as  it  did  to  hundreds  of 
others.  While  the  fire  was  still  raging,  and 
although  he  had  lost  everything  but  his  real- 
estate,  he  secured  other  premises  on  Canal  street 
and  began  again.  This  is  characteristic  of  the 
man.  Everything  swept  away,  yet  his  indomit- 
able courage  was  apparent.  His  credit  was  then 
as  good  as  it  is  now,  but  in  the  panic  of  1873  he 
allowed  most  of  his  real  estate  to  go,  that  his 
credit  might  remain  untarnished.  His  business 
reputation  and  honorable  methods  brought  him 
safely  through  this  crisis  to  which  so  many 
succumbed.  We  next  find  him  at  Nos.  104  and 
106  Madison   street    w  ith   a   larger   business   than 


ever.  The  difficulties  that  overwhelmed  other 
men  only  made  him  inore  energetic,  earnest  and 
successful.  In  1879  '1^'  removed  to  the  corner  of 
Monroe  and  Dearborn  streets,  where  he  applied 
himself  unsparingl)'  to  his  increasing  business. 

Three  years  ago,  Mr.  Jones  found  that  it  would 
be  greatly  to  the  advantage  of  the  company  to 
have  suitable  i)remises  of  their  own,  specially  built 
for  the  business.  True  to  the  business  instinct 
which  guided  him,  he  again  moved  south,  this 
time  to  Sherman  street,  near  the  New  Board  of 
Trade  building.  Every  business  man  knows  that 
the  city's  center  of  trafific  has  been  and  is  steadily 
tending  southwanl.  It  was  Lake  street,  then 
Randolph  Street,  ami  now  it  is  Madison  street. 
There  is  no  doubt  that  \  an  Huren  street  and 
even  Harrison  street  will  ha\c  their  day.  It  is 
noticeable  that  eveiy  location  made  by  Mr. 
Jones  has  been  in  the  line  and  in  anticipation  of 
the  city's  change  of  traffic.  Mr.  Jones  has  built 
commodious  premises  with  one  hundred  feet  front 
by  ninety-four  feet  deep  and  six  stories  high,  and 
now  occupies  them  in  this  rajjidly  improving 
thoroughfare.  This  is,  we  believe,  one  of  the 
many  proofs  Mr.  Jones  has  given  of  business  fore- 
sight and  sagacity.  Ouiet,  unassuming  and 
courteous,  he  makes  friends  of  all  with  whom  he 
comes  in  contact.  Mrm  in  the  discharge  of  his 
dut\-,  experienced  in  financial  transactions,  and 
safe  in  his  investments,  he  is  an  acknowledged 
authorit}-  in  the  business  world.  During  his  long 
residence  in  Chicago  he  has  proved  himself  to  be 
a  man  of  keen  business  insight,  scrupulously 
honorable  and  of  unblemished  integrity.  With  a 
record  unsullied  and  above  reproach  from  the  time 
he  left  his  humble  parents'  farm  in  New  York  to 
the  present,  when  he  holds  the  responsible  position 
of  head  of  the  oldest  business  firm  of  this  cit\-, 
J,  M.  W.  Jones  stands  forth  the  t\pe  ,uul  the 
embodiment  of  the  kindly,  generous  and  unosten- 
tatious self-made  man. 

Mr.  Jones  takes  an  intelligent  interest  in 
politics,  lie  has  very  strong  convictions,  but 
takes  no  active  part  in  political  struggles.  He  is 
an  earnest  and  uncompromising  free-trader,  and 
holds  the  tariff  to  be  a  tax  and  an  unjust  one — a 
discrimination  in  favor  of  the  wealthy  coriiorations 
against  the  masses  of  the  people.  He  has  never 
held  any  political  oflfice,  and  desires  none.  His 
])olitical   work  consists  of  recording  his  vote   for 


526 


BIOCRArillCAI.  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


the  party  that  agrees  witli  his  political  principles. 
While  holding  strong  opinions  of  his  own,  he  is 
tolerant  and  liberal  in  his  treatment  of  others. 

In  1859,  Mr.  Jones  married  Harriet,  second 
daughter  of  George  W.  Snow,  Esq.,  one  of 
Chicago's  oldest  and  most  respected  citizens. 
They  have  had  si.x  children — only  three,  one  boy 
and  two  girls,  are  now  living.  In  the  lo\e  and 
affection  of  the  family  circle  Mr.  Jones  finds  his 
only  happiness.  To  surround  his  wife  and  family 
with  every  comfort  and  luxury  is  his  constant 
endeavor  and  his  greatest  pleasure.  His  residence 
is  on  Dearborn  avenue  on  the  North  Side  of 
the  city. 

The  rule  is  universal :  That  trouble,  affliction 
and  death  will  visit  every  home.  Mr.  Jones  has 
learned  that  however  successful  in  business,  how- 
ever happy  in  the  family  circle,  the  rule  is  without 
exception. 

"  Into  each  life  some  rain  must  fall  : 
Some  days  must  be  dark  and  dreary." 

His  son,  Warren  Snow,  born  in  1861,  a  young 
man  of  great  ability  and  of  brilliant  acquirements. 


died  when  just  entering  into  manhood,  at  the 
early  age  of  twenty-seven  years.  Another  son, 
Robert  Lindell,  born  in  1868,  highly  educated, 
and  with  a  gentle,  loving  nature,  died  when  only 
twenty-two  years  old. 

The  office  of  loving  parents,  to  watch  and  tend 
from  infancy  to  manhood,  the  growth  of  the 
young  mind  as  it  opens  into  all  the  beauty  and 
strength  of  mature  development,  affords  one  of 
the  greatest  of  parental  pleasures.  When  by  an 
inscrutable  decree,  they  lose  by  death  the  loved 
ones,  to  whom  they  looked  forward  in  later  years 
as  a  joy  and  a  solace  they  suffer  the  bitterest  of 
parental  sorrows.  To  see  the  fine  physical  form 
and  robust  health — the  hope  of  the  father  and  the 
idol  of  the  mother — cut  down  in  early  life  wrings 
the  parental  heart  with  anguish.  To  them 
there  remains  but  the  memory  of  the  loved  ones  ; 
their  loving,  generous  and  kindly  nature  is  ever 
present  to  the  afflicted  family;  the  favorite  book, 
the  vacant  chair  and  the  few  last  words  are  held 
in  reverence.  They  bow  in  submission  and  they 
suffer  in  silence.     Mors Janiia  vitce. 


D.    HARRY   HAMMER, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


D  HARRY  HAMMER  was  born  at  Spring- 
.  field,  Illinois,  December  23,  1840,  and  is 
the  son  of  John  and  Eliza  (Witmer)  Hammer. 
His  parents  came  to  Chicago,  Illinois,  in  1837, 
the  father  having  formerly  been  a  merchant 
and  manufacturer  at  Hagerstown,  Maryland. 
The  mother  was  a  native  of  Maryland,  and  a 
daughter  of  Mr.  John  Witmer,  a  soldier  of  the 
war  of  1812.  In  1842,  while  Harry  was  yet  a 
mere  child,  the  family  removed  to  the  vicinity  of 
Chicago,  where  his  boyhood  days  were  spent  in 
attending  the  district  schools.  He  applied  him- 
self to  his  studies  with  unremitting  energy,  and 
even  then  showed  those  brilliant  qualities  which 
have  characterized  his  life  and  helped  him  to 
achieve  the  high  position  which  he  now  occupies. 
He  also,  during  his  boyhood,  acquired  a  thorough 
knowledge  of  the  saddlery  and  harness  trade. 
He  taught  school  during  the  winters. 

At  the  age  of  seventeen  he  began  a  course  of 
stud)'    in    the    Rock    Ri\er    Seminary   at    Mount 


Morris,  Illinois.  After  graduating  from  that  in- 
stitution, he  determined  to  devote  himself  to  the 
legal  profession,  and  accordingly  entered  the 
law  department  of  the  University  of  Michigan, 
and  was  graduated  therefrom  with  the  class  of 
1865.  He  afterwards  spent  sonic  time  traveling 
through  the  Western  and  Northern  States,  and 
finally  began  the  practice  of  his  profession  at 
St.  Louis,  Missouri.  Owing  to  the  unsettled 
state  of  affairs  after  the  close  of  the  war,  he 
abandoned  the  law  for  a  time  and  worked  at 
his  trade,  continuing  thus  employed  until  the  fol- 
lowing year,  when  he  left  St.  Louis  by  reason  of 
the  cholera  epidemic.  He  soon  afterward  be- 
came acquainted  with  Mr.  Benjamin  F.  Taylor, 
of  the  Chicago  Evening  Journal,  who  was  lectur- 
ing through  the  West,  and,  following  his  advice, 
removed  to  Chicago  and  resumed  his  profession. 
The  move  was  a  most  happy  one.  Entering,  with 
all  the  vigor  of  his  young  manhood,  into  the  work 
of  his  profession,  with  a  determination  to  succeed, 


¥ 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  CILLERY. 


529 


he  soon  made  a  name  at  tlie  Chicajjo  bar,  and 
built  up  an  extensive  and  lucrative  practice. 

In  1S79  *^^''-  Hammer  was  appointed  by  Gov. 
Shelby  M.  Cullom  a  Justice  of  the  Peace  of  the 
city  of  Chicago  for  a  term  of  four  years,  and  in 
1883  he  was  reappointed  by  Gov.  John  M.  llaiii- 
ilton  for  another  term.  The  office  was  one  for 
which  he  was  well  qualified,  both  by  reason  of 
his  judicial  mind  and  his  practical  knowledge  of 
the  law,  to  which,  with  his  great  popularity,  may 
be  attributed  his  almost  unparalleled  success, 
he  having,  during  his  term  of  service,  disposed 
of  about  four  thousand  cases  each  year.  Aside 
from  his  professional  duties,  Mr.  Hammer  has 
always  kept  himself  well  posted  on  matters  of 
public  interest,  and  besides  being  a  most  able 
and  successful  lawyer  he  is  an  enterprising  and 
public-spirited  man.  Being  a  gentleman  of  cul- 
tivated tastes  and  fine  literary  attainments,  he 
has  always  taken  an  active  part  in  all  movements 
tending  to  advance  the  interest  of  art  and  lit- 
erary culture.  His  pri\ate  library,  comprising 
some  five  thousand  volumes,  is  one  of  the  finest 
and  best-selected  collections  of  books  in  the  city 
of  Chicago. 

In  1890  Mr.  Hammer  made  an  extensive  trip 
abroad  with  his  famil)%  and  visited  the  countries 
of  Holland,  Belgium,  Germany,  Switzerland, 
France  and  Bavaria,  and  witnessed  the  passion 
play  at  Ober-Ammergau.  In  1891  he  extended 
his  trip  through   England,  Scotland,  Wales,   Ire- 


land, Italy  and  Spain,  Norway,  Sweden,  Russia 
and  Egypt,  thus  adding  much  knowledge  to  his 
already  well-informed  mind. 

In  political  sentiment  Mr.  Hammer  is  and  al- 
ways has  been  a  staunch  Republican.  He  served 
in  the  Common  Council  as  an  alderman  from  the 
Fourth  Ward  in  1887  and  1888,  with  credit  to 
himself  and  the  city  alike,  and  is  at  present 
(1892)  a  Master  in  Chancer}-  of  the  Superior 
Court  of  Cook  county. 

Mr.  Hammer  married  Mrs.  Emma  L.  Carpen- 
ter, of  Athens,  Ohio,  June  4,  1874.  They  have 
one  child.  Miss  Hazel  Harry  Hammer,  horn  July 
4,  1881. 

Mr.  Hammer  is  in  the  very  prime  of  life,  en- 
dowed with  a  healthy  constitution  ;  he  is  a  man 
of  fine  presence,  and  a  highly  interesting  talker. 
His  official  life  has  brought  him  into  intimate 
contact  with  many  of  the  most  prominent  and 
notable  men  of  this  and  other  countries.  Hav- 
ing accumulated  an  ample  fortune,  he  lives  in  the 
enjoyment  of  all  the  comforts  of  a  happy  and 
cheerful  home. 

He  is  an  active  member  of  Che\alier  Bayard 
Commandery,  Knights  Templar,  Oriental  Con- 
sistory, Medina  Temple,  Foresters,  Royal  Arca- 
num, and  other  societies;  also  a  member  of  the 
Calumet,  Union  League  and  Washington  Park 
clubs  of  Chicago,  and  president  of  the  Veteran 
Union  League,  and  member  of  the  Old  Settlers' 
Association  of  Cook  countw 


NOAH    E.   GARY, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


Til  E  subject  of  this  article  i.-,  a  native  of  Illi- 
nois. He  was  born  September  8,  1844.  "'i 
Du  Page  county  and  is  the  eldest  son  of  the  late 
Erastus  (iary,  an  old-time  citizen  of  Wheaton, 
who  came  to  Illinois,  in  1832,  from  Pomfret, Wind- 
ham county,  Connecticut. 

He  was  of  the  Pilgrim  l-"athers"  stock,  his  an- 
cestors having  settled  in  Roxbury,  Massachusetts, 
in  1831.  Noah  E.  received  his  education  in  the 
public  schools  and  Wheaton  College. 

In  1862,  he  enlisted  in  the  One  Hundred 
and  Fifth  Illinois  Infantry  Volunteers.  Thisregi- 
ment  was   on   detached   duty  until    the   sjiring   of 


1864,  when  it  was  attached  to  tlu-  Twentieth 
Army  Corps  under  General  Hooker,  and  with  him 
advanced  on  Atlanta.  At  Resaca  Mr.  Gary  was 
severely  wounded  in  four  places  and  sent  to  Nash- 
ville to  the  hospital,  and  was  mustered  out  of  ser- 
vice as  a  sergeant,  November  i,  1864,  but  could  not 
walk  without  crutches  until  the  following  spring. 
He  then  returned  to  Wheaton  and  engaged  in 
business  ])ursuits  and  teaching  school  until  the 
spring  of  1S68,  in  the  meantime  employing  his 
leisure  hours  in  the  study  of  the  law.  He  then 
entered  the  office  of  the  clerk  of  the  Superior 
Court  of  Cook  count)',  serving  there  as  chief  dep- 


530 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


iity  for  the  ^^rcatcr  part  of  the  time  until  October, 
1872.  He  then  commenced  the  practice  of  the 
law  with  E.  H.  Gary,  his  brother. 

In  1870  Hon.  Hiram  H.  Cody  retired  from  the 
bench,  and  was  admitted  a  partner  in  tiie  firm 
under  the  style  of  Gary,  Cody  &  Gary,  which 
continued  until  1887.  Mr.  Gary  remained  in 
partnership  with  his  brother  until  January,  1890, 
since  which  time  he  has  practiced  law  without  a 
partner.  While  in  partnership  witii  E.  H.  Gary 
and  Judge  Cody,  he  paid  particular  attention  to 
the  examination  of  abstracts  and  chancery  prac- 
tice. In  the  years  1879-1880  he  was  president  of 
the  town  council  of  Wheaton,  and  in  1870  was  ap- 
pointed master  in  chancery  of  Du  Page  county, 
which  office  he  .still  holds. 

He  is  a  member  and  secretary  of  the  Board  of 
Education  in  Wheaton,  and  takes  much  interest 
in  the  public  schools  of  that  city. 

Mr.  Gary's  practice  has  made  him  familiar  with 
real-estate  values,  and  he  is  a  large  holder  of  real 
estate  in  both  Cook  and  Du  Page  counties. 


In  1865  Mr.  Gary  married  Ella  M.  Guild,  of 
Aurora.  She  died  in  1870.  In  1873  he  married 
Caroline  H.  Wheat,  of  Wheaton.  There  are  sur- 
\i\  ing  t\\  o  children  by  the  first  marriage,  Carle- 
ton  N.,  a  lawyer  in  good  practice  in  Chicago,  and 
Ella  Ethclle,  just  finishing  at  Northwestern  Uni- 
\ersity.  By  his  second  marriage  Mr.  Gary  has 
three  daughters — Anna  Louisa,  Dora  Bernice  and 
Ava  Grace.  All  of  these  children  are  the  comfort 
of  their  parents. 

The  author  of  this  sketch  was  forbidden  to 
write  an\-  word  eulogistic  of  Mr.  Gary,  whose 
pride  seems  to  be  confined  to  his  ancestry  and  his 
descendants.  He  is  the  sixth  descendant  of  his 
ancestors  who  settled  in  Roxbury,  and  knows  the 
genealogy  of  his  family  better  than  any  other 
Gary  of  his  acquaintance. 

Mr.  Gary  is  the  commander  of  E.  S.  Kelly  Post, 
513,  G.  A.  R.,  Department  of  Illinois,  and  is  sec- 
retary of  the  First  Brigade,  Third  Division,  Twen- 
tieth Army  Corps,  of  which  Gen.  Benj.  Harrison 
is  president. 


HENRY  J.    REYNOLDS,   M.  D. 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


THE  successful  man  is  he  who  chooses  his 
life-work  with  reference  to  his  native  abil- 
ities and  tastes.  The  men  who  fail  in  their  call- 
ings are  not  men  without  ability — often  they  are 
men  of  brilliant  genius — but  they  are  those  who 
have  turned  the  current  of  their  life-force  into  a 
wrong  channel. 

The  subject  of  this  .sketch  has  been  eminently 
successful  and  to-day  stands  high  among  the  med- 
ical practitioners  of  Chicago.  The  son  of  James 
and  Sarah  (Wilkinson)  Reynolds,  he  was  born  in 
Meaford,  Ontario,  April  26,  1852.  Both  his  par- 
ents were  natives  of  Dublin,  Ireland.  His  father 
was  a  successful  farmer,  and  it  was  on  the  family 
homestead  that  young  Reynolds  spent  his  early 
years.  Receiving  his  primary  education  in  the 
district  schools,  he  subsequently  completed  it  at 
Toronto  University.  In  1871  he  commenced  the 
study  of  medicine  in  the  Toronto  School  of  Med- 
icine. Four  years  later  he  was  graduated  from 
the    Bellcvuc    Hospital   Medical  College   of  New 


York,  and  was  awarded  the  "  Mott"  prize  against 
more  than  five  hundred  competitors — many  of 
them  old  practitioners.  He  had  an  elder  brother, 
who  was  a  professor  in  Detroit  Medical  College 
and  his  preceptor  and  to  whose  early  training  he 
owes  much  of  his  present  success.  He  also  has  a 
younger  brother,  Dr.  Arthur  R.  Reynolds,  who  is 
in  practice  in  Chicago,  while  another  brother,  Ed- 
win R.  Reynolds,  is  a  barrister  in  Toronto,  Canada, 
where  his  parents  have  for  many  years  past  re- 
sided. 

Dr.  Reynolds  practiced  in  Michigan  for  ten 
years,  and  there,  while  not  yet  thirty,  he  was  vice- 
president  of  the  Northeastern  District  Medical 
Society  and  vice-iircsident  of  the  Michigan  State 
Sanitary  Association. 

In  1SS3  Dr.  Reynolds  settled  in  Chicago,  where 
he  h.is  since  occujiied  a  prominent  position.  He 
has  succeeded  in  building  up  a  fine  practice,  and 
in  adding  to  an  already  high  reputation.  This  is 
an  age  of  specialists.     The   learned  professions  of 


(>^17^/  '^>^;>^^^^^^  ^YhC, 


X? 


BIOuRAl'IIJCAI.  DICTIOXARY  AXD  POKTRAIT  OA/.LERV. 


531 


to-day  differ  in  many  respects  from  those  of  for- 
mer times  and  tliis  is  perliaps  more  especially  true 
in  our  great  cities.  Time  was  when  the  lawyer 
and  physician  found  it  necessan,-  to  practice  all 
branches  of  their  profession  ;  to-day,  however,  all 
this  is  changed.  By  followingsome  special  branch 
and  applying  all  their  energies  better  results  are 
obtained,  and  the  ultimate  reputation  gained  much 
more  valuable  and  lasting. 

Dr.  Reynolds'  specialty  is  probably  that  of  skin 
diseases  and  diseases  of  the  genito-urinary  organs, 
and  in  these  particular  branches  of  the  profession 
he  has  perhaps  few  equals.  He  was  one  of  the 
founders  and  formerly  professor  of  skin  diseases 
of  the  Chicago  Polyclinic.  He  is  professor  of  skin 
diseases  in  the  College  of  Physicians  and  Sur- 
geons, and  has  been  elected  at  various  times  to 
many  other  positions  of  responsibility  in  the  med- 
ical profession.  He  is  at  present  (1892)  a  member 
of  the  Chicago  Medical  Society,  Illinois  State 
Medical  Society,  American  Medical  Association, 
International  Medical  Congress,  and  is  also  an  hon- 
orary member  of  the  Northeastern  District  Med- 
ical Society  of  Michigan. 

Prominent  as  a  contributor  to  medical  journals,  he 
is  also  an  author  of  wide  reputation,  whose  treatises 
on  skin  diseases  and  kindred  ailments  are  accepted 


as  authorities  not  only  in  this  countrj-,  but  also 
in  Europe.  Among  those  already  published  are: 
"Synovitis  of  Knee-joint;"  "Puerperal  Fever;" 
"  Puerperal  Eclampsia;"  "The  After-Treatment  in 
Tracheotomy  Cases;"  "The  Treatment  of  Ec- 
zema;" "A  New  Method  of  Producing  Local  An- 
a.'sthesia  of  the  Skin;"  "A  New  Method  in  the 
Treatment  of  the  Vegetable  Parasitic  Diseases  of 
the  Scalp;"  "  Treatment  of  Stricture  of  the  Ure- 
thra;" "On  the  Etiology  of  Urethral  Inflamma- 
tion ;"  "  The  Treatment  of  Pruritus,"  while  his 
public  lectures  include  tho.sc  of  Acne,  Psoriasis 
Lupus,  Vitiligo,  Favus,  Lichen  Ruber,  Sycosis, 
Parasitic  Sycosis,  S\-philis.  FJastic  Skin  and  many 
others. 

Dr.  Reynolds  is  a  member  of  La  Salle  Club,  a 
thirty-second  degree  Mason,  and  a  member  of 
Oriental  Consistory,  S.  P.  and  R.  S.,  and  Apollo 
Commandery,  No.  I,  K.  T. 

In  politics  he  is  a  Democrat. 

Dr.  Reynolds'  success  is  largely  attributable  to 
the  fact  that,  in  his  profession,  he  is  thoroughly  at 
home.  A  man  of  liberal  views,  his  actions  have 
been  governed  by  the  strictest  integrity,  and  by 
his  open  and  fair  dealing  he  has  drawn  around  him 
a  host  of  admiring  acciuaintances  and  many  true, 
personal  friends. 


JOSEPH    DONNERSBERGER, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


JOSEPH  DONNERSBERGER,  President  of 
the  South  Park  Board  of  Commissioners,  and 
one  of  the  leading  real-estate  dealers  of  Chicago, 
was  born  at  Cincinnati,  Ohio,  in  1843.  He  ob- 
tained his  school  education  and  also  his  earlier 
business  training  in  that  city ;  his  first  experience 
in  the  real-estate  business,  in  which  he  has 
continued  all  of  his  life,  was  as  clerk  in  the  office 
of  Samuel  A.  Sargent  &  Co.,  in  his  native 
place.  He  occupied  a  position  of  trust  with  this 
firm  for  four  years,  but  in  1868,  the  firm  retiring 
from  business,  he  was  compelled  to  seek  a  new 
field,  and  removed  to  the  West.  His  first  real- 
estate  venture  in  the  West  was  in  lands  on  the 
line  of  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad,  and  becom- 
ing acquainted  with  Mr.  Adam  Smith,  he  was  in- 
duced  by  him   to   settle   in  Chicago,  whither  he 


removed  in  1 870,  and  immediately  entered  into 
business  relations  with  Mr.  Smith,  who  soon  after 
began  making  improvements  at  Brighton  Park, 
forming  the  Brighton  Cotton  Mill  Company  in 
1 87 1.  Mr.  Donnersberger  was  one  of  the  investors 
in  the  enterprise,  and  he  disposed  of  much  of  the 
property  that  had  been  sub-divided  into  lots,  in 
such  a  manner  as  to  be  advantageous  both  to 
himself  and  fellow  investors,  and  has  handled 
most  of  the  property  sold  in  Brighton  Park. 

Mr.  Donnersberger  has  been  in  the  real-estate 
business  continuously  since  1864,  and  since  1875 
has  conducted  his  business  in  his  own  name.  His 
transactions,  however,  have  not  been  confined  to 
that  section,  he  having  handled  other  large  tracts 
of  property  in  the  south  and  west  divisions  of 
Chicago.     He  has  also  had  charge  of  the  purchase 


532 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


of  rights  of  way  for  several  leading  railroads  in 
Chicago. 

In  1873,  Mr.  Donncrsbcrger  was  elected  collect- 
or of  the  town  of  Cicero,  and  in  1874  was  further 
honored  by  being  chosen  assessor  of  that  town. 
In  1874  he  was  elected  a  member  of  the  Board  of 
Trustees  of  Cicero,  and  was  re-elected  in  1880, 
and  served  as  president  of  the  Board  for  seven 
years.  In  1881,  he  was  elected  a  member  of  the 
Cook  County  Board  of  Commissioners,  and  on 
December  3,  1883,  was  elected  its  president.  In 
1886,  several  vacancies  occurred  in  the  Board  on 
account  of  the  indictment  and  conviction  of  the 
"  boodle  "  commissioners,  and  there  was  a  public 
demand  that  these  vacancies  should  be  filled  by 
men  of  undoubted  honesty  and  integrity.  Mr.  Don- 
nersberger  was  selected  as  one,  and  was  appointed 
to  fill  the  unexpired  term  of  J.  J.  McCarthy. 

On  April  30,  1889,  Mr.  Donnersberger  was 
appointed  by  the  Judges  of  the  Circuit  Court  of 
Cook  County  to  the  position  of  South  Park  Com- 


missioner, the  other  members  of  the  Board  being 
Messrs.  John  B.  Sherman,  Wm.  Best,  Martin  J. 
Russell  and  Jas.  W.  Ellsworth.  At  the  last 
election  for  officers  of  this  Board,  Mr.  Donners- 
berger was  elected  president.  He  has  always 
been  prominent  in  any  enterprise  he  ever  became 
interested  in,  as  he  is  a  hard  and  persistent  worker. 
He  is  a  prominent  member  of  the  Chicago  Real 
Estate  Board,  a  director  in  the  Northwestern 
Horse-shoe  Nail  Company  of  Chicago,  and  Presi- 
dent of  the  Chicago  Glass  Manufacturing  Com- 
pany. On  December  27,  1863,  he  was  married 
to  Miss  Wilhelmena  HonKomp,  at  Cincinnati, 
Ohio ;  they  are  blessed  with  eight  children,  by 
name,  Eva,  Emma,  Anthony,  Mary,  George, 
Aggie,  Gertrude  and  Frank. 

Such  is  an  outline  of  his  biography ;  it  is  that 
of  one  who  has  always  tried  to  do  by  others  as  he 
would  be  done  by,  and  who  has  filled  the  offices 
with  which  he  has  been  honored  in  such  a  manner 
as  to  merit  the  confidence  of  all. 


I 


LEWIS   L.   COBURN, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


LEWIS  L.  COBURN  was  born  at  East  Mont- 
pelier,  Vermont,  November  2,  1834,  being 
the  youngest  of  five  children  of  Lamed  and  Lo- 
visa  (Allen)  Coburn.  His  father  was  a  man  of 
great  activity,  and  owned  one  of  the  largest  es- 
tates in  Central  Vermont.  His  prominence  was 
more  than  local,  and  he  was  held  in  high  es- 
teem. At  different  jjcriods  a  representative  in 
the  State  legislature,  he  also  held  various  offices 
in  his  town  and  county  with  honor  to  himself  and 
lasting  good  to  his  constituents. 

Our  subject's  paternal  grandparents  hailed  orig- 
inally from  Massachusetts,  removing  at  an  early 
day  to  Washington  county,  Vermont.  His  ma- 
ternal ancestors  were  early  settlers  in  East  Mont- 
pelier,  and  much  esteemed  by  the  community  in 
which  they  lived. 

Lewis  worked  on  the  farm  in  summer,  and 
attended  school  during  the  winter  months.  At 
the  age  of  fifteen  he  entered  Morrisville  Academy, 
afterwards  that  of  Northfield,  and  subsequently 
that  at  Barre,  Vermont,  studying  during  the 
spring  and  fall  terms,  and  teaching  school  during 


the  winter  months  and  working  on  the  farm  sum- 
mers. His  reputation  as  a  teacher  was  more  than 
local,  and  he  was  employed  to  teach  the  largest 
and  most  difficult  schools  to  manage  in  that  part 
of  the  State.  Having  completed  his  preparatory 
course  at  Barre,  in  the  summer  of  1855,  he  entered 
the  University  of  Vermont,  from  which,  four 
years  later,  he  was  graduated  with  mathematical 
honors  and  the  degree  of  Bachelor  of  Arts.  Hav- 
ing decided  to  enter  the  legal  profession,  his 
studies  while  at  the  university  were  directed  to 
this  end,  while  during  vacations  he  read  law  in 
the  offices  of  Roberts  and  Chittenden,  at  Burling- 
ton, Vermont,  and,  on  leaving  the  university,  en- 
tered the  office  of  Hon.  T.  P.  Redfield,  at  Mont- 
pelier,  for  a  short  time.  He  entered  Harvard 
Law  School,  at  Cambridge,  Massachusetts,  and 
was  graduated  therefrom  in  1861.  Sub.sequently 
passing  the  necessary  examination,  he  was  ad- 
mitted to  practice  in  all  the  Courts  of  Massachu- 
setts. 

In  February,    1861,  he  settled    in    Chicago.      In 
other  and    older  cities,   several    lawyers  had    won 


k 


"^^""-^^  <r^^^-^^^^^^l.^^t_ 


E.,   k,ECVVdIi««,l  Briir 


BlOCRArmCAI.  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  CAI.LERV. 


535 


success  by  adopting  patent  law  as  their  specialty, 
and  Mr.  Coburn  decided  to  devote  himself  to 
this  branch  of  practice,  and  was  the  first  lawyer  in 
Chicago  who  made  this  branch  a  special  study. 
With  the  opening  of  the  War  of  the  Rebellion 
about  this  time,  inventions  multiplied  to  supply 
machinery  to  do  the  work  of  those  called  from 
home  to  ser\'e  their  country'.  Inventions  were 
numerous,  the  results  often  complicated,  requiring 
the  ser\'ices  of  those  well  versed  in  the  laws  relat- 
ing to  patents. 

Successful  from  the  commencement.  Mr.  Co- 
burn's  business  rapidly  assumed  large  propor- 
tions, and  in  November,  1861,  he  took  as  his 
partner  an  old  college  friend  and  classmate,  Mr. 
William  E.  Marrs,  of  the  Vermont  bar.  The 
business  continuing  to  grow,  it  at  length  assumed 
such  proportions  that  it  extended  to  the  United 
States  Courts  of  nearly  all  the  W'estern  States. 
In  the  summer  of  KS62,  Mr.  Coburn  visited  his 
parents.  It  so  happened  that  a  brigade  of  nine- 
months'  men  were  then  being  enlisted  in  Vermont, 
one  of  the  companies  of  which  was  being  raised  in 
East  Montpelier  and  adjoining  towns.  Unani- 
mously elected  as  the  captain  of  this  company, 
although  his  business  interests  were  large  and 
responsible,  he  did  not  hesitate ;  his  duty  to  his 
countrj-  was  urgent,  and  he  accepted  the  position, 
lca\ing  his  partner  to  conduct  the  business  mean- 
while. As  captain  of  Company  C,  Thirteenth 
Regiment  of  \'ermont  Volunteers,  he  was  in  the 
front  line  at  the  battle  of  Gettysburg,  in  General 
Stannard's  brigade,  and  led  his  company  on  a 
charge  by  which  one  of  the  batteries  captured  by 
the  rebels  was  retaken.  He  was  the  first  to  reach 
two  of  the  cannon.  Amongst  others  who  surrend- 
ered to  him  personally  was  Major  Moore,  of  a 
I-"lorida  regiment,  and  a  captain  and  lieutenant  of 
a  Mississippi  regiment,  whose  swords  and  pistols 
he  was  permitted  to  keep. 

On  being  mustered  out  of  service  he  immedi- 
ately returned  to  Chicago  and  the  practice  of 
his  profession.  His  partner  dying  in  1868, 
Mr.  Coburn  was  left  alone  with  an  enormous 
practice  in  the  United  States  Courts.  His  con- 
stitution, however,  was  snch  that  with  the  aid  of  a 
corps  of  clerks  he  was  enabled  to  keep  up  and  even 
increase  an  already  extensive  business.  In  1875 
he  was  joined  by  Hon.  John  M.  Thachcr,  also  an 
old  classmate,  and  who  for  ten  years  had  been   in 


the  United  States  Patent  Office,  holding,  when  he 
resigned  to  join  Mr.  Coburn,  a  commissionership. 

Mr.  Coburn  has  a  clear  knowledge  of  mechan- 
ism, and  readily  grasps  the  principle  of  an  inven- 
tion, and  his  great  experience  and  diligent  study 
of  all  questions  bearing  upon  inventions  is  such 
that  the  inventor  who  places  a  case  in  his  hands 
finds  his  work  greatly  facilitated,  while  at  the 
same  time  he  obtains  the  advice  and  counsel  of 
an  attorney  whose  authority  on  such  matters  is 
incontrovertible.  To  state  this  is  but  doing  Mr. 
Coburn  ju.stice,  for  his  eminence  in  this  particular 
branch  of  the  law,  is  an  admitted  fact. 

He  has  been  connected  as  attorney  with  several 
of  the  most  important  patent  litigations  that  have 
occurred  in  Chicago,  among  them  being  the  Irwin 
tubular  lantern  patent  suits,  the  barbed-wire  suits, 
the  beef-canning  suits,  and  many  others.  The 
practice  of  his  firm  is  one  of  the  largest  and  most 
lucrative  in  the  West. 

He  was  married  June  23,  1880,  to  Miss  Annie 
S.  Swan,  at  the  residence  of  her  grandmother, 
Mrs.  Shaler,  in  Brooklyn,  New  York. 

Always  a  firm  believer  in  Chicago's  future 
greatness,  even  in  its  darkest  and  most  critical 
periods,  he  has  made  considerable  in\estments  in 
real  estate,  and  to-day  reaps  the  reward  of  his 
sagacity,  while  he  has  lived  to  see  the  city  of  his 
adoption  become  the  second  in  population  in  the 
Union — a  city  whose  phenomenal  growth  has 
been  the  surprise  and  admiration  of  the  civilized 
world.  He  has  been  closely  identified  with  many 
of  the  important  material  interests,  both  politi- 
cally and  financially,  of  Chicago.  When  her 
finances  were  at  a  low  ebb,  he  inaugurated  the 
movement  which  led  to  a  change  in  the  South 
Town  and  City  governments,  and  presided  at  the 
first  public  meeting.  Not  confining  his  interests, 
however,  to  municipal  affairs,  he  has  been,  with 
others,  the  originator  of  several  charitable  and 
benevolent  institutions,  notably  the  Christian 
Union — now  the  Chicago  Athenreum — also  the 
Vermont  Association  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  in 
the  latter  of  which  he  has  taken  great  interest, 
having  been  one  of  its  most  active  supporters  and 
officers  from  its  inauguration,  and  at  one  period 
its  president.  He  was  also  the  first  president  of 
the  Union  League  Club. 

Frequently  urged  to  become  a  candidate  for 
political    offices,   he    has    hitherto    uniformly    de- 


536 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


clincd.  He  was  proposed  as  a  candidate  for  the 
State  Senate,  and  almost  unanimously  indorsed 
by  the  press  of  Chicago,  and  by  his  many  friends, 
as  a  candidate  for  the  United  State  Congress  to 
represent  the  First  District  of  Illinois,  but  his 
business  and  other  interests  are  so  great,  and 
the  demands  upon  his  time  so  many,  that  he 
has  felt  himself  justified  in  declining  these 
offers,  honorable  and  flattering  as  they  undoubt- 
edly were. 

A  man   of  great  natural  ability,  his  success  in 
his  profession  has  been   uniform   and   rapid,  and. 


as  has  been  truly  remarked,  after  all  that  ma)-  be 
done  for  a  man  in  the  way  of  giving  him  early 
opportunities  for  obtaining  the  acquirements 
which  are  sought  in  the  schools  and  in  books,  he 
must  essentially  formulate,  determine  and  give 
shape  to  his  own  character,  and  this  is  what  Lewis 
L.  Coburn  has  done.  He  has  persevered  in  the 
pursuit  of  a  persistent  purpose,  and  gained  a  most 
satisfactory  reward.  His  life  is  exemplary  in  all 
respects,  and  he  has  the  esteem  of  his  friends  and 
the  confidence  of  those  who  have  business  rela- 
tions with  him. 


ELIAS    F.   GOBEL, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


ELIAS  F.  GOBEL  was  born  in  Morris  county. 
New  Jersey,  on  July  i,  1834,  and  is  a  son 
of  Robert  and  Margaret  (Martin)  Gobel.  His 
father  was  a  farmer  and  also  a  carpenter,  and 
worked  at  his  trade  when  not  engaged  on  the 
farm.  Mr.  Gobel  had  the  misfortune  to  lose  his 
mother  when  a  child  a  little  more  than  a  year 
old;  she  dying  August  30,  1835.  In  1844  his 
father  removed  to  the  West,  and  located  at  Elgin, 
Illinois,  where  he  died  in  1850. 

Elias  received  a  common-school  education  in 
the  public  schools  of  Elgin,  attending  school  until 
he  was  old  enough  to  take  care  of  himself.  He 
then  learned  the  mason's  trade,  and  not  only 
became  a  skillful  workman  in  that  line,  but  also 
by  careful  study  and  hard  work,  became  thor- 
oughly versed  in  the  various  branches  and  details 
of  building.  After  serving  three  years  as  an 
apprentice,  he  was  employed  by  the  old  Galena 
Railroad  Company,  now  the  Chicago  and  North- 
western Railroad  Company,  as  superintendent  of 
construction  of  nearly  all  of  the  arch  bridges 
on  the  line  between  Chicago  and  Freeport,  and 
made  for  himself  a  splendid  reputation. 

His  next  great  work  was  the  constructiim  of  tlie 
approaches  and  piers  for  the  second  bridge  that 
spanned  the  Mississippi  River;  it  was  at  Clinton, 
Iowa.  He  also  erected  the  stone  shops  at  the 
same  place.  The  successful  completion  of  this 
great  work  placed  Mr.  Gobel  in  the  front  rank 
of  contractors  in  mason  work.  .At  that  time, 
1861,  he  was  also  superintendent  of  construction 


for  the  Iowa  division  of  the  same  railroad  and 
remained  in  the  employ  of  that  company  until 
1865,  when  he  engaged  in  the  mercantile  business 
for  two  years. 

Commercial  life,  however,  was  not  suited  to  his 
taste,  and  closing  out  his  business  in  1867,  he 
removed  with  his  family  to  Chicago,  where  he  has 
since  made  his  home,  and  at  once  entered  the 
employ  of  the  city  as  inspector  and  superintend- 
ent of  masonry.  In  1868  he  superintended  the 
construction  of  the  Washington  street  tunnel  and 
two  years  later,  the  La  Salle  street  tunnel.  This 
work  being  completed  in  August,  a  short  time 
previous  to  the  great  fire  of  1871,  he  commenced 
business  on  his  own  account,  as  a  general  con- 
tractor and  builder,  and  many  monuments  of  his 
work  may  be  seen  in  every  part  of  Chicago.  His 
first  contract  was  on  the  Clark  street  bridge, 
where  his  derricks  and  all  his  tools  burnetl  in  the 
great  fire.  After  that  calamity  he  rebuilt  the 
masonry  work  for  all  the  bridges  on  the  ri\cr, 
e.vcepting  one  or  two.  He  also  rebuilt  for  the 
city  a  great  many  of  the  police  stations,  cngine- 
house.s,  also  viaducts  and  other  public  buildings; 
among  these  were  the  West  Side  Water  Works, 
the  Fullerton  Avenue  and  South  Branch  Pumping 
Works,  the  lake  crib  (a  marvel  of  masonry),  the 
Administration  building,  Cook  County  Hospital, 
the  Polk,  Lake  and  Twelfth  street  viaducts,  the 
Merchants*  building,  the  Presbyterian  Theological 
Seminary,  the  Women  and  Children's  Hospital, 
McCoy's    European    Hotel,   and    scores    of  other 


BIOCRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARV  AXD  PORTRAIT  CAI.I.IIRY. 


539 


buildings  of  more  or  less  prominence  in  otlicr 
cities.  He  built  the  new  State  House  at  Indian- 
apolis, and  many  fine  government  buildings  in 
different  parts  of  the  country.  His  last  great 
building,  that  is  now  in  process  of  construction, 
is  the  new  Post-office  anti  Custom-house,  at 
Detroit,  Michigan. 

Mr.  Gobel  is  a  director  in  the  Pioneer  Fire-Proof 
Construction  Company,  also  the  Peerless  Brick 
Company,  at  Ottawa,  Illinois,  and  owns  large 
interests  in  other  prominent  corporations. 

He  is  a  member  of  the  Union  League  Club,  is 
a  Mason  in  good  standing,  and  belongs  to  Fort 
Dearborn  Lodge  of  I.  O.  O.  F. 

In  religious  matters  he  is  a  member,  with  his 
family,  of  the  People's  Church,  Dr.  H.  W. 
Thomas,  pastor,  and  is  liberal  in  his  religious 
views.  In  politics  he  is  a  Democrat,  adhering  to 
his  party  lines  in  general  politics;  in  local  matters 
he  supports  the  man  whom  he  deems  best  suited 
to  fill  the  office,  regardless  of  party.     He  is  also  a 


member  of  the  Builders'  and  Traders'  Exchange 
and  Master  Mason's  Association. 

Mr.  Gobel  was  married  in  1856  and  has  four 
children,  Estella  G.,  Harry  E.,  Hattie  M.  and 
Charley  G. 

Mr.  Gobel  is  of  mediuni  height,  fair  complexion, 
of  robust  build,  and  commanding  presence;  he  is 
liberal  and  generous  without  ostentation,  and  a 
man  of  noble  qualities  of  heart  and  mind.  He 
gives  liberally  to  all  charitable  and  benevolent 
institutions,  while  his  private  charities  are  great ; 
having  for  many  years  a  large  number  of  men  in 
his  employ,  he  has  been  kind,  courteous  and  lib- 
eral with  them,  and  has  their  fullest  confidence 
and  esteem. 

Mr.  Gobel  is  widely  known,  highly  appreciated 
by  the  business  public  as  a  man  of  sterling  char- 
acter, honest,  and  honorable  in  all  his  dealings 
with  his  fellow-men.  By  his  energ}',  persever- 
ance, and  fine  business  ability  he  has  been  enabled 
to  accumulate  an  ample  fortune. 


FELIX   KAHN, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


FELIX  KAHX  is  one  of  Chicago's  enterpris- 
ing and  thrifty  business  men  whose  suc- 
cess is  the  result  of  his  own  effort.  Beginning 
life  with  no  capital  other  than  his  native  abilities, 
he  has  risen  step  by  step  to  a  place  of  prominence 
and  influence,  and  it  may  justly  be  said  of  him. 
"  He  is  the  architect  of  his  own  fortunes." 

A  native  of  Duensbach,  Wuertemberg,  Ger- 
many, he  was  born  on  November  28,  1843, 
the  son  of  Jacob  and  Vetta  (Steiner)  Kalin.  His 
father,  who  was  a  prosperous  merchant  at  Wolpert- 
shansen,  Germany,  lived  to  an  advanced  age  and 
died  in  1887.  His  mother  is  still  living  in  Ger- 
many (1892).  Felix  attended  the  schools  of  his 
native  place  until  his  fourteenth  year  and  then 
spent  three  years  as  a  clerk  in  his  father's  store. 
In  i860  he  immigrated  to  the  United  States, 
and  went  direct  to  Lacon,  Illinois,  and  for  two 
years  was  a  clerk  in  the  store  of  his  older  brt)ther, 
Louis,  who  had  settled  there  some  years  before. 
In  1862,  he  went  to  Mattoon,  Illinois,  and  filled 
a  similar  position  in  the  store  of  other  broth- 
ers   for  two    years,    the    last    year    (being    then 


of  age)  having  an  interest  in  the  business.  Re- 
turning to  Lacon  in  1864,  he  became  a  partner 
with  his  uncle,  Henry  Steiner,  and  himself  con- 
ducted the  business,  his  uncle  removing  to  Chi- 
cago, till  1S67,  when  he  purchased  his  uncle's  in- 
terest and  carried  on  the  business  in  his  own  name 
until  1871. 

During  the  next  six  years  he  was  a  partner 
with  his  two  brothers  at  Mattoon.  During  that 
time,  on  May  7,  1875,  his  brother  Moses  was 
lost  at  sea  while  en  route  to  the  old  country, 
and  in  1877  l^e  bought  the  entire  business  and 
conducted  it  in  his  own  name,  and  also  another 
store  which  lie  had  opened,  until  188 1.  He 
then  sold  one  of  the  .stores  and  continued  the 
other.  During  all  these  years  Mr.  Kahn  had 
been  schooling  himself  to  correct  business  prin- 
ciples and  habits,  and  had  established  a  reputation 
wherever  known,  as  an  energetic,  thorough-going 
business  manager,  prompt,  reliable  and  self-reliant. 
His  progress  had  been  steady,  and  each  year 
showed  a  satisfactory  increase  of  capital,  and  he 
now  felt  that  he  must   have  wider  scope  for  the 


540 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AND  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


exercise  of  his  abilities  and  employment.  It  was 
with  a  purpose  of  gratifying  his  laudable  ambi- 
tion that  he  closed  out  his  business  at  Mattoon 
in  1882,  and  became  the  head  of  the  well-known 
firm  of  Kahn,  Schoenbrun  &  Company,  manufac- 
turers of  fine  clothing. 

Their  establishment  is  located  at  the  southeast 
corner  of  Market  and  Adams  streets,  Chicago,  and 
is  one  of  the  largest  and  best-equipped,  not  onlj' 
in  Chicago,  but  also  in  the  entire  West.  During 
the  decade  that  Mr.  Kahn  has  resided  in  Chicago, 
he  has  taken  high  rank  among  commercial  men 
and  is  a  recognized  leader  in  his  class.  As  a  finan- 
cier he  excels ;  cautious  and  careful  in  his  in- 
vestments, conservative  in  his  judgments,  his 
counsels  are  sought  and  his  opinions  carry  convic- 
tion. He  stands  high,  not  alone  in  the  business 
world,  but  also  socially,  and  counts  among  his 
friends  and  associates  many  of  Chicago's  most 
elegant,  refined  and  substantial  citizens. 

He  has  been  a  member  of  the  Masonic  Order  for 
many  years,  and  is  also  connected  with  the  Stand- 
ard Club,  one  of  the  most  highly  cultivated  social 
organizations  of  Chicago.  He  is  also  a  member 
of  Sinai  Congregation,  and   in  religion,  as  in  other 


matters,  entertains  liberal  views.  He  is  especially 
tolerant  of  the  opinions  of  those  who  honestly 
differ  with  him,  and  in  all  his  intercourse  and 
dealings  with  others,  is  charitable  and  just.  As  a 
rule  he  affiliates  with  the  Democratic  party  in 
political  affairs,  but  is  not  bound  by  the  party  ties, 
and  in  this,  as  in  everything  else,  chooses  to  exer- 
cise his  own  judgment,  and  what  he  esteems  the 
right  and  duty  of  every  true  citizen ;  votes  for  the 
candidate  best  fitted  for  the  office  without  regard 
to  what  party  he  belongs  to. 

Mr.  Kahn  was  married  October  7,  1877,  to 
Miss  Carrie  Kaufman,  a  daughter  of  Louis  Kauf- 
man, of  Greenville,  Illinois.  They  have  four 
children,  viz.,  Louis  and  Moses,  who  are  twins, 
and  Harry  and  Ella,  and  it  is  in  his  cheerful  home, 
surrounded  by  his  bright,  happy  family,  that  Mr. 
Kahn  finds  his  highest  enjoyment.  He  is  a  man 
of  quick  perception  and  keen  observation  and  in 
his  wide  travels  in  this  country  and  on  the  Con- 
tinent he  has  acquired  a  vast  amount  of  varied 
and  useful  information. 

His  personal  and  social  qualities  are  of  a  high 
order,  rendering  him  an  agreeable  companion 
and  a  true  friend. 


DAVID    G.    HAMILTON, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


DAVID  GILBERT  HAMILTON  is  pre- 
eminently a  Chicago  man.  He  comes  of  a 
sturdy  race,  and  is  the  .son  of  Polemus  D.  and 
Cynthia  (Holmes)  Hamilton.  His  father  was  a 
native  of  Wales,  in  Erie  county,  New  York,  and 
in  1834,  while  yet  a  single  man,  settled  in  Chicago. 
He  was  a  carpenter  by  occupation,  and  plied  his 
trade  with  other  pioneer  builders  of  that  city, 
"  not  despising  the  day  of  small  things."  In 
1836  he  returned  to  his  native  place  where,  on 
May  12  of  the  following  year  he  was  married. 
He  at  once  returned  to  Chicago,  and  was  there 
joined  by  his  j-oung  wife  and  his  father's  family 
on  August  II,  1838.  He  was  a  skillful  work- 
man, and  there  were  constant!)-  increasing 
demands  in  the  aspiring  young  city  for  his  ser- 
vices. Besides  constructing  buildings,  he  employed 
his  handicraft  to  supply  the  needs  of  navigation, 
and  built  the  first  vessel  launched  cm   Lake  Mich- 


igan, at  Chicago.  He  had  a  genius  for  meeting 
new  demands,  and  became  one  of  the  leading 
builders  in  the  city.  He  died  at  Chicago  in  1891. 
His  wife's  decease  occurred  in  1872. 

Our  subject's  grandfather,  David  Hamilton, 
was  a  native  of  Mauch  Chunk,  Pennsylvania, 
whence  he  went,  when  a  boy,  to  Massachusetts. 
He  subsequently  resided  in  Cayuga  county,  New 
York,  and  during  the  exciting  times  attending  the 
settlement  of  the  "  Holland  Purchase,"  he  located 
in  Erie  county,  where  Polemus  D.  was  born. 
Both  he  and  our  subject's  maternal  grandfather 
came  of  patriotic,  revolutionarj^  stock,  and  both 
were  engaged  in  the  war  with  England  in  18 12. 

r)a\  id  G.  was  born  in  Chicago  on  January  10, 
1S42,  in  a  house  located  on  the  premises  now- 
known  as  No.  126  South  Clark  street,  where, 
afterwards,  for  many  years  he  had  his  place  of 
business.     The  virijin  mud  in   front  of  his  father's 


oO.  T  .:^^Wz.v.^^^;:;:c 


BIOGRAI'HICAL  IVCTIOXARV  AXD  PORTRA/T  CAI.l.ERY. 


543 


door,  at  that  date,  would  have  rivalled  that  of 
many  unpretentious  Illinois  towns.  Bctjinning 
life  in  the  very  heart  of  the  city,  David  felt  its 
great  pulsations  with  his  first  knowledge  of  the 
world.  His  education  was  begun  in  private 
schools,  and  upon  arriving  at  mature  boyhood,  he 
entered  the  Chicago  High  School,  from  which  he 
was  graduated  in  1862,  prepared  to  enter  college. 
In  September,  1862,  he  entered  the  Freshman 
Class  of  Asbury  University,  since  changed  to  De 
Pauw  University,  at  Greencastle,  Indiana,  and 
was  graduated  in  18C5.  He  received  the  degree 
of  A.  M.  in  due  course.  Returning  to  Chicago^ 
he  began  the  study  of  law,  in  the  Law 
Department  of  the  University  of  Chicago  in 
1866,  and  was  graduated  in  1867.  He  was 
afterwards  president  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of 
this  University.  During  all  these  early  years  of 
study  he  spent  his  vacations  with  his  father,  and 
he  not  only  mastered  the  carpenter's  trade,  but 
also  the  methods  of  sj'stematic  business  in  con- 
ducting large  enterprises — a  training  as  important 
and  practical,  and  useful  for  his  future  success, 
as  much  of  that  which  he  obtained  from  the 
curriculum  of  the  schools.  His  proficiency  and 
skill  led  to  business  association  with  his  father 
before  completing  his  studies,  and  together  they 
carried  out  many  important  building  enterprises. 

Following  his  graduation  in  1867,  he  opened  a 
law  office  on  the  very  spot  where  he  was  born 
(126  South  Clark  street),  and  continued  there  for 
nearly  twenty  years.  His  office  was  destroyed  in 
the  great  fire  of  187 1,  but  he  returned  to  the  same 
location  a  few  months  later,  on  the  completion  of 
a  new  building.  In  his  law  practice  Mr. 
Hamilton's  specialty  was  the  examination  of 
titles  and  managing  estates  and  trusts,  a  branch 
of  business  for  which  his  careful  and  exact 
business  training  pre-eminently  fitted  him.  In 
1868  Mr.  Hamilton  coupled  with  his  law  practice 
the  business  of  mortgage  investments,  and  was 
joined  by  Mr.  R.  K.  Swift  in  this  department, 
under  the  firm  name  of  D.  G.  Hamilton  and  Co. 
This  partnership  was  dissolved  in  1871,  and  Mr. 
Hamilton  has  since  continued  the  same  business, 
removing  his  office  in  18S5  to  its  present  location, 
94  Washington  street. 

In  18S0  he  became  president,  in  the  nature  of  a 
receiver,  of  the  Anglo-American  Land  and  Claim 
Association,  a  corjjoration   organi/.cd    for   coloni- 


zation of  lands  in  Te.xas,  and  also  for  the  con- 
struction of  railroads  in  that  state.  It  had 
partialh-  completed  a  line  of  railway  there,  which 
subsequently  became  a  part  of  the  Atchison, 
Topcka  and  Santa  Fe  system.  After  success- 
fully closing  up  the  affairs  of  the  association,  he 
ga\e  his  undivided  attention  to  matters  in 
Chicago. 

In  1885  he  became  identified  with  the  street 
railway  interests  of  Chicago,  and  has  taken  an 
active  part  in  their  management,  ha\ing  been  a 
director  in  the  Chicago  City  Railway  for  four 
years.  He  is  now  (1892)  president  of  the  board 
of  directors  of  five  of  the  leading  street  railway 
companies  of  St.  Louis,  as  well  as  manager  of 
other  industries  employing  a  large  force  of  men 
and  millions  of  capital.  Although  he  has  applied 
himself  closelj-  to  study  and  business  ever  since 
his  boyhood,  Mr.  Hamilton  early  learned  that  "it 
is  not  all  of  life  to  live  "  even  in  the  mighty  whirl 
of  Chicago  business.  A  wise  and  pious  mother 
early  took  him  to  the  First  Methodist  Church 
Sunday-school  (close  by  his  birthplace).  The 
Bible  truths  were  accepted  by  his  keen  intellig- 
ence, and  loved  for  the  sake  of  the  truth  and  of 
humanity  as  he  grew  to  maturity.  The  same 
devotion  as  to  study  and  business  was  given  to 
Sunday-school  work,  and  he  became  active  in 
pushing  the  missionary  enterprise  into  the  sub- 
urbs— then  at  Clark  and  Twelfth  streets.  Sub- 
sequently to  the  great  fire  he  united  with  the 
Michigan  Avenue  Baptist  Church,  out  of  which 
grew  the  Immanual  Baptist,  under  the  direction 
of  Rev.  George  C.  Lorimer,  D.  D.,  now  (1892) 
under  the  pastoral  care  of  Dr.  H.  O.  Gifford. 
He  has  been  connected  with  its  business  manage- 
ment almost  from  its  organization,  and  is  chair- 
man of  its  board  of  trustees.  As  a  Mason,  he 
has  taken  all  the  degrees  in  the  York,  and  all  but 
one  in  the  Scottish  Rites.  He  filled  the  diflferent 
chairs  in  the  York  Rite.  For  pleasure  and 
observation,  he  has  made  three  visits  to  Europe 
and  traveled  extensively  on  that  continent.  In 
politics  he  cast  his  first  vote  for  Abraham  Lincoln, 
and  has  always  been  a  rei)ublican  on  national 
questions. 

On  December  9,  1870,  he  married  Mary  Jane 
Kendall,  daughter  of  Dr.  Lyman  Kendall,  of 
Chicago.  Mrs.  Hamilton  is  a  native  of  Mont- 
pelicr,    X'erinont.       .She    siibsei|uentl\'    resided    at 


544 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARV  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Worcester,  Massachusetts,  whence  her  father 
removed  to  Chicago  in  1857.  She  was  educated 
there,  and  graduated  fnun  the  High  School  in 
in  1863.  She  united  with  the  Second  Baptist 
Church,  where  she  was  active  in  Sunday-school 
and  missionary  work,  and  is  now  connected  with 
the    Immanual     Baptist   Church.      Two   chiklren 


bless  this  marriage — Bruce,  sixteen  and  Adelaide, 
eleven  years  of  age.  Mr.  Hamilton,  now  in  the 
prime  of  life,  rich  in  the  wisdom  of  experience 
and  managing  large  business  interests  requiring 
much  travel,  still  has  sympathy  with  every  good 
cause  and  a  gentlemanly  regard  for  all  who 
properly  seek  his  attention. 


VINCENT    LOMBARD    HURLBUT,   M.D. 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


VINCENT  LOMBARD  HURLBUT  was 
born  June  28,  1829,  in  West  Mendon,  New 
York.  The  ancestors  of  his  mother,  Sabrina 
Lombard,  were  Vermont  people,  and  his  father, 
Horatio  Nelson  Hurlbut,  is  descended  from 
Thomas  Hurlbut,  of  Saybrook  and  Westmore- 
land, Connecticut,  who  came  to  America  as  early 
as  1637.  His  only  sister,  Arozina  Lucinda,  now 
deceased,  was  the  wife  of  Major  Toby,  an  old 
and  highly  esteemed  citizen  and  prominent  Ma- 
son of  Chicago.  While  he  was  yet  a  child,  his 
parents  removed  to  Jefferson,  Ohio.  He  made 
good  use  of  the  local  schools,  and  was  graduated 
with  honor  from  the  Jefferson  Academy.  Choos- 
ing the  medical  profession  at  the  age  of  seven- 
teen, he  pursued  his  studies  under  the  guidance 
of  his  father,  an  old  and  eminent  physician, 
and  also  attended  lectures  at  the  Medical  Col- 
lege of  Cleveland,  (^hio,  where  he  was  the  re- 
cipient of  special  attention  from  I'rof.  Horace  A. 
Ackley. 

In  1851,  going  to  Chicago  witli  liis  father,  he 
matriculated  at  Rush  Medical  College,  and  was 
graduated  therefrom  in  1852.  He  very  soon  com- 
menced a  practice,  the  great  and  continued  suc- 
cess of  which  is  shown  in  the  affectionate  regard 
entertained  for  him  in  this  community.  It  is 
shown  in  such  tributes  as  that  paid  him  by  the 
board  of  the  Woman's  Hospital,  which,  when  he 
wouFd  have  retired  after  two  years  of  service  as 
surgeon  in  that  institution,  would  not  accept  his 
resignation,  and  in  the  high  rank  he  holds  in 
medical  societies  and  institutions,  both  at  home 
and  abroad,  his  relations  with  all  being  of  the 
closest  and  his  official  position  of  the  most  hon- 
orable character.  Dr.  Hurlbut  is  a  member  of 
Chicago   Medical  Society,  Chicago   Medico-Legal 


Society,  Illinois  State  Medical  .Society,  and  the 
American  Medical  Association. 

Catholicity  is  what  Emerson  calls  culture.  Cer- 
tainly Dr.  Hurlbut  is  eminently  possessed  of  it. 
Standing  in  the  forefront  of  his  profession,  he  is 
a  close  student  of  new  discoveries  and  progress 
in  the  science  of  medicine,  and  yet  finds  time 
to  devote  to  many  other  branches  of  popular 
interest  and  inquiry.  He  has  given  much  atten- 
tion to  the  rise,  character  and  progress  of  Free- 
masonry, is  an  enthusiastic  member,  and  in  the 
highest  station  which  the  craft  affords  has  gained 
a  national  reputation.  Previous  to  the  great  Chi- 
cago fire  of  1 871  he  had  collected  one  of  the 
finest  Masonic  libraries  in  the  country,  containing 
many  rare  volumes,  which  were  lost  and  can 
never  be  recovered.  Dr.  Hurlbut  first  became  a 
Mason  in  i860,  in  Waubansia  Lodge,  No.  160, 
and  during  the  same  year  was  e.xalted  to  the 
ticgrec  iif  Royal  Arch  in  Washington  Chapter, 
No.  43.  He  was  created  a  Knight  Templar  in 
Apollo  Commandery,  No.  i,  and,  afterwards,  in 
the  Occidental  Consistory  and  its  co-ordinate  and 
subordinate .  bodies,  took  the  Scottish  Rite  de- 
grees to  the  thirty-second,  inclusive.  The  thirty- 
third  degree  he  took  at  Boston,  Massachusetts,  in 
the  Supreme  Council  of  Sovereign  Grand  Inspec- 
tors General  of  the  thirty-third  degree,  and  last 
degree  of  Ancient  Accepted  Scottish  Rites  for 
the  Northern  Masonic  Jurisdiction  of  the  United 
States  of  America ;  Grand  East,  Boston,  Massa- 
chusetts, north  latitude  12°,  21',  22";  east  longi- 
tude 5",  59',  18";  in  the  annual  session  on  the 
6th  day  of  the  month  Gy/.ar.  5626,  answering  to 
1 8th  day  of  May,  1865. 

Since  his  connection  with  the  Masonic  frater- 
nity  Dr.    Hurlbut  has   filKil    the   most  important 


■f  ^^^^-^.  a^     //,..WJ^ 


BlOGIiAPIIICAI.   niCriOXAUV  AXD  rORTRAtT  uALI.KRV. 


547 


positions,  being,  in  1863  64  and  in  1867,  Com- 
mander of  the  Apollo  Commandcr_\-  nf  Knights 
Templar,  and  also  Commander-in-Chief  of  the 
Occidental  Sovereign  Consistory  of  Chicago,  as 
well  as  charter  member  and  official  of  the  Royal 
Order  of  Scotland,  and  charter  member  and  Mas- 
ter of  St.  Andrew  Lodge.  In  1867  he  was  elected 
Grand  Commander  of  the  State  of  Illinois,  hold- 
ing office  one  year,  and  for  a  term  of  three  years, 
beginning  with  1870,  was  Illustrious  Deputy  of 
the  .Supreme  Council,  thirty-third  degree,  for  the 
district  of  Illinois.  Finally,  in  1871,  he  was 
elected  Grand  Generalissimo  of  the  Grand  Kn- 
campment  of  Knights  Templar,  at  Baltimore, 
and  on  the  expiration  of  this  term,  in  1S74,  was 
elected  Deputy  Grand  Master  of  the  Gr.nul  Kn- 
campment  of  Knights  Templar,  at  New  t)rleans. 

Dr.  Ilurlbut  has  never  married,  being  devoted 
to   his   studies   and   the   duties  of  his   profession. 


Nevertheless,  he  is  a  man  of  fine  social  qualities, 
having  been  for  years  a  notable  figure  at  the  fa- 
mous game  dinners  given  by  Mr.  John  B.  Drake, 
of  the  Grand  Pacific  Hotel,  of  Chicago.  He  was 
brought  up  in  the  Congregational  Church,  but  is 
now  a  Univcrsalist,  and  in  his  religious  belief 
liberal,  conscientious  and  firm. 

As  to  the  personal  character  of  Dr.  Hurlbut, 
we  quote  from  a  more  extended  article  by  Henry 
H.  Hurlburt,  of  Chicago  :  "  In  the  prime  of  man- 
hood, affable,  genial  and  intelligent,  un.selfish  and 
generous  to  a  fault,  he  is  the  royal  prince  of  com- 
panionship and  fellowship,  and  is  justly  held  in 
high  esteem  by  all  who  have  proved  his  profes- 
sional ability."  And  further,  and  aside  from  all 
professional  merit,  let  it  be  .said  that  in  this  man, 
so  warmly  patriotic,  so  gentle-hearted  and  unos- 
tentatious, we  recognize  a  noble  representative  of 
American  chivah)-. 


ORSON    \\   TOUSLEY, 


MI\Ni:.\r()l.IS,    MINN. 


IT  is  strange  how  often  trifling  circumstances 
will  change  the  whole  current  and  the  whole 
bent  of  one's  career.  Circumstances  over  w  liicli 
he  had  no  control  (and  they  certainly  w  eie  by 
no  means  trifling!  caused  the  subject  of  this  sketch, 
Orson  V.  Tousley,  to  take  up  an  altngetlur  tlif- 
ferent  profession  to  what  he  had  iiUendeil.  llis 
choice  of  a  profession  fell  upon  the  law,  but  cir- 
cumstances caused  him  to  become  engaged  in  the 
scholastic.  Thus  what  the  ranks  of  one  profes- 
sion  lost,   the   other   was    the   gainer  therei)v. 

Born  in  Clarendon,  Orleans  county.  New  York, 
in  1833;  his  parents  were  well-to-do  farmers  and 
determined  to  avail  themselves  of  ever)-  opportunity 
which  the  times  afforded  for  the  education  of  their 
chiklreii,  but  alas,  they  had  both  died  before  our 
subject  had  reached  his  thirteenth  year,  leaving 
him  and  his  two  sisters  to  the  care  of  relatives. 
The  guardian  of  young  Tousley  had  peculiar  views 
on  the  subject  of  education.  He  believed  that  its 
chief  aim  should  consist  in  repression  of  the  spirits 
—  in  holding  boys  down,  as  it  were  —  and  accord- 
ingly his  ward  was  sent  to  Oberlin,  Ohio.  Here 
our  subject  spent  two  years  of  preparation  for 
college,  and   here   it   was  he   imbibed   sentiments 


which  foreshadow  eil  the  earnest  and  entrenchetl 
Republicanism  which  has  alwaj-s  been  such  a 
distinguishing  feature  in  his  life.  Afterwards 
entering  the  junior  year  of  Williams  College, 
Massachusetts,  he  graduated  from  this  institution 
with  the  class  of  '54 — the  late  President  Garfield 
and  Senator  Ingalls  being,  by  the  way,  schoolmates 
of  his,  for  they  were  at  Williams  together.  Upon 
leaving  college  Mr.  Tousley  entered  the  law  office 
of  Messrs.  Hill,  Porter  &  Cagger,  at  that  time 
[jrobably  the  most  celebrated  law  firm  in  the  .state 
of  New  York.  After  graduating  frt)m  the  Albanv' 
Law  School  he  went  west  with  a  view  of  securing 
a  place  of  settlement.  But  the  financial  crisis  of 
'57  was  at  hand,  its  shadows  had  been  deepl)-  cast, 
ami  at  length  it  burst,  s])reading  desolation  and 
ruin  in  its  i)ath,  sweeping  away  the  fortunes  (aye, 
and  even  the  all  of  many)  of  thousands.  His 
inheritance  swept  away,  his  intentions  frustrated, 
and  even  his  j)rospects  seemingly  blighted,  Mr. 
Tousley,  upon  recovering  from  the  shock  —  and 
we  may  well  imagine  it  was  a  shock,  and  of  no 
slight  ilegree,  either  determined  to  take  to 
teaching  temporarilv.  it  being  his  intention  at 
this  time  to  resume   his  profession  of  the  law  at 


548 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARV  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


some  future  period,  and  as  somi.in  fact,  as  circum- 
stances would  warrant.  Then  came  his  marriage 
to  Miss  Susan  S.  Toll,  of  Medina,  New  York  (and 
a  descendant  of  the  old  Knickerbocker  stock),  and 
after  teaching  in  Tennessee,  Indiana  and  Wiscon- 
sin, in  various  capacities,  in  the  fall  of  1869  he 
removed  with  his  family  to  Minneapolis,  Minnesota, 
and  here  he  has  ever  since  resided,  being  well 
known  throughout  scholastic  circles  of  the  west. 

Thus  owing  to  the  loss  of  his  patrimony  by  a 
disastrous  crisis  (financial),  and  other  events  follow- 
ing in  rapid  succession,  his  whole  career  was 
changed,  for  he  ne\er  returned  to  the  law. 

Shortly  after  his  arrival  in  Minneapolis  he 
became  the  principal  of  its  high  school,  and  two 
years  later,  upon  the  death  of  the  superintendent, 
the  board  of  education  elected  Mr.  Tousley  as  his 
successor,  and  he  continued  in  this  position  until 
the  summer  of  1886,  when  he  tendered  his  resigna- 
tion and  went  abroad  for  study  and  travel.  With 
feu  interruptions,  barring  the  period  which  he 
spent  abroad  in  the  foreign  civil  service  —  Pres- 
ident Arthur  appointed  him  United  States  consul 
at  Trieste,  afterward  being  transferred  to  Leipsic, 
Germany, —  the  whole  fifteen  years  was  earnestly 
devoted  to  the  fulfillment  of  the  many  arduous 
and   responsible  duties  connected  with   his  office. 


and  the  result  was  gratifying  to  both  the  board  of 
education  and  liimself  alike.  He  has  been  regent 
of  the  University  of  Minnesota  and  wields  a  large 
influence  in  educational  matters  throughout  the 
state. 

Though  for  the  past  five  years  Mr.  Tousley  has 
been  without  visible  employment;  he  has,  however, 
not  been  idle,  for  he  has  been  devoting  himself  to 
special  lines  of  study,  with  the  e.xpectatibn,  so  his 
friends  say,  of  putting  the  fruits  of  his  investiga- 
tions in  a  treatise  .  on  sociology.  His  public 
lectures  and  platform  utterances,  etc.,  of  which  the 
press  of  this  city  spoke  so  highly  when  his  name 
was  suggested  as  Chief  of  the  Bureau  of  Liberal 
Arts,  in  connection  with  the  World's  Columbian 
E.xposition,  are  generally' so  well  known  as  to  need 
no  further  comment  here. 

As  one  of  the  Commissioners  from  the  Prairie 
State,  Orson  V.  Tousley  is  another  illustration  — 
if  such  were  needed  —  of  the  careful  and  judicious 
manner  in  which  the  Commissioners  from  the 
various  states  were  selected,  for  his  selection 
was  a  wise  one,  and  one  which  cannot  but  result 
in  much  good,  not  only  to  the  state,  but  to  the 
citizens  thereof,  also.  For  he  is  a  man  of  wide 
and  liberal  views,  of  great  culture  and  of  (admit- 
tedly) great  ability  and  energw 


JOHN    ERASMUS    HARPER,    M.D.,  A.M. 


CHICACO,    ILL. 


JOHN  ERASMUS  HARPER  was  born  on 
January  21,  185  i,  in  Trigg  county,  Kentuck)-. 
The  Harpers  are  descendants  of  an  I-lnglish 
family  that  settled  in  America  prior  lo  the  Revo- 
lution, one  branch  in  V^irginia,  the  other  in  Caro- 
lina. Our  subject  is  one  of  the  latter  branch, 
which  later  united  with  that  of  Virginia,  in  which 
state,  in  the  valley  of  Dan  River,  Penn  county, 
his  great-grandfather,  Jesse  Harper,  settled.  The 
family  has  been  for  generations  distinguished  in 
scientific  pursuits.  Plain,  hospitable,  religious 
])eople,  strict  advocates  of  temperance,  and  liberal 
su[)porters  of  all  institutions  of  learning,  the 
Harpers  were  of  the  kind  that  make  our  best 
American  citizens.  During  the  Revolution  not  a 
few  of  them  were  numbered  with  our  heroes — 
such  men  as  bra\e  Colonel  llar])er,  of   \'ir<Mnia. 


Dr.  Harper's  grandfather  was  a  successful  and 
scientific  farmer,  widely  known  in  Virginia  as 
"  Little  Berry  Harper."  The  father  of  our  sub- 
ject, Robert  W.  Harper,  at  the  time  of  the  late 
Civil  War,  was  an  extensive  slaveholder  in  south- 
western Kentucky,  near  Fort  Donaldson.  He 
had  many  relations  in  the  Confederate  army,  and 
was  himself  in  Forrest's  Brigade.  Dr.  Harper, 
then  a  lad  of  ten  years,  spent  two  years  near  the 
scenes  of  some  of  the  most  noted  battles  of  soutli- 
western  Kentucky  and  Tennessee,  having  been 
witiiin  hearing  distance  of  the  battles  of  Belmont 
and  Shiloh,  and  retains  a  child's  profound  impres- 
sion of  the  horrors  of  war. 

Through  his  mother,  Harriet  A.  Stimson,  he  is 
descended  from  a  long  line  of  physicians  and 
clerirN-nicn.      l'"roni    this   side    also    he    inherits    a 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIO.WIRY  AXD  I'ORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


551 


legacy  of  long  life — a  maternal  uncle  and  also  an 
aunt  having  passed  the  century  line  by  several 
years.  Dr.  Harper  has  no  brothers  living,  three 
having  died  in  infancy.  Three  sisters  survive,  one 
of  whom,  Miss  Lucy,  was  married  to  John  H.  Hall, 
Esq.,  an  active  and  prominent  citizen  of  Chicago. 

Dr.  Harper  received  a  good  common-school 
education  and  graduated  with  honor  from  the 
High  School  of  Evansville,  Indiana,  whither  his 
father  had  removed  while  he  was  yet  a  child.  I  le 
began  the  study  of  medicine  under  the  direction 
of  Dr.  George  B.  Walker,  Dean  of  the  Evansville 
Medical  College,  where  he  matriculated  in  1871, 
and  from  which  he  graduated  with  great  credit. 
The  Medical  College  of  Evansville  was  established 
in  1849,  the  late  celebrated  Dr.  William  H.  l^y- 
ford,  of  Chicago,  being  one  of  its  faculty.  Shortly 
after  graduating,  Dr.  Harper  became  a  partner  of 
one  of  his  former  preceptors.  Dr.  William  R. 
Davidson,  with  whom  he  remained  three  years. 
In  1876  he  entered  the  University  of  New  York. 
Graduating  in  1878,  he  took  the  first  prize  for  the 
best  examination  on  diseases  of  the  eye  and  ear, 
being  the  first  western  man  to  take  this  prize, 
which  had  always  formerly  been  awarded  to 
graduates  of  Yale,  Harvard,  and  other  eastern 
colleges.  Not  satisfied  with  his  excellent  achiev- 
ments  thus  far,  in  1878  he  sailed  for  Europe,  to 
perfect  himself  in  his  specialty  of  diseases  of  the 
eye  and  ear  in  London,  Paris,  and  Vienna.  Before 
leaving  home  he  had  been  appointed  Professor  of 
Diseases  of  the  Eye  and  Ear  in  the  Medical 
College  of  Evansville,  and  during  his  two  years' 
stay  abroad  retained  the  position. 

On  his  return  from  Europe  in  1880,  in  conjunc- 
tion with  Dr.  A.  M.  Owen,  he  started  Tlic  Indi- 
ana Medical  Reporter,  which  was  afterwards 
merged  into  The  Western  Medical  Reporter  of 
Chicago,  of  which  successful  journal  he  is  still 
(1892)  sole  editor  and  publisher. 

In  1882,  Dr.  IIar|ier  removed  to  Chicago,  where 
he  has  ever  since  resided.  He  was  immediately 
elected  to  fill  (resigned,  June,  1891)  the  chair  of 
Diseases  of  the  Eye  and  Ear  in  the  Chicago  College 
of  Ph\-sicians  and  Surgeons,  of  which  institution 
he  was  also  secretary.  For  five  years  he  acted  as 
A.ssistant  Surgeon  in  the  Illinois  Charitable  Eye 
and  Ear  Infirmary,  from  which  increasing  jiractice 
forced  him  to  resign.  He  has  for  nine  years  been 
surgeon-in-chief  in  the  eye  and  ear  department   of 


the  West  Side  l'"rce  Dispensary  and  holds  the 
same  position  in  Si.  Vincent  Orphan  Asylum. 
He  is  consulting  oculist  and  aurist  of  the  Oak- 
wood  Retreat  at  Lake  Geneva,  Wisconsin,  and 
also  in  the  Battle  Creek  Sanitarium,  at  Battle 
Creek,  Michigan.  Is  now  president  and  Professor 
of  Diseases  of  I*lye  and  Ear  in  the  Clinical  Col- 
lege of  Medicine,  Chicago. 

In  excellent  standing  with  the  medical  profes- 
sion, he  is  a  prominent  member  of  the  Chicago 
Society  of  Ophthalmology  and  Otology;  Chicago 
Pathological  Society;  Chicago  Medico-Legal  So- 
ciety; Chicago  Medical  Society;  Illinois  State 
Medical  Society;  Mississippi  Valley  Medical  So- 
ciety, and  holds  a  prominent  membership  in  the 
American  Medical  Association. 

Besides  his  professional  honors.  Dr.  Harper 
ranks  very  high  in  the  Masonic  Order.  In  1876 
he  united  with  the  Knights  of  Pythias,  Orion 
Lodge,  No.  35,  at  Evansville,  Indiana;  in  1889  was 
made  a  Master  Ma.son  in  Cleveland  Lodge,  A.F.  and 
A.  M.,  No.  411,  Chicago;  the  same  year  he  was  ex- 
alted to  the  Royal  Arch  degree  in  Washington 
Chapter,  No.  43,  and  early  in  1 891  was  created 
a  Knight  Templar  in  St.  Bernard  Commandery, 
No.  35. 

In  politics,  Dr.  Harper  is  a  Democrat,  entirely 
free  from  partisanship  or  political  aspirations. 
He  has  for  years  been  a  valued  member  of  the 
Baptist  denomination,  with  which  he  united  in 
Evansville,  in  1869.  He  now  attends  Immanuel 
Baptist  Church,  on  Michigan  avenue  near  Twenty- 
third  street. 

Dr.  Harper  has  had  a  remarkably  successful 
career,  and  a  fact  which  greatly  adds  to  his  honor 
he  is  pre-eminently  a  self-made  man.  Every  bit 
of  his  success,  starting  from  a  little  town  in  Indi- 
ana, up  to  his  present  high  rank  in  the  medical 
profession  of  the  Northwrst.  has  been  won  by 
his  own  exertions  antl  im  liis  own  merits.  The 
Doctor  is  wry  fcmd  of  atiiKtic  sports  and  is  an 
expert  iunUsmaii.  In  1890  he  spent  a  long  holi- 
day in  the  wilds  of  Colorado,  hunting  and  moun- 
tain-climbing, attaining  an  altitude  of  eleven 
thousand  feet  above  the  sea.  Refined,  genial, 
whole-souled,  a  great  lover  of  music,  his  devotion 
to  his  profession  has  not  jjrevented  his  mingling 
in  society  in  which  he  is  a  general  fa\orite. 

On  the  28th  of  May,  1878,  Dr.  Harper  was  mar- 
ried to  Mi.ss  Marv  E.  Walker,  daughter  of  Mr.  W. 


552 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARV  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


H.    Walker,  L'.\-ina\iir  of  I^\-an-^\  illc.  Indiana,  and  Mexican    war    and   fell,  in    1S4S.   in   the  battle  of 

niece   of  the    late    1  )r.  (k'orm'   M.  Walker,  who  for  Huena  Vista.     .Sexeral    of   her   relatives   also   ren- 

thirty  years   was  dean  of  the  medical  college  of  dered  gallant  service  in  the  late  Civil  War.     Two 

that   place.     Mrs.  Harper's  family  were  originally  children  have  been  the  result  of  this  union,  one  of 

from    New   Jersey,  and  her  grandfather,  General  whom   is  still  living,   Robert    Brinton    Harper,    a 

William  Walker,  took  a  distinguished  part   in   the  bright,  handsome  boy  of  nine  years. 


WILLIAM    FLETCHER    KING,   LL.  D. 


MOUNT    VKRNON,    IOWA. 


WH.LIAM  F.  KING  was  born  near  Zanes- 
ville,  Ohio,  December  20,  1830,  the  son 
of  James  J.  and  Mariam  (Coffman)  King.  Both 
his  father  and  mother  were  of  old  Virginia  fami- 
lies, and  leading  industrious,  frugal  and  thrifty 
lives  in  their  adopted  State  of  Ohio,  they  both 
lived  to  advanced  age  ;  the  father  departing  at 
eighty-six,  and  the  mother  at  eighty-eight.  They 
were  conspicuous  leaders  in  their  community  in 
every  movement  which  looked  to  the  material,  in- 
tellectual and  moral  elevation  of  society. 

William  is  the  eldest  of  three  brothers,  all  of 
whom  are  graduates  of  the  Ohio  Wesleyan  Uni- 
versity, at  Delaware,  Ohio.  Isaac  Fenton  is  a 
prominent  clergyman  at  Columbus,  Ohio,  and 
John  Wesley  King  is  a  successfullawyer at  Zanes- 
ville.  After  finishing  his  college  course  in  1857, 
the  subject  of  this  sketch  became  a  tutor  in  his 
alma  mater,  where  he  continued  for  five  years, 
endearing  himself  to  all  and  establishing  a  reputa- 
tion as  a  successful  teacher.  Resigning  his  position 
in  1863,  he  was  thereupon,  on  the  recommendation 
of  Drs.  (afterwards  Bishops)  Thomson  and  Clark, 
called  to  the  chair  of  Ancient  Languages  in  Cornell 
College,  at  Mt.  Vernon,  Iowa,  and  since  that  time 
has  been  closely  identified  with  the  educational 
interests  of  that  institution  and  commonwealth. 
Upon  the  death  of  President  Fellows,  in  1863,  he 
was  placed  in  charge  of  the  college  as  acting 
president,  and  was  formally  elected  president  in 
1865,  and  still  holds  that  office,  making  him  the 
senior  college  president  of  Iowa  and  the  ranking 
president  of  Methodist  colleges  in  Jhe  United 
States.  To  him  the  work  of  his  high  ofifice  is  a 
loving  .service,  and  during  the  c|uarterof  a  centur)- 
that  he  has  devoted  himself  to  it,  it  has  engaged 
his  best  powers  of  mind  and  heart.  To  this  fact 
is  to   be  attributed    in   no   small  deiMee   the   hisjli 


standing  and  successful  growth  of  the  institution 
over  which  he  presides. 

President  King  has  been  alike  interested  in  the 
physical,  intellectual  and  moral  development  of 
his  students,  and  counts  among  those  who  have 
come  under  his  instruction  and  influence,  thou- 
sands of  young  and  middle-aged  men  and  women 
who  are  to-day  filling  positions  of  influence  and 
trust  in  every  honorable  vocation.  His  sympathies 
and  labors,  however,  have  not  been  confined  to 
the  college  o\'er  which  he  presides  with  such  dis- 
tinguished honor  and  ability.  The  public  schools 
and  all  educational  interests  of  his  State  have  re- 
ceived their  proper  share  af  his  attention.  He  has 
been  president  of  the  State  Teachers'  A.ssociation, 
and  has  served  for  years  on  its  most  important 
committees,  and  he  has  long  been  honored  with 
membership  in  the  Educational  Council  of  the 
National  Teachers'  Association.  Not  to  speak  in 
detail  of  the  various  positions  he  has  held  in  edu- 
cational and  ecclesiastical  conventions,  his  public 
lectures  and  sermons,  with  their  wealth  of  thought 
antl  scholastic  research,  sufifice  to  say,  that  in 
whatever  position  placed,  he  has  mastered  his 
surroundings,  and  has  shown  himself  a  broad- 
minded,  pure-hearted  and  clean-handed  man. 

In  1870,  President  King  was  honored  by  the 
Illinois  Wesleyan  University  with  the  degree  of 
Doctor  of  Divinity,  and  in  1887  he  received  from 
his  alma  mater  the  degree  of  "  Doctor  of  Laws," 
and  the  same  year  he  received  the  same  degree 
from  the  State  University  of  Iowa. 

In  i8go.  Dr.  King  was  appointed  by  Presi- 
dent Harrison  as  the  Re])ublican  representa- 
ti\e  from  the  .Stale  of  Iowa  on  the  National 
Commission  of  the  Columbian  E.xposition.  The 
selection  is  a  most  happy  one,  for  besides  being  a 
teacher  aiul  man  of  letters  of  high  ortler,  Dr.  King 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXAKY  AXD  POKTKAIT  GALLERY. 


555 


is  in  the  truest  sense  a  man  of  affairs,  practical 
and  progressive  in  liis  ideas.  He  has  traveled 
extensively  throughout  the  United  States,  and  is 
well  informed  concerning  the  resources  of  the 
country,  and  having  visited  and  made  a  study  of 
expositions  in  Euro|)e,  he  brings  to  the  work  of  his 
honored  position  the  fruitage  of  a  rich  and  varied 
experience.  Dr.  King  is  a  man  of  common  sense 
as  well  as  of  talent.  He  is  a  man  of  details,  and 
has  the  happy  faculty  of  taking  in  at  a  glance  a 
difficult  situation,  and  he  also  has  the  rarer  quality 
of  being  able  to  execute  his  plans  and  put  them 
to  a  practical  test.  He  is  a  man  of  retiring  nature^ 
modest  and  unassuming,  and  nothing  could  be  to 
him  more  foreign  or  distasteful  than  to  court 
favors  or  position.  These  he  has  received  in 
abundance,  but  they  have  come  unsought.  He  is 
a  man  of  dignified  bearing  and  courtly  manners, 


and  is  happy  to  count  among  his  warm  friends 
men  of  all  classes.  He  has  made  of  life  a  grand 
success ;  and  were  one  to  seek  for  its  secret,  it 
would  be  found  in  that  persistent  purpose  which 
has  been  a  motive  power  in  his  life,  to  make  the 
world  brighterand  better,  by  putting  to  the  noblest 
and  best  use,  under  Di\ine  guidance,  all  that  he  is 
and  has.  Dr.  King  is  a  member  of  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  Church, and  for  many  years  he  has  been 
prominent  in  her  councils.  He  has  been  twice 
elected  to  the  General  Conference,  the  highest 
legislative  body  of  the  Church. 

He  was  married  in  August,  1865,  to  Miss  Mar- 
garet McKell,  of  Chillicothe,  Ohio.  They  have 
had  line  child,  Lucy  Hayes  King,  who  died 
.\pril  ijtli,  iScSj,  at  the  age  of  eleven  years. 
This  great  loss  has  toned  and  ripened  both  their 
lives. 


CHARLES   S.   STOBIE, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


THE  subject  of  this  biography  is  one  of 
Chicago's  finest  artists.  He  excels  as  a 
portrait  and  figure  painter  and  is  equally  good  at 
landscapes.  All  concede  that  his  paintings  of 
mountain  scenery  rank  among  the  most  realistic. 

His  many  years  life  as  scout  and  hunter  in  the 
Rockies  afforded  him  an  opportunity  to  view  anti 
study  the  gigantic  canyons  and  lofty  peaks  of  those 
mountains,  and  he  reproduces  them  on  canvas 
with  an  ease  and  skill  that  is  a  surprise  to  lovers 
of  fine  art.  He  reads  human  nature  by  intuition 
and  the  Indian  character  has  been  his  special 
study.  And  the  great  chiefs  and  others  he  has 
painted  true  to  nature,  and  his  paintings  in  this 
line  possess  an  excellence  to  which  no  other  artist 
has  attained. 

Mr.  Stobie  is  a  native  of  Baltimore,  Maryland, 
and  was  born  in  1845.  He  is  the  son  of  Charles 
U.  Stobie.  His  mother's  name  before  marriage 
was  Miss  Janet  CJughterlonie;  his  father  is  a  native 
of  Perthshire,  and  his  mother  of  Fifeshire,  Scot- 
land. He  commenced  his  education  in  private 
schools  in  Baltimore,  and  was  two  years  in  Madras 
College,  St.  Andrews,  Fifeshire,  Scotland.  In 
1861  he  began  studying  art,  and  several  years  he 
practiced  as  an  architectural  draughtsman. 


In  1S65  he  crossed  the  plains  with  a  wagon 
train  from  Nebraska  City  on  the  Missouri  River, 
spending  the  winter  in  the  Platte  Valley,  making 
Denver  his  headquarters.  During  that  winter  he 
became  acquainted  with  James  P.  Beckworth,  the 
well-known  mountaineer,  who  was  twenty  years  a 
chief  among  the  Crows;  from  him  the  artist  ob- 
tained an  insight  into  hunting  and  trapping,  the 
chief  calling  him  playfully  his  recruit.  At  this 
juncture  he  received  much  valuable  information 
concerning  the  various  tribes,  from  such  veterans 
as  Kit  Carson,  Jim  Baker,  IVIariano  Medina,  and 
other  old  mountaineers  with  whom  he  maintained 
friendly  relations  long  afterwards.  Major  D.  C. 
Oakes,  another  pioneer,  also  honored  him  with  his 
confidence  and  advice.  The  next  year  (1866)  the 
artist  spent  in  the  Ute  county,  hunting  and  mak- 
ing studies  and  sketches  of  the  Indians  and  the 
scenery.  Among  the  men  whose  friendship  he 
won  in  the  parks  of  Colorado  at  that  period  were 
Charles  Utter  and  Jack  Sumner.  The  latter  subse- 
quently accompanied  Professor  Powell  as  guide 
and  hunter  through  the  wonderful  Colorado 
canyon.  Being  thus  in  the  very  heart  of  the  Ute 
county,  Mr.  Stobie  had  every  chance  to  study  its 
people,      lie  hunted   with   the  tribe  anil  was  with 


556 


BIOGRArillCAI.  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


them  when  they  drove  the  Arapahoes  from  the 
northern  border  of  the  park  the  same  j-ear.  Pend- 
ing the  Indian  troubles  in  1868,  he  acted  as 
one  of  Major  Downing's  scouts,  the  other  being 
John  Cisco,  who  was  later  killed  by  the  Indians 
near  the  "  Smoky  Hill"  road.  In  i86g  he  served 
in  the  same  capacity  in  the  government  expedi- 
tion under  the  command  of  Major  D.  C.  Oakes, 
which  was  organized  to  locate  the  White  Ri\LT 
Ute  Agency.  The  command  left  Denver  in  Jul\-_ 
traveled  through  the  mountains  by  the  old  "  Salt 
Lake  Stage  "  road.  Having  reached  Fort  Steele 
and  Rawlings  Springs,  they  prepared  to  strike 
through  the  unexplored  country  south  and  south- 
west near  "  Old  Duck  Lake  Station,"  on  Salt  Lake 
trail,  taking  the  southerly  course  toward  White 
River,  whence  they  made  their  own  trail  through 
the  alkali  desert  and  mountains,  a  distance  of 
one  hundred  and  fifty  miles.  During  this  expe- 
dition our  artist-scout  kept  constantly  in  the  ad- 
vance with  Mr.  U.  M.  Curtis,  the  principal  Ute  in- 
terpreter, whose  twenty  years'  experience  among 
the  Indians  and  the  mountains  enabled  him  to 
impart  to  his  young  companion  much  valuable 
information  about  this  part  of  the  territory.  The 
agency  was  finally  located  at  White  River,  a  few 
miles  from  Professor  Powell's  first  winter  quarters 
on  his  journey  to  the  Colorado  canyon.  Since 
then  Mr.  Stobie  officiated  as  guide  and  interpreter 
in  the  mountains,  particularly  in  the  Grand  River 
county,  and  hunted  buffalo  in  the  neighborhood 
of  Fort  Wallace,  as  well  as  towards  the  Arkansas 
to  the  South  and  the  Republican  Forks  toward 
the  North.  One  of  the  first  pictures  Mr.  Stobie 
painted  on  his  return  was  a  view  of  an  Indian 
village  at  day-break,  which  immediately  found  a 
customer  in  a  resident  of  Virginia  City,  who  was 
able  to  appreciate  its  wonderful  fidelity  to  nature. 
Mr.  Stobic's  western  scenes  are  all  characterized 
by  the  same  truthfulness.  His  works  must  steadily 
rise  in  the  estimation  of  those  who  can  understand 
their  peculiar  merits.  Mr.  Stobie  returned  to 
Chicago  in  October,  1874,  where  he  has  made  his 
home  ever  since,  pursuing  the  routine  of  artistic 
life.  He  intends  to  return  soon  to  the  mountains 
and  tile  Indian  countr)'  In  inninl  up  the  labor  so 
well  begun. 

Among  the  man\-  notices  in  the  Chicago  papers 
of  Mr.  Stobie's  merits  we  make  the  following 
extract    from    the    Chicago    livcnini;  Journal    nf 


January  28,  1887:  "  Mr.  Charles  S.  Stobie  is  one 
of  the  oldest  of  Chicago's  artists,  having  had  his 
first  studio  in  Crosby's  Opera  House  some  years 
before  the  fire.  He  has  taken  up  his  quarters  for 
the  winter  in  Gay's  old  room  in  McCormick  Block. 
Mr.  Stobie  has  just  completed  two  large  pictures 
of  the  nude,  a  "Blonde"  and  "Brunette,"  a 
commission  from  a  Detroit  gentleman.  Mr.  Stobie 
is  one  of  the  very  few  artists  of  the  country  who 
luue  attempted  to  paint  the  North  American 
Indian.  It  is  a  remarkable  fact  that  this  field  for 
an  artist  should  have  been  so  long  left  vacant.  It 
is  not  saying  too  much  to  declare  that  there  is 
not  in  the  country  to-day  a  gentleman  more 
thoroughly  equipped  with  the  necessary  knowl- 
edge of  Indian  life  and  character  to  successfully 
paint  this  class  of  subjects.  Many  men  of  ability 
have  painted  the  red  man  as  they  thought  he  ought 
to  be,  but  not  as  the  Almighty  made  him. 
Mr.  Stobie  has  spent  twenty  years  of  his  life 
in  this  special  study  and  has  dared  much  to 
attain  it." 

The  following  is  from  the  same  paper  of  April 
17,  1890:  "  Mr.  Charles  S.  Stobie  is  just  finishing 
a  fine  portrait  in  oil  of  Mrs.  Leander  McCormick's 
father,  Mr.  John  Hamilton.  Although  Mr.  Stobie 
has  made  a  specialty  of  frontier  life  and  the  U^te 
Indians,  among  whom  he  lived  a  number  of  years, 
his  present  work  evidences  his  versatility  and 
ability  in  other  lines.  A  Baltimorean  by  birth,  and 
educated  abroad,  Mr.  Stobie  resolved  early  to 
make  American  subjects  his  study.  To  this  end 
he  became  an  American  scout,  and  for  a  number  of 
years  li\ed  among  the  LUe  Indians,  not  as  their 
guest  but  as  one  of  them.  He  was  the  friend  and 
companion  of  the  famous  mountaineers  of  the 
day,  and  has  in  liis  stutlio  an  autograph  photo- 
graph presented  to  him  by  Kit  Carson.  Mr. 
Stobie's  collection  of  studies  of  frontier  life  are 
now  on  exhibition  at  L\-on  &  Healy's  music  store. 
A  picture  of  especial  merit  in  this  collection  is  'A 
Storm  on  the  Plains.'  It  is  a  strong  and  true 
piece  of  work,  and  while  in  coloring  ami  other 
respects  different  from  Pelletier's  '  Approach  of  a 
Storm  at  Fontainbleau,'  which  he  painted  for 
l.Duis  Phillip[)i,  there  is  in  the  hushed,  trembling 
air  which  precedes  the  terrific  warning  of  the 
elements  ,1  suggestion  which  is  in  a  way  identical. 
.\notlier  good  ])iece  of  work  and  one  which  can 
but    be  appreciated  by   those  acquainted    with  or 


BlOGRAl'llICAI.   niCTIOXARV  AM)   rORTRAir  i.AJ./.KRV. 


557 


interested  in  tlic  uncivilized  Indians  is  the  portrait 
of  Sittin<;  Hull.  The  Mciiicinc  Man  is  a  picture 
which  onlj-  one  who  has  had  c.\ce]ninnal  and 
uiuisuaJ  op])ortunities  could  have  painted,  as  no 
one  is  admitted  to  the  medicine  lodge  save  when 
the\'  ma\-  possibly  assist  in  saving  the  life  of  the 
patient,  and  it  was  in  rendering  such  assistance 
that  Mr.  Stobie  made  the  study  which  enabled 
him  to  paint  this  picture.  'The  Scalp  Parade  of 
tile  Utes'  is  another  faithful  and  interesting 
study  in  this  collection,  eviclences  that  Mr.  Stobie 
is  in  a  fairway  to  accomplish  with  his  brush  what 
Joaquin  Miller  has  with  his  pen  in  portraying 
the  wild  romantic  American  frontier  life  which  is 
fast  becoming  a  thing  of  the  past." 

The    Chicago     Tinics.     of    May    13,    1S77,    in 


speaking  of  the  sale  about  to  take  place  at  the 
artists'  gallery,  says:  "About  one  hundred  and 
forty-five  paintings  of  local  artists  are  to  be  dis- 
posed of  besides  a  score  or  more  of  others.  One 
of  the  largest  contributions  is  that  of  C.  S. 
Stobie,  no  less  than  nineteen  specimens  of  his 
work  appearing  on  the  catalogue.  These  are 
nearly  all  the  result  of  years  of  travel  in  the  Rocky 
niduntains,  and  depict  those  scenes  which  would 
be  most  likely  to  attract  the  artists'  attention. 
His  most  pretentious  works  arc  "  Hear  River 
Valley,'  'Alkali  Buttes '  and  'Middle  Park,' 
although  se\'eral  smaller  paintings  are  of  almost 
equal  merit.  Mr.  Stobie  is  evidently  an  artist  be- 
cause nature  compels  him  to  be,  and  is  therefore 
thoroughly  in  love  with  his  profession." 


EDWARD   JAMI^.S   JUDD, 


CHICAGO,    IL1-. 


\ 


AM(  )X(i  the  younger  members  of  the  Chicago 
k-  bar  tlie  subject  of  this  sketch  stands  high. 
He  is  a  native  of  Chicago,  and  was  born  April  38, 
1858,  the  son  of  Norman  H.  and  Adeline  (Rossiter) 
Judd.  His  father  was  a  well  known  and  eminent 
attorney  of  Chicago,  and  an  intimate  personal  and 
political  friend  of  President  Lincoln.  He  was  con- 
spicuously prominent  in  securing  Mr.  Lincoln's 
nomination  for  the  Presidency,  and  probably  more 
so  than  any  one  else  in  that  memorable  nominat- 
ing convention.  He  was  one  of  Mr.  Lincoln's 
closest  friends  during  the  campaign  which  fol- 
lowed his  nomination,  and  accompanied  him  on 
his  perilous  trip  from  Springfiekl  to  Washington 
prior  to  his  inauguration  in  1861. 

\'oung  Judd  received  his  early  education  in  the 
public  .schools  of  Hyde  Park  and  at  the  academy 
at  Lake  Geneva,  Wisconsin.  Subsecpiently  he  at- 
tended one  of  the  academies  of  Stockbridge,  Mas- 
sachu.setts  (1872  to  1875),  and  entered  Yale  Uni- 
versity in  the  latter  part  of  1875.  In  the  following 
year,  while  in  the  midst  of  his  college  career,  he 
was  obliged  to  return  home  on  account  of  his 
father's  financial  reverses.  The  necessity  i)f  nb- 
taining  employment  was  then  explained  to  him, 
and  he  lost  no  time  in  applying  for  work,  and 
ultimately  became  stock  boy  in  the  store  of  Messrs. 
I'ield,  Leiter   and   Company,  at    four   dollars   per 


week,  and  remained  in  their  emplo\'  about  a  year. 
He  left  his  position  to  study  law  in  the  office  of 
Judge  George  S.  Kldridge,  a  prominent  lawyer  at 
Ottawa,  Illinois.  After  two  years  of  study  he 
passed  a  highly  creditable  examination,  ami  was 
admitted  to  the  bar  in  1880.  The  following  three 
years  Mr.  Judd  spent  in  the  general  practice  of  his 
profession  at  Molinc,  in  Kock  Island  county,  Illi- 
nois, and  in  1883  he  returned  to  Chicago  and 
practiced  alone  until  1887,  in  which  year  he  formed 
a  partnership  with  Messrs.  Francis  W.  Walker  and 
Edmund  Furthmann,  Mr.  I'^irthmann  subse([uent- 
ly  retiring  from  the  firm. 

His  practice  from  the  commencement  has  been 
of  a  decitledly  lucrati\e  character,  and  what  mjiy 
be  termed  general  in  its  scope.  He  has  been  con- 
nected with  several  notable  cases,  probably  the 
most  celebrated  of  which  was  that  of  the  Chicago 
Home  for  the  Friendless  vs.  The  City  of  Chicago, 
Mr.  Judd  obtaining  on  behalf  of  the  home  eighty- 
four  thousand  dollars  of  the  moneys  which  had 
been  entrusted  to  the  city  by  Jonathan  Ikirr, 
who  had  been  a  jjrominent  citizen  in  the  early 
ilays  of  Chicago.  The  sum  in  dispute  had  been 
left  by  him  to  the  City  of  Chicago  as  trustee,  and 
hail  been  used  for  purposes  other  than  those  in- 
tendetl  by  the  donor.  Through  Mr.  Judd's  efforts 
and  the  masterU-  manner  in  which  he  handled   his 


558 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


client's  case,  the  city  was  compelled  to  turn  over 
the  sum  previously  stated  to  the  Home  for  the 
Friendless  and  the  other  charitable  institutions, 
which  it  was  the  desire  of  Mr.  Burr  to  benefit 
thercb)-.  In  winning  this  case,  Mr.  Judd  not  only 
enhanced  his  reputation  as  a  skillful  attorney,  but 
also  was  the  means  of  securinij  justice  for  institu- 
tions which  arc  worthy  of  support. 

Mr.  Judd  was  married  in  1885  to  Miss  Carrie  W. 
Walker,  daughter  of  Lucas  B.  Walker,  and  a  sister 
of  his  present  partner. 

During  the  year  1891,  Mr.  Judd  acted  as  coun- 
sel for  Cook  count)-,  and  during  the  present  year 
(1892)  occupies  the  same  position  as  to  those 
cases  against  the  county  which  arose  out  of  the 
doings  of  the  County  Board  of  1886;  most  of 
the  members  of  which  were  criminally  con\ictcd 
of  malfeasance  in  office,  and  which  cases  are  more 
commonly  designated  as  the  "Boodle  Cases." 


Mr.  Judd  is  a  member  of  the  Union  League, 
Marquette,  Douglas  and  Hamilton  clubs.  In  poli- 
tics he  is  an  ardent  Republican,  as  was  his  father 
before  him,  though  he  is  by  no  means  what  may 
be  tcrmetl  a  j^olitician. 

Li  personal  appearance  he  is  fair  and  of  medium 
height.  Of  a  jovial  and  sociable  nature,  he  is  a 
pleasant  companion  and  a  staunch  friend,  and  is 
the  center  of  a  large  circle  of  friends.  He  is  a 
hard  worker,  and  ^\■hen  there  is  work  to  be 
accomplished,  he  is  always  found  in  the  midst 
of  it,  and  never  seems  to  tire  until  his  task 
has  been  completed  to  the  satisfacti(Mi  of  all  con- 
cerned. 

Mr.  Judd  is  a  respected  citizen  and  a  man  of 
more  than  average  ability,  and  with  his  high  and 
lauilable  ambition  and  straight-forward,  manly 
course  must  attain  to  a  high  place  in  his  profes- 
sion. 


DAVID    BRAINERD    LYMAN, 

CHICAGO,    ILL. 


AMONG  the  able,  leading  and  representative 
lawyers  of  the  Chicago  bar,  none  stands 
higher  or  is  more  worthy  of  a  place  in  this  work 
of  "  Representative  Men  of  Chicago,"  than  the 
subject  of  this  sketch. 

He  was  born  March  27,  1840,  in  Hilo,  on  the 
island  of  Hawaii,  Sandwich  Islands.  He  comes, 
however,  of  sturdy  New  England  stock,  and  is  the 
son  of  the  Rev.  D.  B.  Lyman,  who  was  formerly 
of  New  Hartford,  Connecticut,  and  was  a  gradu- 
ate of  Williams  College  and  the  Andover  Theo- 
logical Seminary.  In  1831  the  Rev.  Mr.  Lyman 
married  Miss  Sarah  Joiner,  of  Royalton,  Vermont, 
and  sailed  for  the  Sandwich  Islands,  as  a  mission- 
ary of  the  American  Board  of  Commissioners  for 
Foreign  Missions.  Here  he  and  his  wife  labored 
indefatigably  for  the  cause  of  Christianity  and 
civilization  for  over  fifty  years,  till  their  death,  a 
few  years  since.  He  was  a  prominent  educator 
and  much  interested  in  the  advancement  of  the 
islands. 

David  passed  his  early  youth  on  these  islands, 
and  acquired  his  education  mainly  by  his  o\vn 
efforts.  He  held  several  important  government 
positions  at   an  early  age,  and    thereby   obtained 


means  to  gratify  his  desire  for  a  university 
education.  In  1859  ^^  ^^^^  Honolulu,  sailed 
around  Cape  Horn  and  arrived  in  New  Bedford, 
Connecticut,  in  May,  i860.  He  entered  Yale 
College  the  following  September,  and  graduated 
in  Arts  in  1864.  He  then  entered  the  Harvard 
Law  School  and  graduated  therefrom,  winning 
one  of  the  prizes  for  the  best  legal  essay,  in  1866. 
During  the  years  1864  and  1865,  while  enrolled 
as  a  student  at  Harvard  Law  School,  he  was  con- 
nected with  the  Sanitary  Commission  as  hospital 
visitor,  and  was  in  charge  of  the  Fifth  Corps  Hos- 
pital of  the  Arm}-  of  the  Potomac,  and  also  the 
Point  of  Rocks  Hospital  in  Virginia.  The  last 
few  weeks  of  his  service  he  was  in  charge  of  the 
Sanitary  Commission  of  the  forces  concentrated 
about  Washington.  In  1866  Mr.  Lyman  was 
admitted  to  the  bar  in  Boston,  and  the  same  year 
removed  to  Chicago  and  secured  a  clerkship  in 
the  law  office  of  Messrs.  Waite  &  Clark,  where 
he  remained  two  \'cars.  July  i.  1869,  he  formed 
a  partnership  with  Col.  Huntingtt)n  W.  Jackson, 
under  the  firm  name  of  L\'man  &  Jackson, 
which  is  to-day  the  oldest  law  partnership  in 
Chicago.      Mr.    Lyman    has    fine    literar\-    attain- 


^O/i^d  W-  -^/^ 


W^7^/-C.tZ^?1>. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARV  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


561 


ments,  and  is  a  good  classical  scholar.  He  has 
been  highly  successful  in  his  profession.  While 
he  has,  perhaps,  devoted  more  time  to  real  estate 
and  corporation  law  than  to  any  other  branch,  so 
general  has  been  his  reading,  and  such  has  been 
his  industr)%  that  he  is  a  general  practitioner, 
being  at  home  everj^where,  e.xcept  in  criminal 
cases,  which  he  never  takes,  and  always  ready  for 
attack  or  defense.  He  has  much  natural  ability, 
yet  by  the  thoroughness  with  which  he  prepares 
his  cases,  he  illustrates  the  truth  of  the  well-known 
maxim,  "There  is  no  excellence  without  labor." 

While  Mr.  Lyman  has  probably  a  higher  repu- 
tation as  an  able  and  learned  counselor  than  as 
an  advocate,  yet  such  is  his  standing,  and  so 
thoroughly  does  he  investigate  and  prepare  his 
cases,  that  his  arguments  carry  more  weight  than 
those  of  many  members  of  the  bar  who  may, 
perhaps,  be  more  eloquent. 

He  has  the  confidence  of  his  clients,  because 
they  know  he  will  not  advise  them  to  commence 
a  suit  unless  their  course  is  right,  and  then,  only 
when  there  is  no  remedy  for  them  save  in  litiga- 
tion. He  is  noted  for  his  indefatigable  industry, 
for  his  painstaking  preparation  and  management 
of  his  cases,  for  his  unvarjing  courtesy  toward 
everjone  with  whom  he  comes  in  contact,  and  for 
his  most  thorough  and  conscientious  discharge  of 
his  duty  to  his  clients.  These  qualities,  added  to 
his  well-known  ability  and  learning,  have  given 
him  a  high  standing  with  his  brethren  of  the  bar, 
as  well  as  with  the  courts. 


Mr.  Lyman  takes  no  active  part  in  politics,  but 
is  a  stauncli  Republican. 

He  was  married  October  5,  1870,  to  Miss 
Mary  E.  Cossitt,  daughter  of  Mr.  F.  D.  Cossitt, 
of  Chicago.     They  have  three  children  living. 

Mr.  Lyman  is  interested,  either  as  director  or 
tru.stee,  in  a  number  of  corporations,  and  is 
president  of  the  Chicago  Title  and  Trust  Com- 
pany, which  he  was  largely  instrumental  in 
forming. 

In  social  life  Mr.  Lyman  is  much  esteemed. 
He  is  a  member  of  the  Chicago  Union  League, 
University  and  Church  clubs,  and  he  was  the  first 
president  of  the  last  named.  He  is  an  earnest  and 
active  member  of  the  Episcopal  church.  He 
resides  in  La  Grange,  one  of  Chicago's  most  beau- 
tiful suburbs.  Mr.  Lyman  has  always  been  a 
believer  in  and  prominently  identified  with  the 
cau.se  of  education.  He  has  served  for  eighteen 
years  on  the  Board  of  Education  of  La  Grange  in 
various  capacitie.s,  as  one  of  its  members  and  as 
its  president.  Largely  through  his  efforts  the 
Lyons  Township  High  School  was  established 
after  a  four-years'  campaign,  during  which  time 
the  project  was  repeatedly  voted  down.  Being  a 
zealous  advocate  of  the  common-school  system, 
each  defeat  only  added  to  his  earnestness,  and  he 
has  the  satisfaction  of  seeing  both  the  Grammar 
and  High  Schools  established  at  La  Grange, 
ranking  among  the  best  to  be  found  in  any  part 
of  the  county.  Mr.  Lyman  is  appreciated  by  the 
entire  community  in  which  he  lives. 


ARTHUR    D.   RICH, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


ARTHUR  D.  RICH  was  born  on  a  farm  in 
Ticonderoga,  New  York,  No\ember  25. 
1827,  the  son  of  Larned  and  Amanda  (Pearce) 
Rich.  His  father  was  at  the  defense  of  Platts- 
burg,  in  1 8 14,  and  came  to  New  York  from  Rich- 
ville,  Vermont,  being  a  member  of  that  family 
which  gave  to  the  Green  Mountain  tow  n  its  pre.s- 
ent  name,  while  his  mother  was  a  member  of  one 
of  the  old  families  of  Bolton,  New  York  ;  our 
subject  being  their  youngest  son.  In  1837,  his 
father  sold  the  homestead  at  Ticonderoga  to  the 
father    of  the   eminent    Boston   divine — Re\-.  Jo- 


seph Cook,  and  removed  to  Michigan,  settling  in 
St.  Jcseph  county,  near  the  town  of  Three 
Rivers.  Being  an  enterprising  man  of  intelligence, 
who  knew  the  value  of  a  good  education,  he  gave 
his  children  excellent  training.  He  died  when  our 
subject  was  elcveh  years  of  age.  Being  thus 
thrown  upon  his  own  resources,  Arthur  went  to 
live  with  an  elder  sister,  in  the  village  of  School- 
craft, Michigan.  He  continued  his  studies  at  the 
Schoolcraft  Academy,  his  intention  being  to  ulti- 
mately take  a  collegiate  course.  His  ambition 
was  a  worthy  one,  but  his  means  were  limited,  and 


562 


llIOliRArillCAL   niCriO.XARY  AM)   rORTKAIT  GALLERY. 


he  accepted  the  ptjsilion  of  teacher  in  one  of  llie 
neighboring  schools,  and  by  being  studious,  thrifty 
and  economical,  he  at  length  was  enabled  to  enter 
Spring  Arbor  Academy  (now  known  as  Hillsdale 
College,  Hillsdale,  Michigan),  and  upon  lea\  ing 
here,  entered  the  Michigan  University  at  Ann  Ar- 
bor, teaching  school  a  portion  of  the  time  to  tlefray 
his  expenses,  and  was  graduated  in  185 1.  In  the 
following  year  he  settled  in  Chicago.  Having  but 
five  dollars  on  his  arrival,  he  lost  no  time  in 
seeking  a  position,  where  he  could  earn  a  liveli- 
hood, and  at  the  same  time  pursue  his  studies  to 
advantage.  Applying  to  Messrs.  Judd  and  Wil- 
son (of  which  firm  Norman  B.  Judd,  lawyer,  poli- 
tician and  diplomat,  was  the  senior  member) — 
then  one  of  noted  law-firms  of  Chicago — he  was 
fortunate  in  being  received  into  the  office,  not 
only  as  student,  but  also  as  a  clerk,  at  a  salary  en- 
abling him  to  meet  his  current  expenses.  He  re- 
mained in  their  office  two  years,  and  acquired  a 
practical  knowledge  of  the  theory  and  practice  of 
law,  and  also  formed  the  acquaintance  of  many 
of  the  men,  who  were  then  the  most  distinguished 
members  of  the  western  bar.  Abraham  Lincohi, 
who  was  an  intimate  personal  and  political  frientl 
of  Mr.  Judd,  was  a  frequent  visitor  at  the  office, 
and  he  and  Mr.  Judd  were  often  associated  in  the 
trial  of  important  ca.ses,  and  Mr.  Rich  counts  as 
among  his  interesting  experiences,  the  oijpor- 
tunities  he  had  of  hearing  occasionally,  not  onl\- 
Lincoln's  impressive  legal  arguments,  but  also 
many  of  the  droll  stories,  with  which  he  used  to 
entertain  his  friends,  when  work  for  the  &a\  was 
over.  Ha\ing  completetl  his  course  of  stud_\-,  in 
1854,  he  was  admitted  to  the  bar  and  entered  ujjon 
his  professional  career  with  the  advantages  of  a 
liberal  education  and  a  natural  adaptation  for  his 
chosen  calling.  His  success  has  been  pronouncetl. 
His  aptitude  for  dealing,  in  a  practical  manner, 
with  the  issues  involved  in  general  litigation,  his 
care  of  his  clients' interests,  anil  his  conservative 
method  of  reaching  conclusions,  were  noticeable 
in  his  earl)-  career,  as  they  are  ti)-da\-,  and  as  a 
result  Mr.  Rich  was  but  a  ciini])arali\el)-  sIkmI 
time  in  establishing  a  comfcirlahle  aiul  remunera- 
tive practice,  being  looked  upmi  by  the  profession 
and  general  public  as  a  lawyer  whose  integrity 
was  unquestionable,  ami  who  possessed  more  than 
average  ability.  Attracting  clients  by  his  candor 
and   straight-forward  methods,   his    affabilitv    and 


geniality,  he  gained  friends  rai)idly,  and  laid  the 
foundation  of  a  successful  and  highly  creditable 
jirofessional  career.  With  politics  and  kindred  al- 
lurements, he  has  had  little  tn  do.  For  more  than 
thirty-fi\'e  \eais  he  has  de\oted  himself  to  the  gen- 
eral [practice  of  the  law,  during  this  time  being 
prominently  connected  with  a  large  number  of  the 
most  important  cases  adjudicated  in  the  State  and 
Uniteil  States  Courts  of  Chicago  and  the  Supreme 
Court  i.if  Illinois. 

His  participation  in  the  well-known  case  of 
Rawson  vs.  Fox,  the  plaintiff  being  the  somewhat 
noted  banker,  who  sought  to  recover  valuable  Chi- 
cags  real-estate,  is  well  known,  not  only  in  legal 
circles,  but  to  numbers  of  the  general  public  also, 
while  he  also  appeared  as  leading  counsel  for  the 
plaintiffs  in  the  celebrated  case  of  Butler  vs.  But- 
ler, a  case  involving  the  property  rights  of  minor 
children  and  the  ownership  of  half  a  million  dol- 
lars' worth  of  land  in  the  heart  of  Chicago.  In  the 
di\'orce  case  of  Jenkins  vs.  Jenkins,  a  case  which 
^\  as  pending  some  twelve  years  in  the  courts  (the 
longest  on  record  in  the  Illinois  courts),  he  secured 
for  his  client  a  decree  of  absolute  divorce,  and  thus 
resisted  the  efforts  of  an  adventuress  to  secure 
divorce  and  alimony.  These  are  but  a  few  of  the 
many  cases — more  or  less  important — he  has  been 
identified  with  with  credit  to  himself  and  the  pro- 
fession. To-da\-.  as  the  result  of  his  strict  atten- 
tion to  business  and  his  honorable  methods,  Mr. 
Rich  has  acquired  a  comfortable  fortune,  antl  is 
now  in  a  position  to  take  matters  easil_\-.  and  to 
enjo}-  a  well-earned  retirement  from  acti\'e  busi- 
ness. He  is  now  (1892)  senior  member  of  the 
law   film  of   Rich,  Ripley  &  Ailing. 

He  was  married,  in  1856,  to  Miss  Esther  Ten- 
ant l)\ckman,  a  daughter  of  the  late  Judge  Evert 
H.  Uyckman,  of  Schoolcraft,  Michigan.  This 
marriage  has  been  blessed  by  eleven  children,  of 
whom  eight  sons  and  one  daughter  survi\-e.  Of 
the  eight  sons,  three  ha\e  entered  the  medical 
profession;  one  is  at  present  a  teacher  in  a  city 
High  School,  l)ut  preparing  himself  for  the  law; 
one  is  a  Swedenborgiaii  minister;  another  is  an 
architect  and  builder,  while  twn  of  the  younger 
sons  and  his  daughter  are  now  in  the  Uni\ersity 
of  Michigan,  with  the  purpose  of  fitting  them- 
seKes  for  some  profession  or  business  of  their 
future  choice.  Mr.  Rich  him.self  finds  ample  em- 
ployment in   looking  after  his   propert}-   interests 


€^Z^ 


^f  ^.  yc^^o^:-^iS 


mOGRAFUICAI.  niCTlOXARV  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


563 


and  the  education  of  iiis  children.  He  is  a  di- 
rector and  one  of  tlie  largest  stockholders  in  the 
Fort  Dearborn  National  Bank  of  Chicago.  His 
success  in   life  is  the  result   of  his  own   unaided 


efforts  ;  his  determination  was  strong;  his  ambition 
both  worthy  and  honorable,  and  the  results  at- 
tained b\-  him  are  such  as  make  his  cxaniph-  wort  In- 
of  emulation. 


COL.   ALEXANDER    B.  ANDREWS, 


RALEIGH,   N.  C. 


THE  subject  of  this  sketch  is  the  fifth  vice- 
president  of  the  World's  Columbian  Expo- 
sition from  the  State  of  North  Carolina,  and  sec- 
ond vice-president  of  the  Richmond  and  Dan- 
ville Railroad  system.  He  was  born  July  23,  1841, 
in  Franklin  county,  North  Carolina,  the  son  of 
\V.  J.  and  Virginia  (Hawkins)  Andrews.  His 
father  was  a  merchant  of  Henderson,  North  Caro- 
lina. His  mother  was  a  daughter  of  Mr.  J.  D. 
Hawkins,  of  Franklin  county.  Both  parents  died 
when  our  subject  was  quite  young.  He  was  raisetl 
by  his  grandparents,  and  early  acquired  those  in- 
dustrious, prompt  and  methodical  habits  that  have 
characterized  his  subsequent  career.  He  was  ap- 
pointed by  his  uncle  purchasing  agent,  paymaster 
and  general  superintendent  of  the  contract  works 
on  the  Blue  Ridge  Railroad  in  South  Carolina  in 
1859  3nd  has  e\'er  since  been  connected  with  rail- 
road interests. 

In  April,  1861,  he  joined  the  First  Regiment, 
North  Carolina  Cavalry,  being  one  of  the  first  \ol- 
unteer  regiments  of  the  Confederacy  and  was  soon 
promoted  to  the  rank  of  second  and  first  lieuten- 
ant respectively,  and  in  July,  1862,  he  became 
Captain  of  Company  B  and  participated  in  the 
memorable  cami)aigns  of  Stuart's,  afterwards 
Hampton's  Brigade,  with  much  credit.  While 
clieering  on  his  men  at  the  engagement  of  Jack's 
Shops,  September  22,  1863,  he  was  shot  through 
the  lungs,  and  it  was  thought  at  the  time  fatally 
wounded.  To  the  astonishment  of  his  surgeon, 
who  had  pronounced  his  case  hopeless,  he  survived. 
Twice  he  attempted  to  rejoin  his  old  command, 
and  upon  hearing  of  General  Lee's  surrender, 
though  contrary  to  jjliysician's  orders,  he  reported 
to  Johnson's  commaml  and  was  paroled  with  the 
surviving  veterans  of  that  gallant  army  at  (ireens- 
boro'.  Finding  himself  ])enniless  at  the  conclusion 
of  the  war,  he  made  proposals  to  the  companies 
interested   in    the    RaleiLrh   and    <iaston    and    the 


Petersburg]!  railroads,  to  lease,  equip  and  tn 
operate  the  ferry  at  Gaston,  which  ferry  was  ne- 
cessitated on  account  of  the  destruction  of  the 
bridges  at  Weldon  and  Gaston.  Succeeding  in 
this  undertaking,  he  was  shortly  afterwards  ap- 
pointed superintendent  of  the  Raleigh  &  Gaston 
Railroad,  and  together  with  the  president,  Dr. 
Hawkins,  build  many  miles  of  the  Raleigh  &  Au- 
gusta Air  Line.  Resigning  this  position  in  1875, 
he  was  subsequently  appointed  by  the  lessees  of 
the  North  Carolina  Railroad  (the  Richmoml  & 
Dan\ille  Railroad  Company)  superintendent  of 
the  North  Carolina  division  and  his  occupancy  of 
this  position  resulted  in  the  towns  of  Reidsville, 
Durham,  Winston,  etc.,  becoming  prosperous  and 
growing  centres  of  trade. 

He  at  length  became  assistant  president  of  the 
Richmond  and  Danville  system.  He  is  interested 
also  in  the  extension  of  the  various  branches  of  the 
W.  N.  C.  line.  He  was  prominent  in  rescuing  and 
placing  upon  a  firm  basis  tills  linr,  at  tlic  time  its 
condition  was  most  desperate.  He,  with  several 
others,  advanced  fifty  thousand  dollars  to  that 
road,  which  loan  was  never  repaid,  and  the  line  at 
length  passed  into  the  hands  of  the  Richmond  and 
Danville  organization,  and  in  1881  Mr.  Andrews 
became  its  president.  By  his  advice  the  Richmoml 
and  Danville  owners  have  spent  two  ami  a  half 
million  dollars  in  its  construction.  The  line  now 
reaches  to  Paint  Rock,  one  hundred  anil  nineteen 
miles  from  Salisbury,  and  connects  with  the  rail- 
roatl  system  of  East  Tennessee,  the  other  branch 
reaching  to  Murjiliy,  in  Cherokee  county,  one  hun- 
dred and  twenty-eight  miles  west  of  Ashville.  As 
showing  the  engineering  difficulties  which  were 
overcome  it  may  be  .stated  that  in  one  division 
of  the  ro;id,  in  a  distance  of  twelve  miles,  there  are 
three  thousantl  four  hundred  and  ninety-five  feet 
of  tunneling,  while  the  track  rises  over  one  thou- 
sand feet.      In   1880  Col.  .Andrew  s  built  the  Chap- 


564 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


pel  Mill  Railroad,  which  is  ten  miles  long.  He  has 
also  taken  great  interest  in  the  Atlantic  &  North 
Carolina  Railroad,  formerly  under  his  control. 

He  is  a  staunch  Democrat,  but  has  little  ambition 
to  figure  in  political  affairs.  He  has  been  several 
times  a  member  of  the  board  of  aldermen  of 
Raleigh.  A  director  in  most  of  the  principal  bank- 
ing and  insurance  companies,  he  has  always  been 
actively  identified  with  everything  tending  to  pro- 
mote the  welfare  of  both  his  City  and  State.  He 
is  prominent  and  highly  esteemed  in  the  Masonic 
Order. 


In  September,  1869,  he  married  Miss  Johnson,  of 
Charlotte  ;  they  have  five  children. 

Col.  Andrews  is  genial  and  affable  in  manner, 
of  agreeable  presence  and  commanding  address, 
and  never  fails  to  leave  a  good  impression  upon 
all  with  whom  he  has  to  do.  He  is  justly  called 
the  "  Railroad  king  of  the  old  North  State."  He 
e.Kerts  a  great  influence  in  his  State  and  is  thor- 
oughly identified  with  her  material  advancement 
and  .social  welfare,  ami  his  selection  as  one  of  her 
representatives  to  the  World's  Columbian  Exposi- 
tion was  a  well-deserved  Imnor. 


GEORGE    MAYHEW   MOULTON, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


THE  subject  of  this  sketch  was  born  in  Read.s- 
boro,  Vermont,  March  15,  1851,  the  .son  of 
Joseph  T.  and  Maria  J.  (Babcock)  Moulton.  His 
father  was  born  in  Chichester,  near  Concord,  New 
Hampshire,  in  which  neighborhood  the  family  had 
resided  for  .several  generations.  TheMoultons  have 
always  been  prominent  in  both  civil  and  military 
affairs,  General  Jonathan  Moulton  of  revolutionary 
fame  being  great-great-grandfather  of  our  sub- 
ject. When  George  was  but  two  years  of  age,  his 
father  (with  whom  he  is  now  [1892]  in  partner- 
ship) removed  to  Chicago.  He  attended  the 
public  schools  of  Chicago,  and  by  his  studious 
habits  acquired  an  excellent  education,  graduat- 
ing from  the  Chicago  High  School,  with  the 
class  of  1868,  when  seventeen  years  of  age.  Me 
was  selected  to  deliver  an  original  German  oration 
at  the  commencement  exercises  hekl  in  the 
Crosby  Opera  House.  After  thirteen  years  of 
continuous  schooling,  he  joined  his  father  and  ac- 
quired a  thorough  and  practical  knowledge  of  the 
carpenter's  trade. 

About  this  time  (1870)  the  city  of  Dulutli  was 
developing  rapidly,  and  both  he  and  his  father 
went  thither,  and  were  employed  in  building  the 
first  "-rain  elevator  ever  erected  in  that  section  of 
the  country.  That  was  before  railroads  had  pen- 
etrated the  Far  West,  and  the  latter  i)art  of  Mr. 
Moulton's  journey  to  Dululh  was  made  by  sled 
stao'e.  It  was  not  until  August,  1870,  that  the 
first  railway  train  entered  Duluth.  On  his  arrival 
in   that   city,   he   was  appointed   secretary   to   the 


vice-president  and  general  manager  of  the  com- 
pany, and  also  acted  as  general  clerk  of  the  work. 
This  elevator  was  completed  in  the  fall  of  1870, 
and  Mr.  Moulton  remained  for  some  time  to  aitl 
in  operating  the  plant,  and  then  went  to  Still- 
water, Minnesota,  to  superintend  the  management 
of  the  company's  elevator  at  that  place,  and  re- 
mained in  charge  of  it  until  the  fall  of  1871.  Re- 
turning to  Duluth,  he  remained  there  a  short  time 
and  then  returned  to  Chicago.  What  a  sight  met 
his  gaze  on  his  arrival  !  It  was  Thanksgiving  day. 
1 87 1.  He  Iwd  left  the  city  prosperous,  growing 
rapidly  and  with  bright  prospects.  He  returned 
to  find  it  blackened  and  begrimed — a  heap  of 
ruins.  Mr.  Moulton,  Sr,,  had  numerous  contracts 
on  hand  for  the  erection  of  grain  elevators  in  va- 
rious ])laces,  among  them  the  (ialena  Elevator  at 
Chicago,  in  charge  of  which  our  subject  was 
placed  as  foreman,  lie  was  thus  engaged  until 
the  sjjring  of  1872— his  father,  in  the  nuan- 
time,  having  secured  tlie  contracts  for  the  build- 
ing of  the  Advance  Elevator  at  East  St.  Louis 
of  one  hundred  and  fift\-  thousand  bushels  ca- 
pacity ;  the  Central  Elevators  at  St.  Louis,  hav- 
ing a  capacity  of  five  hundred  thou.sand  bushels, 
and  the  East  St.  Louis  Elevators,  with  a  capacity 
of  one  million  bu.shels.  Our  subject  now  became 
associatetl  with  his  father  as  a  partner,  and  m 
March,  1872,  he  arrived  in  St.  Louis,  and  was 
engaged  there  some  eighteen  months  sui)erm- 
tending  the  construction  of  these  mammoth  con- 
cerns and   planning   for  others.     Their  firm  have 


-^n^y 


BIOCRAPHICAL  JUCTIOXAKV  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


567 


also  erected  elevators  at  Hethalto,  Illinois,  and  St. 
Genevieve,  Missouri,  each  having  a  capacity  of  fifty 
thousand  bushels,  while,  in  addition,  they  have  liad 
the  designing  of  elevators  erected  at  Venice,  Illi- 
nois, and  Indianapolis,  Indiana.  They  have  erected 
elevators  in  Portland,  Baltimore.  Buffalo,  Norfolk, 
Toledo,  Detroit,  Cleveland,  Minneapolis,  Chicago, 
Kansas  City,  New  York,  Tacoina  and  numerous 
other  cities.  Chicago  has  long  been  their  head- 
quarters, but  in  their  business  as  architects  and 
builders  of  grain  elevators,  Mr.  Moulton  has  vis- 
ited all  the  large  cities  and  the  grain  centers,  from 
the  Atlantic  to  the  Pacific. 

Forming  a  copartnership  with  George  H.  John- 
son (in  1877)  he  engaged  in  the  manufacture  of 
hollow-ware  tiles  for  floor  partitions  and  roofs  and 
wall-girder  and  column  coverings,  one  of  the  most 
useful  discoveries  of  modern  times  for  building, 
and  which,  had  it  been  adopted  in  Chicago  pre- 
vious to  the  great  fire,  would  have  saved  many 
costly  structures.  The  development  of  this  enter- 
prise was  so  rapid,  that  in  1880  the  Ottawa  Tile 
Company  was  established,  with  works  at  Ottawa, 
Illinois,  purchasing  ultimately  a  large  tract  of  clay 
land. 

The  name  of  this  company  was  afterwards 
changed  to  "  Pioneer  Fire  Proof  Construction  Com- 
pany," which  is  now  one  the, largest  clay  manufac- 
turing establishment  in  the  world,  with  a  paid- 
up  capital  stock  of  five  hundred  thousand  dol- 
lars. Mr.  Moulton,  who  has  taken  an  active 
interest  in  its  affairs  from  its  origin,  is  its 
president  and  principal  stockholder — the  com- 
pany purchasing  in  1S85  a  half  interest  in  the 
River  Bank  Coal  Company,  of  Streator,  Illinois,  of 
which  Mr.  Moulton  has  since  become  the  largest 
stockholder  and  president.  He  is  also  president 
of  the  Commerce  Vault  Company,  a  director  of  the 
Chicago  Deposit  Vault  Company  and  President 
of  the  Produce  Cold  Storage  Exchange.  He  is 
also  a  stockholder  in  the  Masonic  Temple  Asso- 
ciation of  Chicago,  the  Masonic  Temple  Associa- 
tion of  Joliet,  Illinois,  and  of  the  World's  Colum- 
bian Exposition  Company.  He  was  vice-presi- 
dent of  the  Knights  Templar  and  Mason's  Life 
Indemnity  Company  until  1 890,  when  he  suc- 
ceeded, as  president  of  this  association,  the  late 
Dr.  J.  Adams  Allen. 

In  1885  Mr.  Moulton  helped  to  incorporate  the 
Illinois  Masonic  Orphans'  Home,  and  served  as  its 


president  until  his  voluntary  retirement  in  189O. 
He  is  still  one  of  its  board  of  trustees.  The  asso- 
ciation has  acquired  property  now  (1892)  valued 
at  fifty  thousand  dollars,  and  the  home  itself  is  a 
source  of  great  good  to  a  large  number  of  orphans, 
children  of  Masons. 

Mr.   Moulton  was  created  a  Master   Mason  in 
Covenant  Lodge,  No.  526,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  Februar>- 
12,  1875;  exalted  Royal  Arch  Mason  in  Corinthian 
Chapter,   No.  69,  R.  A.  M.,  May  17,  1875;    made 
Knight  Templar  in  St.  Bernard  Commandery,  No. 
35,  K.  T.,  September  i,  1875;  crowned  Sovereign 
Grand  Inspector  General,  Thirty-third  Degree,  A. 
A.  S.  R.,  for  Northern  Jurisdiction  U.  S.  A.,  Sep- 
tember 20,  1887;  created  Knight  of  the  Red  Cross 
of  Rome  and  Constantine,  Knight  of  St.  John  of 
Palestine  and  Guardian  Knight  of  the  Holy  Sep- 
ulchre  in  the  Grand  Council  of  the  State  of  Illi- 
nois, October  25,  1875,  and   is  also  a  member  of 
Queen    Esther  Chapter,  O.   E.  S.,  and    Medinah 
Temple,  A.  A.  O.,  Nobles   of  the  Mystic  Shrine. 
In   Lodge   he  was   Senior   Deacon,  1877;    Junior 
Warden,     1878     and     189O      Senior    Warden    in 
1891,    and   Worshipful    Master    in    1892,   and    in 
Chapter,  King,  1884  and  1885,  and  High 'Priest, 
1886;  in  Council,  Thrice  Illustrious  Master,  1884; 
in  Commander}',    Captain-General,    1878;    Gener- 
alissimo,   1879,  ^"<^'    Eminent  Commander,   1883; 
in    Chicago    Council,    Princes  of  Jerusalem,   Six- 
teenth  Degree,    A.    A.    S.    R.,  Sovereign    Prince 
Grand   Master,    1 884-5  ;  '"   Consistorj'.  S.   P.    R. 
S.,    Thirty-second     Degree,    A.    A.    S.    R.,    Sec- 
ond   Lieutenant-Commander,    1885-7,    •I'ltl    First 
Lieutenant-Commander  up  to  January,  1890,  when 
he  became  the  Illustrious  Commander-in-Chief;  in 
Illinois  Grand  Council  of  Deliberation,  A.  A.  S.  R., 
Grand  Standard  Bearer  for  three  years  from  1885, 
being  elected  Minister  of  State  and  Grand  Orator 
for  1890-92;    in  Grand  Chapter,  R.  A.  M.,  Grand 
Master  of  the  First  Veil,  1888,  and  the  same  of  the 
Third  Veil,  1889;  Grand  Royal  Arch  Captain,  189O, 
and  now  occupies  the  position  of  Grand   Principal 
Sojourner;  in  Grand  Council,  R.  and  S.  M.,  Grand 
Conductor,  1886;  Deputy  Grand   Master,  1887-8; 
Grand   Master,  1889;   in  .Grand  Commandery,  K. 
T.,  Grand   Sword   Bearer,  1885;   Grand   Standard 
Bearer,  1889;  Grand  Captain-General,  1887;  Grand 
Generalissimo,  1 888;   Deputy  Grand  Commander, 
1889;  Grand  Commander,  1890,  and  while  at  Wash- 
ington in  1889,  he  was  appointed  Grand  Standard 


568 


BlOGRArillCAL  DICTIOXARV  AXP  I'lV^TRAIT  GALLERY. 


Bearer  of  the  Grand  Encampment,  K.T.,  U.  S.  A., 
for  the  term  ending  August,  1892. 

Mr.  Moulton  was  for  four  years  a  major  in  the 
Second  Regiment,  lUinois  National  Guards,  being 
commissioned  in  1886,  and  resigning  in  Januar}-, 
1890.  He  served  in  the  two  weeks'  campaign  at 
the  Union  Stock  Yards,  at  the  time  of  the  kibor 
riots  in  18S7,  and  was  with  In's  regiment  at 
all  of  its  encampments  antl  wlienexcr  it  did  ac- 
tive duty. 

Socially,  he  is  much  respected  and  well  known, 
being  a  member  of  the  Union  League,  MiUona  and 
Acacia  clubs  and  of  the  Sons  of  Vermont,  etc., 
and  is  also  a  member  of  tlie  Chicago  Art  Insti- 
tute and  the  lUimtis  Association  of  Architects. 


He  was  married  to  Miss  Anna  Florence  Gar- 
land, of  Burlington,  Iowa,  March  12.  iSj;,.  They 
have  two  children.  luiith  May,  born  at  Winona, 
Minn.,  and   .\rthur  ("larland,  born  in  Chicago. 

Eminently  successful  both  in  commercial  and 
social  affairs,  George  M.  Moulton  is  a  good  type 
of  that  class  of  men,  who,  not  content  in  remain- 
ing in  the  position  to  which  they  were  born,  have 
pushed  forward,  and,  by  creating  and  becoming 
connected  with  enterprises  of  more  than  ordinary 
importance,  ha\-e  become  ])ublic  benefactors. 

Though  still  in  the  prime  of  life,  Mr.  Moulton 
has  been  the  recipient  of  repeated  and  well-de- 
served honors  from  his  fellow-citizens  which  mark 
the  esteem  in  w  hich  he  is  held. 


HON.  WILLIAM   VOCKE, 


CHICAC.O,    ILL. 


A  brilliant  example  of  the  self-made  American 
citizen,  and  a  grand  exemplification  of  the 
progress  that  an  ambitious  foreigner  can  make  in 
this  country  of  unbounded  opportunities,  is  shown 
in  the  case  of  William  Vocke,  one  of  the  leading 
German-American  la\\\-ers  in  the  west.  His 
singular  success  is  due  to  his  own  energy  and  his 
high  ideal. 

Mr.  Vocke  came  to  this  country  from  his 
native  citv,  the  historic  Miiiden.  in  Westphalia,  at 
the  age  of  seventeen  years.  This  was  in  1S56. 
His  father  was  a  go\-eriinient  secretar\-  in  the 
Prussian  service,  and  after  his  death  the  son 
believing  that  tlie  United  States  offered  him  a 
future  not  to  be  found  in  his  own  countr_\-, 
emigrated  hither.  He  landed  in  New  York,  and 
for  a  short  time  de\-ole(l  liis  efforts  to  various 
bread-winning  occupations,  but  the  western  fever 
seized  him,  and  he  followed  the  star  of  empire  to 
Chicago,  lie  was  for  a  time  a  carrier  in  the 
employ  of  the  Staats-Ziiiiing,  and  his  district  was 
the  western  half  of  the  North  Side,  lie  toiled 
hard  and  was  in  every  way  a  faithful  implo)  e, 
working  from  two  o'clock  in  the  morning  until 
eight  at  the  distribution  of  his  newspapt-rs.  His 
days  were  given  to  the  stud_\-  of  the  kiw.  He 
had  not  the  money  to  \ise  for  his  tuition,  and 
Professor  Henry  Booth  offered  him  the  instruction 
and    time    in    wliich    to   pay    for   it.     The   earnest 


young  man  in  due  time  saved  enough  mone\-  to 
settle  the  claim,  and  it  brought  him  as  much 
pleasure  as  he  e\'er  felt  before  or  since  to  st]uare 
his  account  w  ith  his  benefactor. 

After  leaving  the  Stactls-Zcitiing  in  i860,  he 
entered  the  employ  of  Ogden.  Fleetwood  &  Co., 
then  the  leading  reah-estate  firm  of  Chicago,  as  a 
collector.  On  the  tlay  that  the  war  l)roke  out,  he 
enlisted  and  his  employers  helil  him  in  such 
esteem  that,  when  he  resigned,  the_\-  [Ji'esented  him 
with  a  handsome  smn  of  money  in  gold. 

t'aiitain  \'ocke  eidisted  first  in  the  three  months 
service  as  a  private.  liis  company  was  soon 
merged  into  the  Twenty-fomtli  Illinois  Volunteer 
Infantrv,  and  he  was  in  ,ill  the  engagements  in 
which  the  .\rm\-  of  the  Cumberland  took  part 
until  the  muster-out  of  his  ri'ginient.  .After  the 
expir.ition  of  his  term  of  service  he  was  mustered 
out  as  captain  of  Company  D.  of  the  Twenty- 
fourth  Illinois. 

When  he  returned  to  Chicago,  he  again  entered 
the  service  of  the  Staals-Zcitiing;  this  time  as  its 
city  editor.  For  nearly  a  year  he  held  this 
responsible  chair,  discharging  his  duties  with 
signal  ability.  h'roni  April,  1 865,  to  November, 
1869.  he  was  the  clerk  of  the  police  ciuirt  of  this 
cit_\-.  He  resumed  the  stud\-  of  the  law  in  the 
meantime,    and    was    admitted  to  the  bar  in   1867. 

While    in    the    arui\-    Captain    Vocke    gave    as 


X^c^e^ 


JifOCKA/'ll/C.U.  PJCr/iKWlh-y  .t.\I)  /'ORTR.UT  CAIJ-EKY. 


571 


much  time  as  ho  could  spare  to  literary  stuiiies, 
and  this  branch  of  mental  effort  he  continued 
after  he  had  beaten  his  sword  into  a  ploughshare. 
He  won  for  himself  a  high  reputation  as  a  dis- 
criminating student  and  a  polished  writer.  He 
contributed  various  articles  to  the  German  and  the 
English  press,  and  in  1869  he  published  a  volume 
of  poems,  excellent  translations  of  the  lyrics  of 
Julius  Rodenberg.  The  newspapers  of  Germany, 
as  well  as  of  this  country  joined  in  praising  his 
work  in  enthusiastic  terms.  Soon  after  the 
publication  of  this  book,  he  determined  to  give 
all  of  his  time  to  the  study  and  jiractice  of  the 
law.  He  was  held  in  such  great  favor  hv  his 
countrymen  and  the  Chicago  public  tliat  In- 
quickly  secured  a  lucrative  practice,  ami  il  li.is 
been  increasing  with  the  years  ever  since. 

He  was  elected  a  member  of  the  Illinois  legis- 
lature in  1S70,  and  among  other  noteworthy 
achievements  drafted  and  introduced  a  life 
insurance  bill  which  at  the  time  was  indorsed 
by  the  editor  of  the  Chicago  Tribune  as  "  the 
soundest  and  most  judicious  measure  ever 
proposed  to  a  legislative  body  on  that  subject." 
Captain  \'ocke  while  a  member  of  the  legislature 
was  instrumental  in  framing,  at  the  extra  session 
shortly  after  the  great  fire  of  1871,  what  is  known 
as  the  '•  burnt  record  act." 

In  1873,  he  formed  a  copartnership  with 
General  Joseph  H.  Leake  which  continued  unlil 
General  Leake  was  appointed  United  States 
District  attorney  in  1880.  Captain  Vocke  was 
also  a  member  of  the  Chicago  Board  of  Lducation 


from  1877  to  1S80.  For  a  number  of  years  past 
he  has  been  the  attorney  for  the  Imperial  German 
Consulate  at  this  point,  and  among  other  offices 
of  honor  he  has  held  the  presidency  of  the 
German  Society  of  Chicago  for  the  aid  of 
emigrants. 

Captain  N'ocke,  although  deeply  engrossed  in 
the  law,  finds  time  now  and  then  to  do  more  or 
less  literar\-  work.  1  lis  latest  effort  takes  the  form 
of  a  well  written  hook  on  the  legal  systems  of  this 
country.  Its  title  is  ••The  admini.stration  of 
justice  in  the  United  States:  and  a  synopsis  of  the 
mode  of  procedure  in  our  federal  and  state  courts, 
and  all  federal  and  state  laws  relating  to  subjects  of 
interest  to  aliens."  This  work  was  published  not 
long  ago  in  Cologne  in  the  German  language,  and 
has  not  only  received  the  highest  encomiums  of 
German  jurists,  but  has  proved  of  great  benefit 
to  German  lawyers  and  German  business  men. 

In  1867,  he  was  joined  in  matrimony  to  Elise 
Wahl,  a  charming  woman,  and  they  have  a  familj- 
of  six  children  —four  daughters  and  tun  sons. 

No  man  is  luUl  in  higher  esteem  by  the 
Germans  of  Chicago  than  William  \'ocke.  He 
has  an  exceedingly  amiable  and  upright  character, 
and  a  mind  stored  with  all  the  riches  of  wide 
reading  and  deep  research.  Histor>'  and  the 
science  of  government  are  his  specialties,  and 
there  is  no  better  authority  on  these  topics  in  this 
city  than  he.  He  is  a  delightful  entertainer  and 
a  genial  companion,  and  these  traits,  coupled  with 
his  mental  gifts,  make  him  a  shining  center  in  a 
wiile  circle  of  friends. 


ALIH'RT    RMMKTT    HUTCIIINS, 


ClIICACO,    I  I.I. 


TH  F-  subject  of  this  biograph)-  was  born  at 
Warren,  Trumbull  county,  Ohio,  October  7, 
1845,  to  John  and  Rhoda  Hutchins,  and  was  the 
youngest  son  of  a  family  of  five  children.  His  p.a- 
ternal  grandfather,  Samuel  Hutchins,  was  a  native 
of  Connecticut,  anti  was  a  pioneer  in  that  historical 
section  known  as  the  Western  Reserve  of  Ohio,  so 
closely  associated  with  the  names  of  some  of  the 
foremo.st  men  in  the  affairs  of  the  nation.  Hon. 
John  Hutchins,  our  subject's  father,  was  for  many 
years  a  re)>resi-nt;itive  in  Congress  from   the  nine- 


teenth tlistrict  of  Ohio,  succeeding  Hon.  Joshua 
R.  Gitldings,  and  being  succeeded  by  Hon.  James 
A.  Garfield.  1  le  retired  from  active  business  a  few- 
years  ago,  and  is  still  (  1S92)  li\  ing  at  the  ripe  age 
of  seventy-six. 

Albert  received  a  public  school  education  in  his 
native  town,  entering  into  all  his  studies  earnestly 
and  acquitting  himself  with  great  credit.  He  early 
evinced  a  desire  and  aptitude  for  a  mercantile 
pursuit,  and  at  the  age  of  twenty  years  entered 
the  service  of   Messrs.  Westlake,  Hutchins  &  Co., 


572 


BIOGKAl'lIICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


oil  merchants  at  Oil  City,  Pennsylvania.  Witli 
commendable  zeal  he  went  energetically  about 
learnini^  the  details  of  the  business,  which  he  soon 
mastered.  He  continued  in  the  employ  of  that 
firm  about  six  years,  wlien  he  accepted  a  position 
with  the  Standard  Oil  Company,  travelint^  for  it 
and  establishing  branch  offices  in  various  large 
cities    throughout    the    countr\-.      In    1S74    Air. 


Ilutchins  was  entrusted  with  the  important  mis 
sion  of  opening  up  the  business  of  this  large  and 
growing  corporation  in  Chicago,  since  which  time 
he  has  been  closely  identified  with  its  interests 
there.  He  now  occupies  a  responsible  position  in 
the  Standard  Oil  Compan)-,  of  Indiana. 

Mr.  Hutchins  was   united   in   marriage  to  Ada 
Mo.xon,  of  Washington,  D.  C,  October  21,  1886. 


FRANK   S.  WEIGLEY, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


FRANK  S.  WEIGLEY  is  the  senior  member 
of  the  well-known  law  firm  of  Weigle}-, 
Bulkley  and  Gray.  He  was  born  in  Galena,  Illi- 
nois, April  4,  1854.  His  father,  Wellington  Weig- 
le}-, was  for  many  years  a  prominent  member  of 
the  Illinois  bar.  Frank  S.  acquired  his  education 
at  Hamilton  College  and  was  admitted  to  the  bar 
of  this  State  in  1875.  For  some  years  thereafter 
he  was  engaged  as  a  stenographer  in  the  Courts 
of  Cook  county,  where  he  acquired  a  thorough 
knowledge  of  the  rules  of  practice  as  well  as  the 
methods  of  the  best  lawyers  at  the  Chicago  bar. 
In  1882  he  abandoned  short-hand  reporting  and 
devoted  himself  exclusively  to  the  practice  of  law. 
His  success  was  marked  from  that    time.      Durintj 


the  past  few  years  he  has  been  engaged  in  many 
of  the  leading  cases  of  this  county.  He  has  be- 
come thoroughly  known  and  enjoys  the  distinc- 
tion of  being  recognized  as  a  leading  lawyer, 
both  in  the  office  and  court  room.  The  firm  of 
Weigley,  Blukley  and  Gray  number  amongst 
their  clients  many  of  the  wealthiest  firms  and  cor- 
porations of  Chicago,  as  well  as  a  valuable  for- 
eign clientage. 

In  1870  Mr.  Weigley  married  Emih'  L.,  a 
daughter  of  the  late  Dennison  Card,  of  Roches- 
ter, New  York,  who  for  several  years,  during 
Presitlent  Lincoln's  administration,  representctl 
the  government  as  diplomatic  agent  in  South 
America. 


ALVIN    HULBKRT. 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


Tl  1 1*1  life  of  one  who  has  achieved  success  in 
any  honorable  undertaking  is  an  interesting 
and  useful  study.  The  nature  of  man  is  so  com- 
plex, his  indi\"iduality  sn  proimunced.  his  process 
of  reasoning  so  varied  and  peculiar,  that  no  two 
human  beings  are  ever  found  to  be  nearly  alike. 
Some  men  snatch  success  from  the  very  jaws  of 
failure,  some  are  alternately  prosperous  and  un- 
fortunate, while  a  few  are  so  evenly  balanced  th.it 
their  li\es  appear  to  be  utterly  free  from  friction. 
Their  course  is  steadily  onward,  and  from  youth 
to  maturity  there  is  no  indication  of  a  single  back- 
ward step.  Theirprogress  is  as  steady  and  unswerv- 
ing as  the  progress  of  the  sun  in  its  course  to  the 
zenith,   and   their  way  adown   the  slope  of  life  as 


l)eaceful  and  serene.  \\'hatc\'er  they  undertake 
develops  regularly  to  its  fitting  consummation. 
Such  men  are  richly  endowed  by  nature.  They 
are  ever  reliable  when  .society  demands  their  ser- 
vices, and  are  weak  in  no  particular  and  under  no 
circumstances.  They  are  never  unduly  elated  by 
success,  because  they  have  anticipated  it,  and  a 
reverse  never  finds  them  unprepared. 

Alvin  Hulbert,  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  is  a 
man  of  this  type.  He  has  come  to  occupy  an 
enviable  position  in  the  social  and  business  world 
through  no  wild  speculation,  hazardous  enterprise 
or  sudden  blaze  of  genius.  There  has  been  little 
friction  in  the  movements  of  this  quiet,  calm,  un- 
jiretcntioiis  man,  who,  from  an  humble  beginning, 


'  ■    ^^  ^   -'-'-^-'r--- 


BIOCRArillCAL  niCTIOX.lRV  .IXn  PORTRAIT  CATTERY. 


575 


has  won  his  waj-  to  the  front  rank  of  Chica<;o's 
prominent  citi/.ens.  His  hopeful  face  has  been 
ever  turned  to  the  morning  and  his  feet  firmly 
set  on  solid  ground,  while  his  homely,  old-fash- 
ioned adherence  to  honesty  and  trutli  has  brought 
him  the  respect  and  confidence  of  all  who  know 
him.  Unostentatious,  unassuming,  he  is  yet  firm 
in  his  convictions  and  courageous  in  the  dischage 
of  duty.  Through  an  extended  career  of  public 
life  in  almost  every  branch  of  the  hotel  business, 
he  has  made  a  host  of  friends  and  scarcely  an 
enemy,  and  is  to-day  a  splendid  representative  of 
the  successfal  business  man  of  the  nineteenth 
centun,-. 

Mr.  Hulbert  was  born  in  Rochester,  New  York, 
in  January,  1829,  and  is  the  son  of  Alvin  and 
Margaret  Hulbert.  His  father  was  a  hotel  man, 
keeping  "taverns"  in  Rochester  and  vicinity,  and 
thus  Mr.  Hulbert  was  literally  born  into  the  busi- 
ness in  which  he  has  been  so  successful  and  made 
himself  such  an  enviable  name. 

His  first  practical  identification  with  the  hotel 
business  was  in  1850,  when  he  entered  a  hotel  at 
Avon  Springs,  New  York,  in  the  capacity  of  clerk, 
and  served  therein  for  three  consecutive  seasons. 
He  next  became  the  first  agent  of  the  railroad 
which  was  constructed  througli  Le  Roy,  New 
York,  at  which  place  his  father  was  at  the  time 
proprietor  of  a  hotel,  but  not  liking  the  business, 
we  next  find  him  in  a  clerkship  in  the  Eagle 
Hotel.  Rochester,  then  kept  by  Alderman  Dewey 
Walbridge.  He  remained  in  this  position  until 
1857,  when  he  severed  his  connection  with  the 
Eagle,  and  going  to  Lafayette,  Indiana,  became 
the  proprietor  of  a  hotel  in  that  city.  Selling  out 
his  business  in  Lafayette,  he  removed  to  Chicago 
in  1839.  and  accepted  the  position  as  cashier  of 
the  old  Sherman  House,  where  he  remained  until 
the  demolition  of  that  house,  preparatory  to  re- 
building, was  commenced,  when  he  became  cash- 
ier of  the  old  Mattison  House,  kept  by  Mr.  C.  H. 
Bissell,  afterward  his  partner  in  the  Sherman. 
Upon  the  comi)letion  of  the  Sherman  he  resumed 
his  position  as  cashier  of  the  house  under  Messrs. 
Gage  and  W'aitc,  filling  that  position  until  April, 
1863.  when  he  became  cashier  of  the  Tremont 
House,  where  he  remained  until  the  great  fire  of 
1871.  Upon  the  rebuilding  of  the  Tremont,  after 
this  calamity,  he  returned  to  it  as  manager.  In 
1873   Mr.    Hulbert  entered    into  a  co|)artnersiiip 


witli  Mr.  C.  H.  HisscU  iiiuler  the  n.ime  of  Hissell 
and  Hulbert,  and  the  firm  became  the  proprietors 
of  the  Sherman  House.  A  few  months  later  Mr. 
Bissell  died,  when  Mr.  Hulbert  purchased  his  in- 
terest in  the  house  and  became  sole  proprietor. 

In  1882  Mr.  Hulbert  retired  from  the  Sherman 
House,  and,  as  he  then  thought,  from  hotel  man- 
agement;  but  the  attractions  of  a  calling  of  which 
he  had  made  a  life-long  study  were  stronger  than 
the  love  of  ease,  and  in  the  fall  of  1886,  in  com- 
pany with  Mr.  Willis  Howe,  he  bought  the  Lin- 
del  Hotel,  of  St.  Louis,  and  entered  once  more 
into  active  business.  A  year  later  they  took  Ma- 
jor J.  H.  Chassaing  into  the  partnership,  and  the 
present  universal  popularity  of  the  Lindel  is 
proof  enough  of  the  business  worth  and  eminent 
qualifications  of  these  gentlemen. 

On  July  I,  1890,  Mr.  Hulbert  and  Mr.  Wm.  S. 
Eden,  a  gentleman  well  known  in  the  business 
and  social  circles  of  Chicago,  took  possession  of 
the  well-known  Tremont  House  under  a  long 
lease,  and  entirely  remodeled  that  famous  host- 
elry, so  that  when  com|)leted  it  was  second  to 
none  in  Chicago.  The  office  is  lighted  by  three 
large  domes  of  the  latest  architectural  designs ; 
new  modern  plumbing  was  introduced  through- 
out the  entire  building,  with  porcelain  baths,  etc., 
etc.  The  Tremont  has  long  been  a  favorite  with 
the  better  class  of  commercial  travelers,  and  the 
present  proprietors  have  added  largely  to  its 
popularity. 

Mr.  Hulbert  was  married  in  Rochester,  New 
York,  in  1868,  to  Emma  T.  Drake,  daughter  of 
Mr.  Alden  Drake,  of  that  city,  a  man  prominent 
in  railroad  circles,  and  five  children  have  blessed 
the  union,  viz. :  Leila  M..  Jessie  D.,  Julia  T., 
Emma  C.  and  Alvin.  Jr.  In  1880  he  was  elected 
to  the  City  Council  from  the  Twelfth  Ward  on 
the  Republican  ticket,  but  his  taste  for  private 
business  exceeded  his  liking  for  public  office,  and 
at  the  end  of  his  term  he  steadily  declined  fur- 
ther political  honors. 

Personally  Mr.  Hulbert  is  a  man  of  command- 
ing physique,  with  clear-cut  features  and  a  benev- 
olent countenance.  Time  has  touched  him  with 
a  gentle  hand,  and  in  appearance  he  is  a  much 
younger  man  than  the  calendar  makes  him.  He 
has  a  charitable  spirit  and  a  warm,  kindly  heart. 
Years  of  successful  endeavor  have  not  chilled  the 
warm  current  in   his  blood  or  deadened  his  finer 


57^ 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARV  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


sensibilities.  Like  sound  fruit  that  comes  to  a 
full  ripening  on  the  parent  stem,  he  embellishes 
the  office  of  host  and  is  such  a  landlord  as  an 
artist  loves  to  paint,  the  playwright  to  sketch  and 
the  novelist  to  dwell  upon. 

The  Great  Northern  fire-proof  hotel,  construct- 
ed for  Messrs.  Hulbert  and  Eden,  is  one  of  the 
most  imposing  structures  in  America.  It  is  fif- 
teen stories  high,  built  of  steel  with  terra  cotta 
brick  exterior.  Situated  on  Dearborn  street,  w  ith 
three  frontages,  viz.,  on  Dearborn,  Quincy  and 
Jackson  streets,  and  directly  opposite  the  custom- 
house, it  is  the  most  convenient  and  central  loca- 
tion of  any  hotel  in  Chicago.  The  hotel  has  four 
hundred  and  fifty  rooms;  two  hundred  of  them 
with  baths.  These  rooms  are  wainscotted  with 
marble  and  furnished  with  every  modern  con- 
venience. 


The  Great  Northern  has  the  largest  rotunda  in 
the  West,  and  that  without  a  single  column. 
This  is  finished  from  floor  to  ceiling  in  marble, 
lighted  by  massive  domes  and  surrounded  by  a 
marble  promenade  for  ladies.  The  building 
throughout  has  marble  wainscotting,  with  mar- 
ble borders,  and  all  the  stairways  are  of  the  same 
beautiful  material.  There  are  four  passenger  ele- 
vators :  the  whole  house  is  lighted  by  modern 
incandescent  lights,  and  every  other  appliance 
which  serve  to  make  it  a  perfect  hotel. 

The  Great  Northern  is  run  on  strictly  Euro- 
pean plan.  There  are  seven  dining-rooms,  all 
furnished  in  a  style  to  match  their  magnificent 
surroundings.  In  fact,  nothing  that  money  can 
buy  is  wanting,  for  the  proprietors  intend  to 
make  this  hotel,  as  its  name  implies,  the  hotel  of 
Chicago. 


THOMAS   WILCE, 


CHICAGO,   ILL 


THE  subject  of  this  sketch  finds  an  appropri- 
ate place  in  the  history  of  those  men,  whose 
sterling  integrity,  force  of  character,  whose  forti- 
tude amid  discouragements,  and  whose  ability 
and  good  sense  in  the  management  of  compli- 
cated affairs,  have  contributed  so  much  to  the 
development  of  Chicago  and  the  West.  Mr. 
Wilce's  business  life  has  been  marked  by  tireless 
industry,  prudence  and  economy,  and  he  has  ac- 
quired his  large  fortune  clear  of  any  taint  or  sus- 
picion of  any  trickery,  dishonesty  or  meanness. 

As  long  ago  as  1855,  Professor  O.  S.  Fowler,  of 
New  York  city,  in  an  analysis  of  Mr.  Wilce's  char- 
acter, said :  "  He  is  as  conscientious  as  a  man  can 
be,  and  will  pay  to  the  last  farthing,  and  do  his  duty 
to  the  very  utmost.  He  is  a  passionate  lover  of 
liberty,  and  will  never  be  restrained  or  driven.  He 
will  do  his  own  thinking,  and  will  think  more  of 
his  character  and  his  honor  than  all  the  world  be- 
sides." Seven  years  later  he  wrote  of  Mr.  Wilce: 
"He  is  a  man,  every  inch  of  him.  Full  and  run- 
ning over  with  life,  able  to  work  like  a  triHi])cr  in 
order  to  consume  life-energy  as  fast  as  in-  ni;nui- 
factures  it." 

Mr.  Wilce  is  to-day,  at  the  age  of  seventy-three 
years,  a  strong  man,   plnsicaih   and  nientalK •;   nf 


great  business  capacity  and  a  thorough  organizer; 
he  is  strong  in  his  friendships,  never  willingly  giving 
up  one  in  whom  he  has  trusted;  always  willing  to 
help  the  worthy  needy ;  strong  in  his  dislikes  of 
men  whom  he  does  not  believe  to  be  truthful, 
worthy  and  honest,  and  strong  in  his  hatred  of  all 
the  tricks  in  business. 

He  is  always  bu.sy,  except  when  he  is  asleep. 
There  is  none  of  the  affected  formalities  of  An- 
glo-mania in  or  around  his  home  or  offices,  everj-- 
thing  is  thoroughly  and  hai)i>ily  American,  and  the 
visitor  finds  a  courteous,  kindly  welcome  in  his 
presence. 

Thomas  Wilce  was  born  at  Boscastle,  Cornwall, 
England,  July  28,  18 19.  His  father,  Thomas 
Wilce,  who  was  born  at  St.  Kew,  England,  Sep- 
tember 6,  1790,  during  his  earl\-  years  was  a 
farmer,  but  afterward  was  appointed  an  exciseman. 
He  died  at  the  age  of  seventy-fi\'e. 

The  mother  of  our  subject  was  Mary,  iii'f  Wa- 
ning, wh<i  was  born  at  St.  Clether,  England.  She 
ilictl  in  iSjv  Thomas  had  but  limited  school 
pri\ileges.  I  le  ini])r<)\ed  every  hour,  in  which  it 
was  possible  fur  him  tn  study,  until  he  was  ten 
\-ears  of  age,  when  he  went  to  work  on  the  farm  ; 
this  ccintinued    until    his  twentieth   year,  when  he 


BIOGR.irHICAL  DICTIOXAKY  A.XD  PORTRAIT  liAIJ.ERY. 


579 


abandoned  farming  and  for  two  and  a  half  years 
applied  himself  dili<;ently  as  a  carpenter's  appren- 
tice. On  the  loth  of  April,  1S42.  he  sailed  from 
his  native  shores  and  landed  at  Quebec,  Canada, 
on  the  2 1st  of  May.  Three  days  later  he  began 
work  at  his  trade  in  Montreal.  He  followed  the 
life  of  a  journeyman  for  about  a  year,  and  then 
formed  a  partnership  with  a  Mr.  Walker  and  en- 
gaged in  building.  In  this  they  were  successful 
for  a  time,  but  the  business  not  continuing  to  grow 
after  eighteen  months  of  joint  labor,  the  partner- 
ship was  dissoUed.  Mr.  Wilce  then  formed  a  part- 
nership with  a  Mr.  John.son,  a  Scotchman,  and  after 
one  year  this  partnership  was  dissolved,  and  Mr. 
Wilce  then  went  into  businessalone  and  prosecuted 
it  vigorously  until  August.  1848,  when  he  clo.sed 
out  and  removed  to  Chicago.  In  1846,  two  years 
after  he  started  in  business  by  himself,  he  married 
Jane  Carlisle  (daughter  of  William  and  Jane 
Carlisle,  of  Nottingham,  England),  the  noble 
woman  who,  for  nearly  half  a  century,  has  stood 
faithfully  by  his  side,  sharing  his  joys  and  sor. 
rows,  and  through  all,  by  her  patience,  her  love 
and  confidence,  her  strength  of  character,  has 
made  brighter  and  lighter  the  care  and  toil  of  his 
life.  There  were  no  indications  in  the  Chicago 
of  1848  of  a  great  city,  and  the  business  of  a 
builder  in  those  days  was  characterized  by  much 
simplicity.  But  of  the  business  done,  Mr.  Wilce 
had  his  fair  share,  and  continued  to  do  so  until 
1853,  when  he  sold  out  and  returned  to  Montreal, 
and  spent  the  winter.  Returning  to  Chicago  in 
March,  1854.  he  resumed  the  building  business, 
and  continued  it  with  marked  success  until  1867. 
In  1873  he  engaged  in  the  planing-mill  business 
with  his  eldest  son,  adding  thereto,  in  1877,  the 
business  of  wholesaling  lumber. 

This  son  retired  in  1879,  ='"'^*  ^'r.  Wilce  contin- 
ued the  business  with  his  four  younger  sons,  add- 
ing to  his  plant  two  large  saw-mills  in  Michigan, 
and  thus  quadrupling  his  lumber  business  in  Chi- 
cago. His  trade  originally  was  in  pine  lumber, 
but  was  gradually  changed  into  the  hardwood  lum- 
ber trade,  until  now  (!892i  the  firm  of  Thomas 
Wilce  &  Sons  are  the  largest  dealers  in  hardwood 
and  maple  flooring  in  the  world,  and  have  made 
this  a  specialty,  inventing,  in  1S85,  an  automatic 
boring  machine  with  other  imjjrovements,  which 
has  made  them  the  leading  manufacturers  of 
hardwood   flooring  in   the  world,  earning  at   the 


present  time  a  stock  of  thirty-five  million  feet  of 
this  valuable  material.  Of  eleven  children  born 
to  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Wilce,  three  sons  and  two  daugh- 
ters survive,  the  sons  Edmund  Harvey,  George, 
Carlisle  and  Thomas  Edgar  being  associated  with 
their  father  in  his  business;  the  daughters  are, 
Mrs.  Man.-  J.  V.  Chandler  and  Mrs.  Jennie  L. 
Spr>'. 

Mr.  Wilce  is  a  director  of  the  Wasliingtonian 
Home,  and  was  treasurer  of  that  institution  for 
si.\  years. 

In  politics  he  is  a  staunch  Republican,  and  was 
elected  in  1S69  on  that  ticket  to  the  city  council 
of  Chicago,  and  served  the  first  year  as  second  on 
the  finance  committee  and  the  last  year  as  its 
chairman.  He  was  four  years  on  the  Chicago 
Board  of  Education.  In  his  political  career,  as  in 
his  business  and  private  life,  he  discharged  his 
duties  faithfully  and  to  the  full  satisfaction  of  the 
people.  In  person  Mr.  Wilce  is  a  tall,  well-built 
man,  commanding  in  figure,  with  an  open,  kindly- 
face,  that  inspires  confidence  and  respect.  His 
great  sympathy  with  the  unfortunate  is  one  of  his 
marked  characteristics.  He  believes  in  humanity 
to  men  rather  than  prison  walls,  as  a  reformatory 
measure,  claiming  with  other  advanced  humani- 
tarians and  philanthropists  that  "  if  a  man  has  com- 
mitted a  fault  it  does  not  make  him  a  better  man 
to  throw  him  into  prison  and  thereby  everlastingly 
brand  him  as  a  bad  man."  While  this  is  true,  he 
also  believes  and  knows  that  to  be  well  descended 
is  desirable,  but  that  it  proves  the  virtue  and 
merit  of  our  ancestors,  not  our  own,  that  riches 
are  valuable,  but  at  the  disposal  of  fortune, 
and  therefore  uncertain ;  that  they  render  the 
possessor  the  prey  of  sycophants  and  tricksters, 
and  may  be  possessed  by  the  worst,  as  well 
as  the  best  of  men;  that  glory  is  entitled  to 
regard,  but  that  it  is  unstable:  that  health  is  a  pre- 
cious boon,  but  that  is  easily  impaired  ;  that  knowl- 
edge, fdunded  upon  truth,  dispensed  in  truth  and 
charity,  inspires  belief  and  gratitude,  and  consti- 
tutes the  prime  factor  in  virtuous  character;  that 
it  is  character  alone,  of  all  things,  in  man's  pos- 
session, that  is  immortal,  everlasting,  that  is  im- 
l)regnable  to  all  assaults  of  vice  and  defies  false 
accusation,  nor  is  it  taken  away  by  sickness  or  en- 
feebled by  time  or  the  loss  of  wealth  ;  that  a  g<iod 
name  is  more  precious  than  gold  :  that  the  under- 
standing  may   grow   youthful   by   age;   and   that 


58o 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AND  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


time,  which  decays  all  material  thinyjs,  imjiroxes  was  t^i\en  an  opportunity  to  work,  to  be  frugal,  to 
and  enriches  a  good  name.  be  honest,  to  be  truthful,  and  had  enough  man- 
There  has  been  nothing  phenomenal  in  Mr.  liness  of  character  to  accept,  with  a  high  and  lofty 
W'ilce's  success  ;  it  has  been  the  result  of  constant  purpose,  the  responsibilities  of  life  ;  and  it  has 
application  and  indefatigable  energy.  There  has  been  his  high  and  sacred  purpose  to  leave,  as  a 
been  no   lucky  stroke   of  fortune  in  his  life.     He  rich  inheritance  to  his  children,  a  good  name. 


CHARLES   KERN, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


A  CONSIDERABLE  part  of  the  various  ele- 
ments who  have  contributed  to  the  great- 
ness of  Chicago  by  their  energj-  and  enterprise  is 
of  German  nationality — its  strength  being  esti- 
mated at  fully  thirt}-  j^er  cent,  of  the  total  popula- 
tion— and  the  list  of  business  and  public  men  of 
Chicago  who  rank  foremost  in  the  estimation  of 
their  fellow-citizens  shows  a  flattering  proportion 
of  men  whose  cradles  stood  in  the  "  Fatherland." 

The  German-Americans  are,  as  a  rule,  prosper- 
ous, educated,  progressive  in  their  ideas,  and  as 
law-abiding  citizens  stand  second  to  none. 

One  of  their  foremost,  and  certainly  one  of  the 
most  prominent  and  highly  respected  representa- 
tives, is  presented  in  this  sketch. 

Charles  Kern  was  born  at  Otterbach,  Rhenish 
Bavaria,  April  18,  1 831,  as  the  third  son  of  John 
and  Mary  (Stemmler)  Kern.  He  received  a  good 
German  education  in  his  native  town,  securing  all 
the  advantages  offered  by  the  schools  of  that  fa- 
mous province.  But  soon  the  bounds  of  his  native 
city  became  too  narrow  for  him.  He  wanted 
wider  fields  for  his  restless  ambition,  and  in  1849 
he  decided  to  make  this  country  his  second  home. 
At  the  age  of  eighteen  he  landed  on  our  shores 
and  after  a  short  stay  at  Dover,  Tennessee,  settled 
in  Terre  Haute,  Indiana.  Here  he  went  into  the 
restaurant  business  which,  owing  to  his  good  man- 
agement, proved  a  success. 

Mr.  Kern's  popularity  with  his  townsmen  is  best 
shown  by  the  fact,  that  in  1862  he  was  nominated 
for  sheriff  by  the  Democrats  of  Vigo  county  and 
triumphantly  elected,  although  Vigo  was  a  Repub- 
lican county.  His  administration  of  this  impor- 
tant office  was  such  as  to  draw  from  friend  and  ad- 
versary' the  acknowledgment  that  he  was  the  best 
sheriff  Vigo  county  ever  had. 

Upon  the  conclusion  of  his  term   of   oiTice,  Mr. 


Kern  removed  to  Cincinnati,  where  he  became  in. 
terested  in  the  management  of  the  Gault  House, 
but,  in  1865,  he  decided  to  locate  further  West, 
and,  with  characteristic  circumspection,  selected 
Chicago  as  the  place  w  hich  would  allow-  full  sway 
to  his  enterprising  nature.  He  opened  a  restaur- 
ant and  made  rapid  headway.  The  great  fire  of 
1871  found  him  the  owner  of  a  prosperous  estab- 
lishment, and  in  a  few  hours  the  fruits  of  years  of 
hard  work  were  reduced  to  ashes. 

With  no  money  and  with  obligations  to  meet, 
but  nothing  daunted,  he  made  a  new  start  by 
erecting  a  temporary  building  on  the  old  site  and 
re-opening  business  ere  the  flames  had  ^scarcely 
died  out.  By  perseverance,  pluck  and  determina- 
tion he  was  soon  enabled  to  clear  off  his  old  obli- 
gations in  full  and  was  again  on  the  high  road  to 
success. 

His  political  career  in  Chicago  extends  o\er  a 
long  period.  His  first  appearance  in  active  poli- 
tics was  in  1868,  when  he  was  nominated  by  the 
Democratic  party  of  Cook  county  for  sheriff.  The 
county,  how'ever,  being  at  that  time  strongly  Re- 
publican, the  Democratic  party  suffered  defeat. 
In  1870  and  1872  he  was  again  nominated  for  this 
office,  both  times  by  acclamation  ;  and  although 
the  party  was  twice  defeated,  the  popularity-  of 
Mr.  Kern  showed  itself  conspicuously  in  his  run- 
ning ahead  of  his  ticket  by  four  thousand  \otes 
and  a  corresponding  marked  and  steady  decrease 
of  Republican  majorities.  For  a  fourth  time  placed 
in  nomination  in  1876,  he  was  elected  sheriff  by  a 
majority  of  si.x  thousand  votes,  receiving  ten  thou- 
sand more  votes  than  the  other  candidates  on  the 
Democratic  ticket,  who  were  defeated  by  an 
average  of  four  thousand  votes.  His  administra- 
tion proved,  as  was  expected,  one  to  reflect  credit 
alike  upon  himself  and  his  i:)art\-. 


^//o4/X/Ud 


BIOC.R.irillCAL   DICnoXAnV  .W!i  I'lVn-RAIT  CM.l.ERY. 


583 


Renominated  in  1S78,  he  came  witliin  three 
thousand  votes  of  election,  while  the  Democratic 
ticket  at  hirge  was  defeated  by  an  average  of  thir- 
teen thousand  votes.  From  that  time  on  he  de- 
voted his  energies  to  his  growing  business  in- 
terests, though  receiving  many  flattering  offers  by 
his  party  for  offices  of  responsibiUty  and  trust. 
Yet  tliis  was  not  by  any  means  an  indication  that 
he  was  "  out  of  politics,"  for  Charles  Kern  w  as 
ever  prominent  in  the  councils  of  the  Democratic 
party  and  ever  active  in  its  campaigns.  He  was 
repeatedly  elected  to  offices  of  trust  by  the  Icatl- 
ing  Democratic  organizations  of  Chicago.  He 
filled  the  office  of  vice-president  of  the  Iroquois 
Club.  In  1885  he  was  elected  president  of  the 
County  Democracy  and  re-elected  in  i88(j.  This 
society,  which  is  a  power  in  Chicago  politics, 
received  a  thorough  reorganization  under  his 
leadersliip. 

Receiving  the  unanimous  nomination  for  the 
office  of  treasurer  of  Cook  county  by  the  Demo- 
cratic county  convention,  September  5,  1890,  he 
ran  again  ahead  of  his  ticket  and  was  elected  by 
a  majority  of  nearly  4,000  votes  for  the  term  of 
four  years. 

Mr.  Kern  was  married  in  1852  to  Miss  Mary  A. 
Whitman,  of  Lyons,  N.  Y.  They  have  two  chil- 
dren— Josephine  and  Harry  W.  In  social  circles 
Mr.  Kern  is  equall)-  prominent  as  in  politics.      He 


belongs  to  the  Masonic  fraternilj',  being  a  mem- 
ber of  Ashlar  Lodge,  No.  308,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of 
Washington  Chapter,  No.  43,  R.  A.  M.,  and  of 
Cliicago  Commander}-.  Xd.  19,  K.  T.  Being  a 
io\cr  of  field  sports  and  acknowledgetl  to  be  one 
of  the  best  shots  in  the  country,  he  invariably 
spends  such  time  as  he  can  devote  to  his  own 
pleasure  and  recreation  on  the  prairies  and  among 
the  lakes  and  rivers  of  the  great  Northwest. 

lie  is  president  of  the  Audubon  Club,  wiiicii 
office  he  has  held  twelve  years,  and  was  in  KS85 
elected  president  of  the  Illinois  State  Sportsmen's 
iVssociation,  while  he  was  also  president  of  the 
first  sportsmen's  organization  of  the  city  of  Clii- 
cago, the  Prairie  Shooting  Club.  His  efforts  have 
for  )ears  been  ilirecteil  toward  the  enactment 
and  enforcement  of  stringent  laws  for  the 
preservation  of  game,  anil  have  not  been  with- 
out residts.  A  member  of  the  Washington  Park 
Club,  he  is  the  owner  of  several  teams  of  noteti 
excellence. 

The  whole  career  of  Charles  Kern,  \  iewed  from 
either  the  commercial,  social  or  political  stand- 
])(>int,  furnishes  a  s[)lendid  example  of  the  success 
which  may  be  achieved  by  strict  attention  to 
tluties,  sterling  integrity  and  perseverance.  Un- 
aided, b\'  his  own  efforts  Charles  Kern  is  to-day 
one  of  the  most  respected  and  influential  of  Chi- 
cauo's  leadinsj  citizens. 


JACOB    NEWMAN, 


CHICVGO,    ILL. 


AMONG  the  eminent  members  of  llie  Chicago 
bar  wh(j  should  still  be  classed  as  young 
men  the  name  of  Jacob  Newman  is  conspicuous. 
He  is  a  self-made  man.  He  was  born  in  Germany 
on  November  12,  1852,  one  of  a  large  family  of 
children. 

When  he  was  four  years  old,  the  famik-  immi- 
grated to  the  United  States  and  settled  on  a  farm 
in  Hutler  county,  Ohio.  Jacob  was  ambitious,  and 
had  a  thirst  for  knowledge,  and  the  quiet,  un- 
eventful life  on  the  farm  afforded  him  feu- 
opportunities  and  fewer  attractions,  and  at  the 
early  age  of  fourteen  years  we  finil  him  start- 
ing out  for  himself.  Without  we.dth  nr  its 
accessories,  but    with    that    natural   inde[)ent!ence 


of  spirit  and  ]>erse\crance  which  has  always 
characterized  him,  he  went  to  Noblcsvilie,  In- 
diana, where  he  reniained  si.x  years.  In  1867 
he  removed  to  Washington,  Pennsylvania,  and 
during  the  same  year  settled  in  Chicago,  where  he 
has  since  resided.  By  self-sacrifice  and  frugality 
he  was  enabled,  at  the  age  of  eighteen,  to  enter 
the  University  of  Chicago,  where  he  jnu-sued  a 
thorough  course  of  study  and  graduatctl  with 
JKinors  in  1873.  1  le  puisued  the  study  of  law  in 
the  office  of  Hon.  James  R.  Doolittle,  and  was  ad- 
mitted to  the  bar  of  Illinois  in  1875.  He  was 
fortunate  in  escaping  the  term  of  probation,  which 
usually  falls  to  the  lot  of  young  lawyers,  by  securing 
at  once  a  partnership  with  Juilge  (iraliam,  then  a 


584 


nhH-.R.ll'IIICM.   lUCTlO.WlKV  .l\J>   I'ORTK.HT  GALLERY. 


rcsidL'iit  of  Chicago,  and  imiiiLtliatcly  entered  into 
the  active  practice  of  his  profession.  Judge  Gra- 
ham deeming  it  advantageous  to  liimself  to  remove 
to  a  western  city,  Kfl  Mr.  Newman  alone  in  busi- 
ness, but  with  an  established  clientage  which  he 
was  able  not  onl\-  to  retain  but  to  increase.  He 
remained  alone  until  1881.  when  he  formed  a 
partnership  with  Mr.  Adolph  Moses,  under  the 
firm  name  of  Moses  &  Newman.  In  1890  the 
firm  of  Moses  &  Newman  was  dissohed  and  since 
that  time  Mr.  Newman  has  been  alone.  The 
secret  of  Mr.  Newman's  success  as  a  lawyer 
is  his  familiarity  with  the  ])rinciples  and  ground- 
work of  the  law  as  a  science,  and  his  quick- 
ness to  discover  the  salient  points  of  the  case 
in  cjuestion  and  his  readiness  in  applying  the 
principles  governing  them,  as  distinguished  from 
what  is  commonly  called  "  a  case  lawyer ;"  that 
is,  he  is  versed  in  all  kinds  of   litigation  and  can 


adapt  himself  to  any  case,  but  has  been  largely 
employed  as  corporation  counsel.  He  has  been 
prominently  identified  .vith  the  Chicago  Gas 
Company's  litigation  in  its  \-arious  forms. 

Mr.  Newman  is  a  member  of  the  Sinai  Congre- 
gation, and  is  a  liberal-minded  Jew.  He  is  actively 
connected  with  several  educational  and  charitable 
institutions.  In  social  circles  he  is  much  esteemed, 
and  is  an  acti\-c  member  of  the  Union  League  and 
.Standard  clubs,  rolitically,  he  has  always  been  a 
Republican.  He  also  belongs  to  the  Masonicfra- 
ternity. 

On  May  30,  1888,  he  was  married  to  Miss  Min- 
nie Goodman,  daughter  of  Mr.  Hugo  Goodman, 
an  early  settler  of  Chicago,  where  he  has  resided 
for  the  past  forty  years.  Mr.  Newman  deserves 
great  credit  for  what  he  has  accomplished,  and  it 
must  certainly  be  a  source  of  just  pride  to  know 
that  what  he  has  achieved  is  due  alone  to  himself. 


FRANKLIN    H.    HEAD, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


AMONG  the  many  prominent  citizens  of 
Chicago  there  is  no  one,  probably,  better 
known  or  held  in  greater  esteem  than  is  the  sub- 
ject of  our  present  sketch.  Descended  from  an 
old  and  worthy  English  family,  who  had  long 
been  settled  in  New  England,  Franklin  H.  Head 
was  born  at  Paris,  Oneida  county.  New  York, 
January  24,  1835.  His  father,  Harvey  Head,  and 
his  mother,  Calista  (Simmons)  Head,  were  well 
known  and  much  esteemed  in  the  neighborhood 
in  which  they  lived,  while  his  grantlfather  was 
one  of  the  early  settlers  of  (Jneida  county,  hav- 
ing removed  thither,  in  1790,  from  New  England, 
just  one  Innulred  years  ago.  (  )ur  subject's  father 
pursued  the  calling  of  a  farmer,  and  as  such  was 
well  and  favorably  known. 

Young  Head  receivetl  his  education,  as  ha\e 
many  of  our  most  prominent  and  respected  citi- 
zens, in  the  public  schools  of  his  native  county. 
Leaving  these,  he  decided  to  enter  Hamilton  Col- 
lege, New  York,  but  before  doing  so  he  took  a 
preparatory  course  at  Cazcnoxa  .Seminar)-.  Going 
through  this  successfull)-.  he  entered  the  college, 
and  in  1856  he  graduated  from  th.il  institution. 
He  afterwards  decided  to  study  law,  and,  in   1858, 


he  again  graduated,  but  this  time  fnmi  the  law- 
department  of  the  same  institution.  About  this 
time  the  great  west  seems  to  have  had  for  Mr. 
Head,  as  it  had  for  many  others,  also  of  Chicago's 
most  prominent  citizens,  considerable  attraction, 
and  he  shortly  afterw-ards  removed  to  Wisconsin, 
and  settled  in  Kenosha,  where,  for  many  years, 
he  carried  on  a  \ery  successful  legal  practice,  be- 
ing elected  district  attorney,  and  remaining  there 
until  1865,  when  he  concluded  to  go  further  west 
still,  and  in  this  \-ear  removed  to  Salt  Lake  City. 
The  law.  hc>we\er,  was  not,  it  seems,  Mr.  Head's 
\-ocalion  :  he  desired  to  enter  into  some  business 
w  lieic  his  abilitii's  would  ha\e  a  larger  sco[)e 
and  from  which  the  results  would  be  financially 
greater,  ami  on  his  removal  to  Utah  he  engaged 
in  the  raising  of  cattle,  and  also  in  coal  mining, 
his  business  at  this  time  frequently  taking  him  to 
.San  h'rancisco  ami  other  cities  of  the  Pacific 
.Slope,  in  1869  Mr.  Head  decided  to  dispose  of 
his  interests  in  .Salt  Lake  City,  and  he  accordingly 
(.lid  so. 

Returning  eastwarti,  he  ne.\t  located  in  Chicago, 
which,  l)\-  this  time,  was  growing  \ei-y  rapiilly. 
In    p,irlnei->liip     with     Wirt     De.xter    and     N.      K. 


rh-a^c^  /Lo  \^     A--7(Ce_^.^^ 


7?,r  inilun,  n,lit,.Htmy  A^Bu/rurauf  /i,  r/i,,;iii., 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


587 


Fairbank,  he  engaged  in  the  manufacture  of 
lumber  and  iron,  etc.,  at  Elk  Rapids,  Michigan, 
having  the  general  management  of  the  busi- 
ness up  to  the  beginning  of  the  present  year, 
when  he  sold  his  interest  in  the  same  to  Mr.  N. 
K.  P'airbank.  In  1882  he  became  interested  in 
the  Chicago  Malleable  Iron  Works,  of  which  he 
was  for  many  years  president.  In  fact,  he  has 
but  recently  retired  from  the  presidency  of  this 
company,  but  he  still  retains  a  considerable  inter- 
est therein.  As  a  partner  in  the  firm  of  Dole  & 
Co.  his  firm  control  the  elevators  (grain)  on  the 
C,  B.  &  O.  Railroad,  and  in  this  particular  line 
undoubtedly  do  the  most  extensive  business  in 
the  city  of  Chicago.  These,  however,  do  not 
sum  up  the  whole  of  Mr.  Head's  interests,  for  in 
addition  he  is  a  director  of  the  Northwestern 
National  Bank,  probably  one  of  the  most  pros- 
perous and  popular  banks  in  this  city.  He  is  also 
vice-president  of  the  American  Trust  &  Savings 
Bank,  equally  as  well  and  as  favorably  known, 
and  a  director  in  the  World's  Columbian  Exposi- 
tion. 

Interested  in  many  minor  institutions,  it  may 
be  easily  imagined  Mr.  Head  is  a  busy  man,  as 
with  such  interests  at  stake,  he  needs  to  be  ever 
alert  and  watchful.  But  yet  he  finds  time  to 
preside  at  the  general  meetings  of  the  Illinois 
Training  Schools  for  Boys  (located  at  Elmwood), 
an  institution  in  which  he  takes  considerable 
interest.  He  has  had  the  honor  of  being,  twice 
president  of  the  well-known   Union  League  Club 


of  this  city.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Univer- 
sity Club  and  is  prcsiilent  of  the  Chicago  Literar}' 
Club. 

In  politics  he  is  a  Republican,  and  takes  con- 
siderable interest  in  city,  state  and  national 
political  affairs,  though  he  has  never  sought  for 
preferment,  and  would  probably  not  welcome 
same,  even  if  it  was  offered  him. 

Liberal  in  his  religious  views,  he  attends  Pro- 
fessor Swing's  Church,  though  he  is  not  a  member 
of  same. 

He  married,  in  i860,  Miss  Catherine  P.  Durkee, 
daughter  of  Harvey  Durkee,  Esq.,  of  Kenosha, 
Wisconsin.  She  was  a  lady  of  rare  accomplish- 
ments, and  died  in  October  of  this  year,  leaving 
as  issue  three  daughters  to  mourn  her  loss,  viz., 
Elizabeth,  Catherine  and  Margaret. 

In  personal  appearance,  Mr.  Head  is  of  medium 
height,  of  robust  health  and  of  fair  complexion,  a 
gentleman,  in  fact,  of  fine  appearance.  In  style 
unpretentious,  free  from  egotism  or  vanity, 
sociable  and  pleasant  in  manner.  He  abounds 
with  energ}'  and  determination. 

Being  a  man  of  great  foresight,  he  has  so  made 
his  investments  as  to  reap  good  results  alid  can 
now  enjoy  the  fruits  of  his  labor,  with  the  con- 
sciousness of  having  lived  an  upright,  honorable 
and  successful  life,  gained  a  host  of  friends  and  is 
so  appreciated  by  his  fellow-citizens  that  the 
name  of  Franklin  H.  Head  is  synonymous  for 
sterling  qualities  of  a  rare  order,  and  he  is  a 
citizen  of  whom  Chicago  is  duly  proud. 


LEWIS  WOOD   ROBINSON, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


ON  the  day  that  Sumter  fell.  President  Lin- 
coln called  for  seventy-five  thousand  men, 
and  more  than  that  number  quickly  and  cordially 
responded.  Amongst  those  who  offered  their 
ser\Mces  to  their  country  at  that  time  was  a  young 
man,  who  held  a  diploma  of  civil  and  mechanical 
engineering.  His  ofTer  was  accepted,  and  he  was 
assigned  to  the  United  States  Steamship  "  Ken- 
nebec" as  third  assistant  engineer.  Thus  Lewis 
W'ood  Robinson  entered  the  navy.  In  that  ser- 
vice to-day  he  holds  the  high  position  of  Chief 
Engineer,    ranking    as    Lieutenant    Commander, 


and   was  a  member    of  the   Naval    Examination 
Board. 

Chief  Robinson  was  born  near  Haddonfield, 
New  Jersey,  March  7,  1840,  and  is  the  youngest 
son  in  a  family  of  seven  children.  His  brother 
Franklin  died  at  the  end  of  the  late  war  from  sick- 
ness brought  on  by  exposure  during  the  last  cam- 
paign. His  father,  William  Robinson,  belonged 
to  a  New  Jersey  family.  He  joined  the  Twenty- 
eighth  Regiment,  New  Jersey  Infantry  and  died 
from  injuries  received  at  Fredericksburg.  His 
mother,  who  died  when  he  was  only  one  year  old, 


588 


BIOl.RAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  A.\D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


was  of  English  descent,  her  father,  George  Wood, 
was  a  sailor  on  board  an  English  man-of-war,  but 
left  his  ship  to  join  the  American  army  of  the 
revolution. 

Young  Robinson  received  his  elementary  edu- 
cation at  the  public  schools.  Baker's  Corner, 
Camden  county.  New  Jersey,  and  continued  his 
studies  at  the  Polytechnic  College  of  the  State  of 
Pennsylvania.  In  1861  he  took  the  degree  of 
bachelor  of  civil  engineering,  and  in  1864  the  de- 
gree of  master  of  mechanical  engineering.  In  his 
examinations,  Mr.  Robinson  proved  himself  a 
young  man  of  considerable  ability  :  painstaking, 
methodical  and  successful  in  study.  He  won  the 
esteem  of  his  professors  by  his  docility  and  hard 
work,  and  was  a  favorite  with  his  fellow  students 
on  account  of  his  generous  nature  and  honorable 
character.  While  fond  of  field  sports  and  of  a 
buoyant  and  social  disposition,  he  was  an  earnest 
and  an.xious  student,  and  during  his  college  course 
laid  the  foundation  for  the  success  and  reputation 
which  he  has  since  attained. 

In  1 86 1  he  had  completed  his  studies,  was 
twenty-one  years  of  age,  and  although  he  had  in- 
tended to  devote  himself  to  civil  engineering,  he 
offered  his  services  to  the  naval  department  and 
was  accepted.  His  first  appointment  was  third 
assistant  engineer  on  the  U.  S.  S.  "  Kennebec," 
one  of  the  West  Gulf  Blockading  Squadron,  under 
command  of  Commander  Farragut.  In  this,  his 
first  experience  of  sea  life,  our  young  engineer  was 
thrown  into  the  very  center  of  the  sea  fight  and 
participated  in  the  capture  of  Forts  Jackson  and 
St.  Philip  and  also  of  the  city  of  New  Orleans. 
During  this  terrible  struggle,  Engineer  Robinson 
must  have  given  proof  of  great  ability  and  bravery, 
for  we  soon  after  find  him  gazetted  as  Chief 
Engineer  of  the  "Kennebec,"  raised  to  the  grade 
of  first  assistant  engineer  in  the  na\y  and  with 
the  rank  of  lieutenant.  .Step  by  step  Chief 
Robinson  crept  up  from  1866  to  1874,  holding 
various  important  positions  in  the  department,  and 
receiving  honorable  preferment  as  the  reward  of 
ability  and  gallant  service.  In  1875  he  was  chosen 
general  superintendent  of  the  bureau  of  machinery 
of  the  Centennial  Exhibition  held  in  Philadelphia 
in  1876.  The  naval  authorities  granted  him  lea\e 
of  absence  to  accept  that  honorable  position, 
which  he  filled  with  the  greatest  satisfaction,  not 
onl\-  to  the  promoters  of  the  exhibition,  but  to  the 


manufacturers  of  the  world.  As  a  proof  of  this 
we  may  quote  the  inscription  which  a  \aluable 
gold  watch  in  the  possession  of  Chief  Robinson 
bears:  "Presented  by  the  exhibitors  of  machinery 
at  the  Centennial  Exposition,  1876,  to  Lewis 
Wood  Robin.son,  U.  S.  Navy,  superintendent  of 
the  bureau  of  machinery,  in  appreciation  of  his 
ability  as  an  officer  and  uniform  courtesy  as  a 
gentleman." 

After  his  leave  of  absence  the  navy  department 
appointed  him,  January,  1877,  senior  instructor  of 
steam  engineering,  at  Annapolis,  Maryland,  and 
in  1880  he  was  sent  to  the  "Minnesota,"  the  flag- 
ship of  the  training  fleet,  and  was  afterwards  made 
chief  of  that  ship.  In  1882  he  was  transferred  to 
the  "Tennessee,"  the  flagship  of  the  Home  and 
North  Atlantic  Fleet,  and  the  following  year  we 
find  him  promoted  to  Chief  Engineer  with  rank  of 
Lieutenant  Commander.  Later  he  was  ordered 
to  Philadelphia  to  superintend  the  fitting  out  of 
the  "Ossipee"'  and  then  sent  on  a  cruise  with  her 
to  the  Asiatic  Station.  In  1887  Chief  Robinson 
was  appointed  a  member  of  the  Examining 
Board  of  Naval  Engineers,  which  position  he  held 
until  September,  1891. 

When  the  Director  General  and  the  Board  of 
Control  of  the  World's  Columbian  Exposition 
sought  a  man  of  energy,  ability  and  experience 
for  the  difficult  position  of  chief  of  the  department 
of  machinery  and  superintendent  of  motive  power, 
they  paid  Chief  Robinson  the  high  compliment  of 
selecting  him.  He  accepted  and  commenced  the 
duties  of  his  office  September  5,  1891,  the  naval 
authorities  having  detailed  him  to  that  duty  by  re- 
quest. The  selection  of  Chief  Robinson  has  given 
great  satisfaction  both  in  this  country  and  abroad. 
The  duties  are  so  numerous,  various  and  extensive. 
requiring  so  much  knowledge,  experience  and 
skill  that  the  a[)i)ointment  itself  carries  with  it 
and  is  the  expression  of  a  very  high  compliment, 
w  hich  in  this  case  is  well  deserved. 

Chief  Robinson,  although  over  fifty-one  years 
of  age,  looks  much  younger,  lie  is  a  man  of  fine 
physical  development,  and  is  the  picture  of  robust 
health.  He  was  married  September  5,  1865,  to 
Miss  Mary  De  A.  Rupp,  youngest  daughter  of  I. 
D.  Rupp,  Esq.,  the  well  known  and  prominent 
historian,  whose"  Pioneer  History  of  Pennsylvania" 
is  a  work  of  recognized  ability  and  authority. 

Chief  Robinson's  family  consists  of  three  sons 


BIOuRAPIIICAL  DICTIOXARY    IXD  POKTRAIT  CAI.I.ERY. 


589 


and    three    dau<jhters.       The    oldest    son,     Lewis  chief   is  a   thoroughly  domestic  man  and  finds  in 

Wood,  Jr.,  is  a  young  man  of  considerable  promise,  the   company  of  his  accomplished  wife  and  chil- 

and  is  assistant  general  manager  of  the   Westing-  dren   his  greatest    happiness,  and    esteems    it  his 

house  Electric  and  Manufacturing  Co.     The  other  highest  duty  to  procure  them  ever}-  comfort   and 

children    are    still     pursuing   their  studies.     The  pleasure. 


JESSE    HOLDOM, 


CHICAGO,    II. L. 


AMONG  the  well  and  favorably  known  law- 
yers connected  with  the  Chicago  bar,  it 
would  be  difficult,  perhaps,  to  name  one  who 
stands  higher  in  the  profession,  or  who  is  more 
generally  respected,  than  is  the  subject  of  this 
sketch — Jesse  Holdom.  He  has  been  a  resident 
of  Chicago  since  1868,  and  since  1872,  when  he  was 
admitted  to  the  bar,  has  been  actively  and  con- 
tinuously engaged  in  the  practice  of  his  profession. 

He  was  born  in  London,  England,  August  23, 
1851.  He  received  an  academic  education  in  his 
native  city,  and  upon  its  completion  entered  a  law 
office  in  London,  and  there  gained  a  good  rudi- 
mentary- knowledge  of  English  law.  Upon  com- 
ing to  the  United  States,  in  1868,  he  located  in 
Chicago,  and  after  some  two  years  of  further  study 
entered  the  law  offices  of  Messrs.  J.  C.  and  J.  J. 
Knickerbocker  (in  1870).  Upon  J.  C.  Knicker- 
bocker being  elected  judge  of  the  Probate  Court, 
Mr.  Holdom  entered  into  partnership  with  his 
brother,  J.J.  Knickerbocker.  The  firm  of  Knick- 
erbocker and  Holdom  maintained  a  leading  posi- 
tion at  the  bar,  during  the  ten  years  of  its  e.xist- 
ence,  and  developed  a  large  and  e.xtensive  prac- 
tice. This  partnership  was  dissolved  February 
15,  1889.  and  since  that  time  Mr.  Holdom  has 
practiced  alone.  Common  law,  chancery,  real 
estate  and  probate  suits  have  constituted  the 
bulk  of  his  business,  and  he  has  devoted  more 
time  to  these  branches  than  to  others,  while  he 
has  been  connected  with  and,  in  fact,  had  the 
entire  management  of  some  of  the  largest  estates 
that  have  been  through  the  courts. 

The  case  of  Winch,  minor,  vs.  Thomas  T(jbin, 
guardian,  which  was  carried  to  the  Supreme  Court 
of  Illinois,  brought  his  name  into  decided  promi- 
nence. His  argument  was  based  upon  a  writ  of 
error  sued  out  of  that  court,  attacking  the  consti- 
tutionality   of    the    act    of    the    Legislaturt    con- 


ferring jurisdiction  upon  the  Probate  Court  in 
guardianship  matters,  and  its  power  to  order  the 
sale  of  a  minor's  real  estate.  An  order  had  been 
made  disposing  of  valuable  property  to  the  Lake 
Shore  and  Michigan  Southern  Railroad  Company. 
It  was  the  opinion  of  some  of  the  leading  lawyers 
of  Chicago  that  the  Probate  Court  had  no  juris- 
diction in  such  cases.  Mr.  Holdom,  however, 
succeeded  in  sustaining  the  jurisdiction  of  the 
Probate  Court  in  that  case,  and  the  decision  of 
the  Supreme  Court  set  the  matter  at  rest.  The 
Supreme  Court  Reports,  from  the  decision  of  his 
first  case,  in  volume  LXXIX,to  the  present  time, 
bear  evidence  of  his  continuous  and  successful 
business.  Mr.  Holdom  possesses,  also,  quite  an 
extensive  foreign  clientage,  and  frequently  visits 
Europe  on  behalf  of  the  various  interests  with 
which  he  is  connected,  and  on  these  occasions 
often  combines  pleasure  with  business. 

He  has  a  large  and  complete  law  library  as  well 
as  a  well-selected  library-  of  general  literature 
that  numbers  over  three  thousand  volumes, 
among  which  are  many  rare  books  and  some  of 
great  value.  As  is  only  natural,  he  prides  himself 
upon  the  possession  of  numerous  rare  works  re- 
lating to  the  history  of  his  native  city,  compris- 
ing, as  they  do,  a  complete  history  of  the  city  of 
London,  from  the  earliest  to  the  present  time. 
He  owns  a  beautiful  residence  which  is  replete 
with  works  of  art. 

Mr.  Holdom  is  a  member  of  the  Ll^nion  League, 
Hamilton,  Oakland  and  Law  clubs  of  Chicago. 
In  1890  he  was  appointed  by  Governor.  Fifer 
Public  Guardian  for  Cook  county.  On  the  death 
of  Judge  Knickerbocker,  while  Mr.  Holdom  was 
not  in  any  sense  a  candidate  for  the  vacant  Pro- 
bate Judgeship  he  was  publicly  mentioned  for  the 
jjlace,  and  his  name  met  with  much  favor  from 
the  Governor. 


590 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AM)  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


In  politics  he  is  a  Republican.  He  is  a  mem- 
ber of  Trinity  Episcopal  Church.  He  was  mar- 
ried, in  1876,  to  Miss  Edith  I.  Foster,  of  Ovid, 
New  York,  by  whom  he  has  three  children.  Mrs. 
Holdom  died  in  the  summer  of   1891. 

Personally  Mr.  Holdom  is  affable,  yenial  and 
sociable,  and  is  fond  of  good-fellowship,  and 
withal  he  is  a  man  of  strict  integrity.  His  whole 
career   has  been  characterized   by  an   uprightness 


of  purpose,  commendable  as  exemplary,  in  ever)' 
respect.  As  a  lawyer  he  possesses  a  thorough 
knowledge  of  the  law,  and  is  an  advocate  of 
no  mean  order,  his  arguments  being  based  upon 
a  thorough  knowledge  of  the  law  and  the  facts  of 
the  particular  case  he  may  have  in  hand.  Barely 
in  the  prime  of  life,  he  has  a  lucrative  practice, 
and  sustains  an  excellent  reputation,  both  as  a 
member  of  the  bar  and  as  a  citizen  of  Chicago. 


RANSOM    DEXTER,    M.A.,  M.D.,  LL.D. 

CHICAGO,   ILL. 


AMONG  the  widely  known  and  successful 
physicians  of  Chicago,  none  deserves  more 
honorable  mention  than  he  whose  name  heads 
this  sketch.  A  native  of  Toronto,  Ontario,  he 
was  born  May  18,  1831,  the  son  of  Rev.  Ransom 
Dexter  and  Lydia  (Wilder)  Dexter.  His  father 
was  a  native  of  Erie,  Pennsylvania.  He  rose  to 
prominence  as  a  clergyman,  and  was  one  of  the 
pioneers  of,  and  intimately  associated  with,  the 
temperance  movement  in  Canada.  He  traces  his 
paternal  ancestiy  to  "  Farmer  "  Thomas  Dexter, 
of  Lynn,  Massachusetts.  About  the  beginning 
of  the  present  century  his  grandfather  removed 
from  New  York  State  to  Canada.  His  maternal 
ancestors  descended  from  the  French  Huguenots, 
a  colony  of  whom  settled  in  this  country  about 
1640,  about  the  same  time  that  his  paternal 
ancestors  came  hither  from  Wales.  Both  of  his 
grandfathers  were  commissioned  officers  during 
the  revolutionary  war. 

Prior  to  his  fourteenth  year,  young  Dexter 
attended  the  public  schools,  and  also  a  Latin 
school  at  Mapleton,  in  Middlesex  county,  Ontario, 
and  later  was  for  a  number  of  years  a  student  of 
the  eminent  Canadian  educator,  Edmund  Shep- 
luid.  His  tastes  led  him  naturally  into  scientific 
and  ])hilosophical  researches,  and  under  direction 
of  Professor  Shepherd  he  not  only  acquired  a 
knowledge  of  Latin  and  Greek,  but  also  pursued 
an  exhaustive  scientific  course,  and  became  pro- 
ficient in  chemistry,  physiology,  anatom}-,  and 
kindred  sciences,  often  devoting  the  greater 
portion  of  the  night  to  the  study  of  the  most 
eminent  scientific  works.  Wishing  to  acquaint 
himself    \\ith    the    Unitetl    States,    the    home    of 


his  ancestors,  he  removed  thither  in  1847.  Being 
dependent  upon  his  own  resources,  he  now  found 
opportunity  to  make  good  use  of  the  knowledge 
which  his  application  in  earlier  years  had  given 
him.  Traveling  from  place  to  place  he  engaged 
in  school  teaching,  and  as  a  druggist  clerk,  ne\er 
failing  to  receive  the  requisite  certificate  of  quali- 
fication. During  this  time  he  taught  and  studied 
Latin,  Greek,  chemistry,  physiology  and  the 
various  branches  of  mathematics,  and  thus  pre- 
pared himself  for  college,  entering  the  University 
of  Michigan ;  he  was  graduated  with  the  degree  of 
M.  D.  in  1862.  Dr.  De.xter  began  the  practice  of 
his  profes.sion  at  Berrien  Springs,  Michigan,  but 
soon  afterwards  removed  to  Elkhart,  Indiana; 
while  there,  he  was  for  two  and  a  half  years 
surgeon  in  the  employ  of  the  Lake  Shore  and 
Michigan  Southern  Railroad  Company.  In  1865, 
he  removed  to  Chicago,  which  was  his  home  till 
the  time  of  his  death,  April  2,  1891,  and  where  he 
has  made  his  well  earned  reputation.  In  1871, 
Dr.  De.xter  was  in\iled  to  (,leli\er  a  course  of 
lectures  on  comparative  anatomy  before  the 
students  of  the  University  of  Chicago,  and  the 
following  year  was  called  to  the  chair  of  zoology, 
comparative  and  human  anatomy  and  physiology 
in  the.  same  institution.  He  was  eminently 
successful  as  a  teacher;  was  held  in  high  esteem 
by  his  associate  professors,  and  possessed  the 
happy  faculty  of  gaining  and  holding  the  interest 
of  his  pupils,  by  winning  their  respect  and  love, 
lie  continued  his  connection  with  the  University 
for  twelve  years,  until  the  demands  of  his  practice 
necessitated  his  giving  it  up;  and  although  he 
was  repeatedly  solicited  to  connect   liini'^elf  with 


I 


BIOGRArHICAI.  JUCTlOX.th-V  .l.\/)  /'OA'TA'-I/T  C.Al.LI-.KY. 


593 


various  educational  institutions,  his  literary  \v<irk 
and  professional  duties  made  it  necessarj'  for  liim 
to  decline.      Throughout  his  professional  career, 
Dr.  Dexter  was  a  close  and  conscientious  student, 
as  well  as  a  careful  practitioner.     Keepintj   pace 
with  the  advance  of  medical  science,  he  became 
widely  known  by  his  contributions  to  medical  and 
scientific    literature.     One    of    the    works    which 
brought  him  prominently  before  the  i)iiblic,  was 
his    book    entitled    "The    Kingdom    of    Nature," 
in  which  the  author  demonstrated  the  "following 
of  matter   and    force    into    vitality,    vitality    inli) 
organization    and    organization    into    the    \arious 
types   of    being,    culminating    in    man."     In    this 
work  Dr.  Dexter  accounted  for  the  existence   of 
all  organic  life  by  methods  differing  greatly  from 
the    older   schools    of    theolog}',    and   occupies  a 
position  midway  between    Huxley    and   Agassiz. 
One   chapter  which  treats  of  the    "  Facial  angle  " 
was  "first  read  before   the    Chicago  Academy    of 
Sciences,  and  afterwards  published  by  request  in 
the  Popular  Science  Monthly,  has  been  pronounced 
by  leading  scientific  and  medical  journals  both  in 
this  country   and   Europe  "the  ablest  and   most 
intelligent  exposition  of  the  subject "  ever  made. 
In  this  work  the  author  succeeded  where  so  many 
scientific  writers  failed,  viz:   in  making  his  treatise 
a  popular  library  and  reference  book,  attractive  to 
the  ordinary  intelligent  readers,  by  divesting  it  of 
verbiage   and  technical  terms,  while  at  the  same 
time    it    has    been    pronounced    by    able    judges 
"critically    accurate."      Dr.    Dexter   wrote    upon 
scientific,  rather  than  strictly   medical  questions, 
because    it    has  afforded   him    mental   recreation, 
resting  and  at   the  same  time   strengthening  the 
mind.    With  his  habit  of  patient  and   painstaking 
researches,   aided   by   his  years  of  careful  obser- 
vation and  hisscholarly  attainments,  he  carried  his 
investigations  into  a  wider  field  than  the  ordinary 
])ractitioncr,  and  bringing  to  the   aid  of  his  pro- 
fession his  acquaintance  with  other  sciences,  he 
had  placed  himself  among  the  leaders  in  his  pro- 
fession,   known   for  their  profound  thinking   and 
breadth    of    attainment.     But    a    sketch    of    Dr. 
Dexter  would  be  incomplete  without  a  reference 
to  the  State  Hoard  of  Health,  and  his  connection 
with  its  establishment.     His  influence  in  causing 
the  enactment,  by  the  legislature  of  Illinois,  of 
the    statutory  laws    regulating    the    practice    of 
medicine  in   that  State  was  ver>'  great,  and  may 


justly  be  claimed   as  one  of  his  greatest   achieve- 
ments.    The  leading  physicians  of  the  State,  and 
especially    of  Chicago,  realizing  the  necessity  of 
stringent    laws    to    protect    the    people    against 
incompetent  and  unscrupulous  quacks,   caused  a 
proper  bill  to  be  introduced  into  the   legislature, 
and  while  some  were  present  at  the  Capitol  urg- 
ing the  passage  of  the  bill,  others  were  efTectually 
molding  public  sentiment  at    home.     While  the 
bill  was  under  consideration  there  appeared  in  the 
Chicago    Tribime   a    series   of  articles  which   un- 
doubtedly  influenced   the  legislature  more  than 
an\-  other  one  agency,  and  led  to  the  enactment 
of  those  statutes  which  have  brought  such  good 
results.       In      these     articles,     which     attracted 
attention  far   and    wide,    both   in   Illinois  and  in 
other  States,    the    writer  in  a  clear,    concise  and 
forcible  manner  portrayed  the  suffering  resulting 
from  the  knavery  of  conscienceless  quacks,  calling 
themselves  doctors  of  medicine,  and  presented  an 
array  of  facts  and  figures  that  was  appalling.     He 
called  attention  to  the  fact,  that  while  the  passage 
of  the  pending  measure  would  benefit  the  com- 
petent practitioners,  a  far  greater  benefit    would 
result  to  the  suffering  public  who  were  furnishing 
the  unhappy  victims  of  malpractice.    The  identity 
of  the  author  was  at  the  time  unknown  to  those 
upon  whom  his  words  had  had    such   a   marked 
effect,    but  later   it  developed  that  he  was  none 
other  than   Dr.   Ransom    Dexter.      Prior  to    this 
time.  Dr.  Dexter  had  built  up  a  comfortable  prac- 
tice,   and    was   known    as  a  modest,   unassuming 
gentleman   of  cultivated  tastes  and   rich  scholar- 
ship. Now,  however,  he  came  into  prominence  both 
in  the  medical  fraternity  and  among  the  readers 
of    scientific    literature,    by    his    contributions  to 
medical  and  scientific  periodicals,  and  rapidly  rose 
to  a  leading  position  among  the  .scientists  of  the 
country,  and  the  successful  physicians  of  Chicago; 
they  freely  admitting  that  he  had  no  superior  in 
general  practice.     Since  1889  he  devoted  himself 
to  a  general   office   practice,  and    seldom   visited 
patients  at  their  homes,  except  when  called  in  for 
consultation.     In  this  capacity  he  was  frequently 
called  to  other  cities,  both  east  and  west. 

In  religious  sentiment.  Dr.  Dexter  was  thorough- 
ly liberaJ  and  independent,  doing  his  own  think- 
ing and  holding  his  own  views,  and  granting  to 
others  the  same  freedom  that  he  claimed  for  him- 
self.    In  politics  he  was  a  Republican. 


594 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


He  was  an  honored  member  of  the  Chicago 
Academy  of  Sciences,  of  the  State  Microscopical 
Society,  of  the  Chicago  Medical  Society,  of  the 
American  Medical  Association ;  he  was  also  a 
member  of  the  Chicago  Medical  Historical  Society 
and  of  the  Chicago  Philosophical  Society.  He 
was  attending  physician   to  various  Masonic  As- 


sociations, and  a  member  of  Apollo  Commandery, 
Knights  Templar. 

Dr.  De.xter  was  married  in  1859  to  Miss  Lucinda 
Webster.  They  have  one  child — a  daughter, 
Lydia  A.,  who  graduated  with  honor  from  the 
classical  department  of  the  University  of  Chicago 
in  the  class  of  1884. 


HORACE   G.   CHASE, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


HORACE  G.  CHASE  is  a  native  of  Hopkin- 
ton,  Merrimack  county,  New  Hampshire, 
and  was  born  July  9,  1827,  to  the  Hon.  Horace 
and  Betsy  (Blanchard)  Chase,  the  former  a  native 
of  Unity,  New  Hampshire,  and  the  latter  of  Med- 
ford,  Massachusetts. 

His  father  was  graduated  from  Dartmouth 
College ;  he  was  a  lawyer  by  profession  and  for 
many  years  Judge  of  Probate  for  Merrimack 
county,  New  Hampshire.  He  was  appointed 
postmaster  under  the  administration  of  President 
Andrew  Jackson ;  but,  on  account  of  his  profes- 
sional and  judicial  duties,  could  give  to  the  office 
but  little  personal  attention  and  installed  our  sub- 
ject, who  was  then  twelve  years  old,  as  deputy 
postmaster,  he  being  sworn  to  faithfully  discharge 
his  duties  and  support  the  Constitution  of  the 
United  States.  Judge  Chase  was  a  prominent 
Mason,  greatly  honored  and  known  throughout 
New  England  in  the  Masonic  fraternity  as  "  Father 
Chase."  Until  his  decease,  which  occurred  in  1875, 
he  was  recognized  as  authorit)'  on  the  laws  and 
customs  of  that  Order. 

Horace  was  educated  at  Hopkinton  Academy, 
arranging  his  hours  of  recitation  so  as  not  to  inter- 
fere with  his  duties  fn  the  post-ofifice.  It  had  been 
his  father's  purpose  to  send  him  to  Dartmouth 
College;  but  his  plan  was  frustrated  by  financial 
reverses  and  a  strong  desire  on  the  boy's  part  to 
go  into  business  away  from  home.  At  the  age  of 
sixteen  he  became  an  apprentice  in  the  mathe- 
matical and  nautical  instrument  store  of  Samuel 
Thaxter  &  Son,  Boston,  and  remained  there  until 
his  health  failed,  when  he  returned  home,  and  in 
1852  followed  his  two  brothers  to  Chicago.  He 
at  once  took  a  position  in  the  office  of  Mr.  James 
H.  Rees,  a  real-estate  dealer,  who  with  IMr.  Edw  ard 


A.  Ruckcr  originated  the  present  system  of 
examining  real-estate  titles  with  the  help  of 
indices,  the  compiling  of  which  had  already  been 
commenced.  Samuel  B.  Chase,  a  brother  of  our 
subject,  was  associated  with  Mr.  Rees  and  had 
charge  of  the  abstract  department  in  their  business, 
and  had  already  begun  the  search  of  titles  while 
the  indices  were  preparing.  In  1855  our  subject 
became  a  partner  in  the  firm  of  Rees,  Chase  and 
Company,  consisting  of  Mr.  James  H.  Rees,  Mr. 
S.  B.  Chase  and  himself.  A  few  years  later,  the 
two  brothers  bought  the  interest  of  Mr.  Rees,  and 
the  business  was  continued  till  the  time  of  the 
great  fire  in  1871,  when  the  firm  name  was  Chase 
Brothers  and  Company,  comprising  S.  B.  Chase» 
C.  C.  Chase,  George  H.  Bailey  and  our  subject. 
At  the  time  of  the  fire,  which  destroyed  every 
vestige  of  the  county  and  court  records,  three  firms 
were  engaged  in  examining  titles,  viz:  Chase 
Brothers  and  Company,  Shortall  and  Hoard,  and 
Jones  and  Sellers.  Each  of  the  firms  named  lost  a 
portion  of  their  books  in  the  fire;  but  together  they 
sa\ed  enough  to  form  a  complete  set  of  indices  to 
all  the  records  of  Cook  county,  and  also  duplicates 
of  some  of  their  books  and  many  very  valuable 
letter-press  copies  of  abstracts,  but  neither  of  these 
firms  could  furnish  a  complete  abstract  of  title  to 
any  piece  of  real-estate  in  Cook  county.  Mr.  Chase 
soon  learned  the  condition  of  affairs  and  decided 
that  a  consolidation  of  the  three  firms  was  indis- 
pensable as  a  matter  of  public  interest,  as  well  as 
for  the  benefit  of  the  firms  themselves,  and  through 
his  efforts  a  consolidation  was  effected.  With  the 
announcement  of  this  result,  the  business  of 
furnishing  abstracts  was  resumed,  confidence  in 
Cook  county  real-estate  fully  restored,  and  the 
rebuilding    of    Chicago    commenced.     The  prime 


^-^ 


cuSey^ 


BIOGRAPHICAI.  IilCTlOXARV  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


597 


object  of  this  consolidation  being  misunderstood 
bv  the  pubhc.  great  injustice  was  done  the  several 
abstract  firms,  both  by  the  press  and  by  individuals, 
who  in  newspaper  articles  charged  that  the  com- 
bination was  for  the  sole  purpose  of  creating  a 
monopoly  in  the  abstract  business.  So  general 
was  this  feeling  that  the  Illinois  Legislature  passed 
a  law  limiting  the  fees  for  title  searches.  For- 
tunately for  the  public,  these  unjust  charges  were 
groundless  and  against  men  of  well-known  in- 
tegrity, whose  honesty,  ability  and  accuracy  had 
never  been  questioned  and  could  not  now  be 
successfully  attacked.  They  stood  true  to  their 
trust  and  loyal  to  Chicago,  and  refused  to  sell 
their  books  at  any  price  to  a  syndicate,  which, 
had  a  sale  been  made,  would  have  withdrawn 
them  from  their  legitimate  uses  and  made  them 
solely  a  source  of  personal  profit.  The  result  can 
be  imagined  when  it  is  remembered  that  these 
books  contained  the  only  eyidences  of  title  to 
real-estate  worth  more  than  seven  hundred  mill- 
ion dollars. 

Mr.  Chase  has  taken  an  active  interest  in  Ma- 
sonic affairs  and  is  held  high  in  the  estimation 
of  that  Order.  When  he  settled  in  Chicago  in 
1852,  there  were  but  two  Masonic  lodges  in  the 


city,  viz.,  the  La  Fayette  and  Oriental.  He  was 
secretary  of  Oriental  Lodge  ten  \'ears,  and  held 
the  same  office  in  La  Fayette  Chapter  two  years. 

He  is  an  Episcopalian  in  religious  faith ;  he 
was  an  earnest  participant  in  the  Reformed 
Episcopal  movement  and  is  an  active  member  of 
Christ  Church  congregation,  under  the  care  of 
Bishop  Charles  Edward  Cheney. 

He  became  a  Republican  in  1856,  when  General 
John  C.  Fremont  was  nominated  for  the  presi- 
dency upon  the  organization  of  that  party,  and  has 
been  a  staunch  advocate  of  the  principles  of  the 
party  ever  since. 

On  June  14,  i860,  he  married  Miss  Ellen 
Marian  Sherwin,  of  Chicago;  she  is  a  niece  of  the 
late  William  Rickcords,  Esq.,  who  was  well  known 
in  Chicago  in  the  "forties"  as  the  popular  landlord 
of  the  old  Lake  House,  and  later  for  a  number  of 
years,  as  proprietor  of  the  old  Sherman  House. 
They  have  four  children,  viz.,  Samuel  M.,  Bessie 
L.  B.,  Lucy  B.  and  Horace  Stanley. 

Mr.  Chase  has  been  closely  identified  with  the 
history  and  growth  of  Chicago  for  the  past  forty 
years,  and  with  unlimited  faith  in  its  future,  has 
improved  his  opportunities  and  been  \ery  success- 
ful as  a  business  man. 


WILLIAM    VAUGHAN   JACOBS, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


WE  probably  could  not  find  a  finer  type  of  the 
Chicago  business  man  than  we  have  ia  the 
subject  of  this  sketch.  Coming  to  this  city  when 
only  twenty  years  of  age,  William  \'aughan 
Jacobs  has  worked  himself  gradually  forward  to 
the  front  rank  of  energetic  public-spirited  men. 
He  is  the  original  founder  of  the  villages  of 
Brookline  and  Burnside  :  vice-president  of  the 
Calumet  Electric  Street  Railroad  Company,  and 
a  man  of  enterprise,  ability  and  success. 

During  eighteen  years  no  young  man  has  con- 
tributed more  to  the  phenomenal  growth  of  this 
city  than  Mr.  Jacobs.  He  was  born  June  19,  1853, 
at  West  Chester,  Pennsylvania,  and  was  the  third 
son  of  a  family  of  three  sons  and  three  daughters. 
His  brothers  were  C.  Hamilton  Jacobs,  a  member 
of  the  Seventy-second  Illinois  Infantn,-.  who  died 
before  Vicksburg   in    1863  :    and    Colonel    J.    E. 


Jacobs,  now  of  Baltimore.  His  parents  were 
Thomas  B.  Jacobs,  and  Mary  (Elliott)  Jacobs, 
daughter  of  Commodore  Jesse  Duncan  F.lliott.  of 
the   United   States  Navy. 

William  Vaughan  was  educated  at  the  Military 
Academy  of  West  Chester,  where  he  distinguished 
himself  by  his  application  to  study  and  his  love 
of  field  sports.  Having  completed  his  course  in 
his  seventeenth  year,  he  was  sent  to  the  banking 
house  of  Messrs.  Kirk,  MacVeagh  &  Co..  where 
he  was  initiated  into  business  life  and  methods. 
In  April,  1873,  he  came  to  Chicago  and  took  a 
position  in  the  banking  house  of  Lunt,  Preston  & 
Kean,  and  subsequently  was  offered  and  accepted 
the  position  of  private  secretary  to  Mr.  Paul 
Cornell,  the  founder  of  the  largest  village  in  the 
world— Hyde  Park. 

In  1876,  Mr.  Jacobs  went    into  the   real  estate 


598 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


business,  and  immediately  gave  proof  of  his  busi- 
ness capacity  and  foresight  by  investing  his  means 
where  he  foresaw  tliat  there  would  be  a  constantly 
increasing  value.  In  1883,  he  laid  out  a  tract  of 
land  in  the  neighborhood  of  Cottage  Grove  avenue 
and  Seventy-second  street.  Here  he  built  the 
pretty  and  flourishing  village  of  Brookline.  The 
location  being  healthy,  easy  of  access  and  at  that 
time  outside  the  city,  became  quite  popular  with 
business  men  and  of  the  numerous  residences 
built  there  only  a  few  are  now  in  Mr.  Jacobs'  pos- 
session. Having  been  so  successful  withthe  vil- 
lage of  Brookline,  he  built  Burnside,  a  rapidly 
improving  suburb  on  Cottage  Grove  avenue  and 
Ninety-fifth  street,  and  about  one  mile  north  of 
Pullman,  on  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad.  Both 
these  suburbs,  Brookline  and  Burnside,  are  now 
inside  the  limits  of  the  city  of  Chicago.  At  the 
latter,  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad  Company  have 
purchased  ground  and  are  locating  their  car  shops 
there  on  an  extensive  scale.  Amongst  the  resi- 
dents of  these  suburbs  Mr.  Jacobs  has  the  reputa- 
tion of  being  a  man  of  thoroughly  upright  and 
honorable  character,  and  one  who  delights  to  do  a 
kindness  to  those  around  him.  Together  with 
directing  the  large  interests  he  has  in   real  estate, 


he  is  vice-president  and  general  manager  of  the 
Calumet  Electric  Street  Railroad  Company  on 
the  South  side.  This  company  was  organized  in 
May,  1890,  and  built  the  first  electric  road  in 
Chicago,  and  is  now  building  a  system,  which  will, 
when  completed,  connect  more  closely  the  popu- 
lation of  South  Chicago,  Grand  Crossing,  Pull- 
man, Kensington,  Burnside,  and  Dauphin  Park 
with  each  other,  and  with  the  city  and  Jackson 
Park,  by  a  direct  connection  with  the  cable  and 
elevated  roads  at  Brookline.  The  system  as  now 
contemplated  will  be  about  twenty  miles  in 
length.  In  1884,  Mr.  Jacobs  was  treasurer  of  the 
Union  League  Club,  and  in  1885,  was  Lieutenant- 
Colonel  commanding  First  Cavalry  Illinois  Na- 
tional Guard. 

He  was  married  November  19,  1890,  to  Mary 
Whipple,  eldest  daughter  of  William  Jay  Whip- 
ple, Esq.,  of  Winona,  Minn.,  proprietor  and  editor 
of  the  Winona  Herald,  and  postmaster  of  the 
city  under  President  Cleveland. 

As  a  business  man  Mr.  Jacobs  is  competent 
and  conscientious,  possessed  of  a  high  degree  of 
honor.  In  all  his  transactions  he  has  shown  him- 
self to  be  a  man  of  uncompromising  integrity. 
To  such  a  man  Chicago  promises  a  brilliant  future. 


CHARLES    PORTER   JOHNSON, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


CHARLES  PORTER  JOHNSON  began  his 
career  a  comparatively  poor  boy,  and  has  by 
his  unaided  efforts  risen  to  an  honorable  position 
at  the  Chicago  bar,  and  in  social  life.  He  was 
born  August  15,  1865,  at  State  Line  City,  Ver- 
milion county,  Illinois,  and  is  the  second  son  of 
Joseph  Simpson  and  Marilda  M.  (Kemper)  John- 
son. His  father  is  an  Indianian.  He  studied  law 
and  was  just  admitted  to  the  bar  in  the  State  of 
Indiana,  when  the  war  broke  out.  He  was  deputy 
sheriff  of  Boone  county,  Indiana,  for  two  years. 
Afterward  he  became  a  general  merchant,  and  also 
served  for  eighteen  consecutive  years  as  justice  of 
the  peace  in  State  Line  City. 

It  was  while  listening  to  the  cases  tried  in  his 
father's  court  that  young  Johnson  was  fired  with 
the  ambition  to  become  a  lawyer.  His  mother  is  a 
cousin  of  Joseph  Kemper,  e.\-Governorof  Virginia. 


Mr.  Johnson's  early  cducatiim  was  obtained  in 
the  public  sclmols  of  his  native  city.  When  he 
was  about  fifteen  years  of  age,  young  Johnson  was 
thrown  upon  his  own  resources.  He  went  to  Coles 
county,  Illinois,  and  secured  employment  on  a 
farm,  with  the  privilege  of  attending  school  during 
the  winter.  He  worked  hard  and  studied  diligently, 
but  his  ambition  was  to  gain  a  higher  education 
than  that  afforded  in  the  public  schools,  and  he 
attended  school  at  Lee's  Academy,  at  Loxa,  Illi- 
nois. 

He  was  a  close  and  apt  student,  a  convincing 
debater,  a  practical  thinker,  and  an  orator  of  su- 
perior merit.  He  graduated  from  the  academy  in 
1885. 

He  then  went  to  Terre  Haute,  Indiana,  and 
studied  law  in  the  office  of  Mr.  William  A.Young. 
He   passed   an  examination   before  the  Supreme 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARV  A.XD  I'OA' TRAIT  GALLERY. 


6oi 


Court,  and  was  admitted  to  the  bar  April  15,  18S6, 
being  one  of  the  youngest  men  ever  admitted  to 
practice  by  the  Supreme  Court  of  Indiana. 

Tart  of  his  ambition  was  realized — he  was  now 
a  full-fledged  lawyer,  with  youth,  but  without 
money  or  clients.  Back  to  Terre  Haute  he  went ; 
there  had  been  a  murder  committed,  and  Bishop, 
the  prisoner,  had  no  attorney.  Judge  Mack,  of 
the  Circuit  Court  of  Vigo  county,  appointed  young 
Johnson  to  defend  the  prisoner. 

Mr.  Johnson  worked  with  a  will,  and  saved  his 
client  from  the  gallows,  the  verdict  of  the  jury  be- 
ing nine  years  in  the  penitentiary.  It  was  admit- 
ted to  be  a  great  success,  and  especially  so  for  a 
voung  man  scarcely  twenty-one  and  his  first  case. 
This  case  brought  him  a  fee  of  fifty  dollars  and 
an  offer,  from  his  preceptor,  Mr.  Young,  of  a  co- 
partnership. They  moved  to  Danville,  Illinois,  but 
sickness  overtook  Mr.  Johnson;  his  hard  work  had 
told  on  him,  and  his  life  was  despaired  of.  In  the 
meantime  his  parents  had  removed  to  Chicago, 
and,  being  notified  of  his  condition,  had  him 
brought  thither.  After  an  illness  of  many  months 
he  recovered.  The  struggle  of  life  had  to  be  com- 
menced anew.  He  was  without  funds.  Then  be- 
gan the  weary  search  for  emplo)'ment,  and  only 
those  who  have  had  the  experience  can  realize  the 
situation.  Law  ofifice  after  law  office  was  visited, 
but  they  did  not  need  his  help.  He  turned  his 
efforts  in  other  directions,  and  finally  secured  work 
in  a  commission  house  on  South  Water  street  at  a 
salary  of  three  dollars  per  week.  While  working 
for  this  house  he  became  acquainted  with  Judge 
Booth,  and  made  arrangements  to  continue  his 
studies  at  the  Union  College  of  Law.  He  studied 
in  the  early  morning  and  at  night,  and  worked  in 
the  commission  store  during  the  day.  After  fin- 
ishing his  law  studies  he  was  introduced  to  Mr.  C. 
H.  Willett,  a  prominent  lawyer,  and  secured  a 
position  in  his  office  at  five  dollars  per  week. 
This  was  in  iSiSj. 

He  was  at  once  given  cases  to  try  and  so  well 
did  he  succeed  that,  at  the  end  of  eight  months, 
Mr.  Willett  admitted  him  to  a  partnership. 

Since  Mr.  Johnson's  advent  at  the  bar  of  Chi- 
cago, he  has  been  engaged  in  the  trial  cjf  several 
murder  cases,  and  none  of  his  clients  have  ever 
been  convicted. 

He  was  attorney  for  the  town  of  Lake  in  1890, 
and  was  the  youngest  attorney  the  town  ever  had. 


He  was  married  August  21,  1889,  to  Miss 
Derrele  West,  daughter  of  Mr.  Pleasant  West,  a 
leading  merchant  of  Georgetown,  Illinois.  Mrs. 
Johnson  isa  lady  of  high  intellectual  endowments, 
but  of  retiring  habit.s.  She  graduated  from  the 
Chicago  Female  College  in  the  class  of  1887. 
Her  chief  enjoyment  is  in  her  home,  where  she 
presides  gracefully,  and  with  dignity. 

Mr.  Johnson  is  a  thirty-second  degree  Mason, 
and  at  the  time  of  taking  this  degree  w  s  one  of 
the  youngest  thirty-second  degree  Masons  in  the 
countrj-.  He  is  a  member  of  Dearborn  Lodge, 
No.  310,  A.  F.  and  A.  M.,  Lafayette  Chapter, 
No.  2,  R.  A.  M.,  Palestine  Council,  No.  66,  R. 
and  S.  M.,  Chavelier  Bayard,  K.  T.,  No.  52,  Orien- 
tal Consistory,  S.  P.  R.  S.,  32  degree,  Medina 
Temple,  A.  A.  O.  N.  M.  S. 

He  is  also  an  Odd-fellow,  and  a  member  of  the 
Royal  Arcanum. 

In  politics  Mr.  Johnson  is  a  strong  and  consis- 
tent Democrat,  and  is  in  great  demand  by  his 
part)'  during  political  campaigns.  He  has 
stumped  the  States  of  Iowa,  Illinois  and  Indiana, 
in  the  interest  of  his  party. 

He  is  a  member  of  the  Iroquois,  the  White- 
chapel  Club,  the  Wannetons  and  the  Cook  Coun- 
ty Democratic  clubs.  In  1890,  when  the  State  of 
Iowa  was  inaugurating  Governor  Boies,  its  first 
Democratic  governor  for  years,  the  Cook  County 
Democratic  Club  attended  the  ceremonies  in  a 
body,  and  to  Mr.  Johnson  was  given  the  honor 
of  responding  on  behalf  of  the  club,  which  he 
did  with  eloquence. 

Mr.  Johnson  is  attorney  for  several  large  cor- 
porations, his  energy  and  abilities  being  devoted 
mainly  to  corporation  and  real-estate  law. 

What  success  Mr.  Johnson  has  already  attained 
is  undoubtedly  due  to  his  forensic  ability,  indomit- 
able energy,  integrity  and  clear  understanding  of 
the  law.  He  is  one  cf  the  recognized  orators  at 
the  Chicago  bar.  He  is  a  natural  born  lawyer, 
and  can  present  a  point  of  law  to  the  courts,  or 
argue  the  facts  of  a  case  to  the  jury  with  clear- 
ness and  force.  He  seems  to  have  intuitive 
knowledge  of  the  law,  aiul  is  master  of  its  most 
subtle  principles. 

It  is  not  often  that  a  man  finds  himself  at  the 
age  of  twenty-six  in  a  commanding  position  in  the 
world,  attained  by  his  own  unaided  efforts,  and 
when  this  has   been    achieved    in   a   hand-to-hand 


6o2 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


struggle  before  the  bar,  it  is  success  indeed.    Such  tile  mind,  the  future  is  indeed  promising  to   him  ; 

has  been  the  achievement  of  Charles  Porter  John-  and    standing    prominently    among    the   younger 

son.  members  of  the   Chicago    bar,   by    reason  of  his 

Mr.  Johnson  is  of  medium  height,  has   a  kind,  oratorical  abilities,  sound  logic,  and  knowledge  of 

generous  and  social  nature,  is  a  good  counselor  and  the  law,  there  is  none  more  worthy  of  a  place  in 

true  friend.     Possessed  of  a  vigorous   and   versa-  this  work  of  representative  men. 


JOHN    H.    LESLIE, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


JOHN  HAMPTON  LESLIE  was  born  in 
Montro.se,  Scotland,  November  4,  1851. 
George  Leslie  and  Jean  (Hampton)  Leslie  left 
Scotland  in  early  married  life  to  build  their 
fortunes  in  the  then  Arcadia  of  the  world, 
America.  Leaving  a  fair  business  and  worthy 
social  connections  in  the  old  country,  it  de- 
manded sterling  qualities  of  character  to  sup- 
port and  raise  a  large  family  midst  the  disad- 
vantages of  strangers  in  a  strange  land.  But 
the  qualities  necessary  were  not  lacking  in 
either  parent,  and  by  persevering  and  worthy 
effort  their  object  was  accomplished.  During 
all  these  years  of  toil  the  high  literary  tastes 
and  talents  of  the  father  found  various  out- 
flowing channels,  and  the  mother  held  together 
in  a  happy  home  the  children  as  they  grew  from 
infancy  to  man's  estate.  The  fourth  child  born 
to  them  was  John   H. 

After  finishing  grammar  school  at  twelve  years 
of  age,  it  was  necessary  for  him  to  earn  some- 
thing for  himself,  and  for  two  years  he  served  the 
Western  Union  Telegraj)!)  d).  as  messenger  boy  ; 
afterward,  at  fourteen,  he  went  to  work  as  errand 
boy  in  a  wholesale  grocery  house  of  this  cit\-. 
His  boyish  taste  for  games  was  sadly  curtailetl  by 
his  duties,  but  the  habits-  formed  of  placing  work 
before  play  have  been  the  basis  of  much  of  his 
success. 

At  sixteen,  by  use  of  his  savings,  he  was  able 
to  attend  an  excellent  academy,  and  so  forwarded 
his  education  to  an  ajipreciable  extent.  After  a 
limited  course  at  the  academy,  he  returned  to 
work,  entering  as  clerk  in  a  wholesale  grocery  ; 
and  he  occupied  in  succession  various  higher  posi- 
tions till  at  twenty-one  he  became  connected  with 
his  father  in  merchandise  brokerage. 

This    enterprise,   begun   by  his  father  in    1863, 


had,  under  his  judicious  management,  become 
well  established  in  point  of  business  and  an  hon- 
orable name.  George  Leslie  was  especially  re- 
spected by  all  those  with  whom  he  dealt,  as  a 
man  of  unimpeachable  integrity  and  of  superior 
character. 

Some  time  after  this  John  H.  was  made  a  part- 
ner, and  later  on,  owing  to  the  ill  health  of  the 
father,  the  responsibility  and  management  of  af- 
fairs devolved  upon  him.  A  more  extensive 
business  was  entered  into— adding  to  the  broker- 
age the  importing  of  foreign  dried  fruits  and  gen- 
eral commission  in  canned  and  domestic  dried 
fruits,  till,  at  the  present  time,  the  firm  of  John 
H.  Leslie  &  Co.,  is  among  the  most  prominent  in 
its  line  of  any  in  the  United  States.  Mr.  Leslie, 
in  connection  with  his  business  enterprises,  has 
traveled  somewhat  extensively;  he  knows  well 
the  resources  of  our  own  vast  regions,  west  and 
northwest,  from  personal  observation,  and  also 
the  country  and  people  of  Mexico;  and,  in  addi- 
tion to  the  important  centers  of  P>urope  proper, 
has  visited  Norway  and  the  far  eastern  cities  of 
Greece  and  Turke\-. 

'Mr.  Leslie  was  marrietl  in  1875  to  Miss  Sallie 
L.  Wood  worth,  daughter  of  James  H.  Wood- 
worth,  one  of  Chicago's  honored  citizens  of  early 
date— twice  mayor  of  the  city  and  member  of 
Congress  from  Illinois. 

Of  Presbyterian  teaching  in  earl\-  childhood,  at 
the  age  of  twenty-two,  Mr.  Leslie  united  with  the 
Bapti.st  Church  of  Highland  Park,  111.,  of  which 
denomination  he  is  to-day  an  active  member, 
ready,  at  the  call  of  Christian  duties,  to  subserve 
other  interests;  is  .second  vice-president  of  the 
\'.  M.  C.  A.,  and  has,  for  several  years,  held  the 
offices  of  deacon  and  Sunday-school  superinten- 
dent of  the  First  Baptist  Church  of  Chicago. 


BIOGRAPinCAI.  niCTlOXAUV  .\\i> 


605 


Of  Scottisli  birth  and  coming  to  this  country  at 
the  early  age  of  tlircc  )-cars,  Mr.  Leslie  has  devel- 
oped into  the  staunchcst  of  Americans,  loving  his 
adopted  countrj-  with  that  steadfastness  and  loy- 
alty characteristic  of  the  stock  from  which  he 
sprung.  Republican  b}-  education  and  choice,  he 
is  not  so  partisan  as  to  fail  to  see  the  abuses  of 
party :  he  means  to  follow  whatever  in  politics, 
whether  national  or  muncipal,  appeals  to  his  con- 
victions as  to  what  is  the  highest  good.  When,  in 
1S91,  a  reform  movement  in  muncipal  govern- 
ment was  inaguratcd  by  the  nomination  of  a  citi- 
zen's ticket,  Mr.  Leslie  was  named  for  the  office 
of  city  treasurer,  and  though,  in  consequence  of 
the  cohesion  of  the  old  political  parties,  the 
movement  was  not  at  that  time  a  success,  Mr. 
Leslie's  great  personal  popularity,  together  with 


his  forcefulness  of  public  speech  in  the  presence 
of  audiences  often  numbering  many  thousands, 
contributed  as  much  perlia])s  as  an_\-  one  cause  to 
the  surprisingly  large  vote  that  was  polled  for  the 
citizens'  ticket.  United  to  his  deeply  grounded 
principles,  his  powers  of  oratory  promise  to  be  of 
much  service  in  whichever  good  cause  he 
espouses. 

About  forty-one  years  of  age,  in  persoral  ap- 
pearance he  is  tall  and  robust,  has  light  com- 
plexion, dark  brown  hair,  and  gray  eyes ;  is  of 
a  kindly  disposition  and  genial  manners. 

His  fine  business  talents,  excellent  judgment  in 
all  practical  affairs,  and  his  devotion  to  the 
advancement  of  truth  and  right,  place  John  H. 
Leslie  among  our  worthiest  representative  busi- 
ness men  of  Chicago. 


FRANCIS   W.   WALKER, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


FRANCLS  \V.  WALKER,  of  the  law  firm  of 
Walker.  Judd  &  Hawley,  was  born  (October 
12,  1856,  at  Chicago,  Illinois.  Mr.  Walker  comes 
from  old  New  England  stock;  while  his  father, 
Lucas  B.,  and  his  mother,  Lucinda  (Le  Suer) 
Walker,  were  natives  of  New  York  State,  his  an- 
cestry dates  back  to  the  early  colonial  days  of 
Massachusetts  and  Connecticut.  Mr.  Walker  re- 
ceived his  early  education  in  the  Chicago  schools. 
He  is  in  the  fullest  sense  a  self-made  man,  for, 
while  still  a  boy,  the  great  fire  wiped  out  the 
business  of  his  father,  who  was  at  that  time  a 
prosperous  merchant  on  South  Water  street,  and 
the  boy  Francis  was  compelled  at  an  early  age,  to 
work  out,  alone  and  unaided,  the  career  which  he 
had  mapped  out  for  himself.  His  earliest  ambi- 
tions were  in  the  direction  of  the  law.  Immedi- 
ately after  the  fire  he  obtained  a  position  in  the 
mailing  department  of  the  Chicago  Times.  In 
addition  to  this  work  he  established  a  large  pa])er 
route,  and  did  the  work  of  .selling  and  distributing 
his  papers  himself.  While  carrj'ing  on  this  work 
he  still  kept  in  attendance  at  the  high  school. 
After  completing  the  course  at  the  higlj  school  he 
spent  two  years  in  Dyrenforth's  Academy. 

In    1S75,  Mr.  Walker  entered  the  law  office  of 
Mills  &   Ingham,  carrj-ing  on  his  studies  here   in 


connection  with  his  course  in  the  Union  College 
of  Law.  After  graduating  with  high  iionors  in 
1877,  Mr.  Walker  formed  a  partnership  with  Law- 
rence M.  Ennis,  of  this  city,  under  the  firm  name 
of  Ennis  &  W'alker.  This  partnership  continued 
until  December,  1884,  when  Mr.  Walker  was  ap- 
pointed First  Assistant  State's  Attorne}-. 

In  the  historj'  of  this  city  there  has  been  no 
period  .so  stormy  and  full  of  exciting  and  im- 
portant events  as  the  three  years  from  1884  to 
1887,  during  which  time  Julius  S.  Grinnell  was 
State's  Attorney,  and  Francis  W.  Walker  was  his 
First  Assistant — the  trial  of  the  anarchists;  the 
county  commissioners  charged  with  briberj-  and 
fraud,  known  as  "The  Boodlers;"  the  three 
Italians,  whose  brutal  murders  are  still  fresh  in 
the  minds  of  all,  and  the  many  other  important 
criminal  trials  which  have  contributed  so  much  to 
the  eventful  historj-  of  the  city  of  Chicago.  In 
1887,  Mr.  Walker  resigned  his  position  in  the 
States  Attorney's  office,  and  formed  a  partnership 
with  Edward  J.  Judd,  under  the  firm  name  of 
Walker  &  Judd,  which  partnership  continued 
until  Januar^•,  1892,  when  the  present  firm  of 
Walker,  Judd  &  Hawley  was  formed,  Mr.  Samuel 
F.  I  law  ley  being  admitted  to  the  firm  at  that  time. 

Mr.    Walker    is    a    prominent    member   of    the 


6o6 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Iroquois  and  Douglas  Clubs,  and  of  the  Royal 
Arcanum.  He  is  also  a  Knight  Tcni])lar  and  a 
thirty-second  degree  Mason.  In  jiolitics  he  is  a 
staunch  Democrat,  and  is  always  found  in  front 
rank  of  speakers  in  every  campaign. 

Intellectually,  Mr.  Walker  is  much  more  than  a 
lawyer,  as  the  large  and  well  chosen  librar\-  at  his 
home,  and  his  fondness  for  it,  \\ill  tcstif}-.  Meta- 
physics, science,  history,  political  economy,  and  in 
fact  all  branches  of  study  he  enjoys  after  the 
manner  of  the  true  scholar.  As  a  lawyer,  Mr. 
Walker  finds  his  natural  place  in  the  court  room. 
No  one  acquainted  with  the  profession  will  deny 
that  Mr.  Walker  is  possessed  to  the  fullest  extent 


of  the  ([ualities  which  go  to  make  up  the  success- 
ful advocate.  He  has  a  \'ery  eloquent  and  force- 
ful manner,  which,  together  with  his  strong  perso- 
nality and  strength  of  character,  have  placed  him 
where  he  stands  to-day,  one  of  the  most  prominent 
advocates  at  the  Chicago  bar.  Possessing  personal 
and  social  qualities  of  a  higher  order,  Mr.  Walker 
is  much  esteemed  by  all  who  know  him,  and  as  a 
citizen  he  has  the  confidence  and  respect  of  those 
who  appreciate  a  gentleman  of  culture.  As  an 
energetic,  upright,  and  conscientious  lawyer  he  is 
destined  to  occupy  a  very  prominent  position,  not 
only  at  the  bar  of  Chicago,  but  of  the  United 
States. 


JAMES    P.   MALLETTE, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


THERE  is  probably  no  city  on  this  continent 
where  there  are  so  many  young,  energetic 
and  self-made  men  who  have  won  for  themselves, 
by  their  own  unaided  exertion,  an  honorable 
record  and  a  comfortable  competency,  as  in  the 
city  of  Chicago.  In  the  race  of  life  the  active  and 
persevering  invariably  lead.  Courage,  constancy 
and  confidence,  combined  with  ability  and  pru- 
dence, always  lead  to  success.  To  young  America 
is  largely  due  Chicago's  phenomenal  success. 
Prominent  among  the  young  representalixe  men 
of  this  city  is  James  P.  Mallette. 

He  was  born  in  St.  Louis,  Missouri,  on  October 
1",  1S51,  where  his  father,  I'rancis  Mallette,  was 
one  of  th(^'  early  settlers.  I  Ic  was  a  h'renchman  by 
birlli,  but  had  been  for  a  long  time  in  this  country, 
engaged  in  lead  mining  with  success  at  Galena,  Illi- 
nois; but  at  the  time  of  his  death,  in  i860,  his  estate 
realized  littlemorethan  the  family  homestead.  His 
mother,  Isabel  (Berry)  Malkttc,  belongs  to  an  old 
southern  family  who  were  formerly  large  slave- 
holders. Young  Mallette  was  third  in  a  family  of 
three  boys  and  two  girls,  and  is  now  the  oldest  living 
and  the  only  represcntati\e  of  the  family  in  Chi- 
cago. He  received  his  education  in  the  public 
schools  of  St.  Louis  and  graduatcil  fi-(]ni  the  high 
school  there,  when  about  sixteen  wars  of  age. 
His  first  employment  in  business  was  in  a  tobacco 
commission  house  in  St.  Louis,  where  he  remained 
for  a  year  and  then  w  ent  into  business,  in  partner- 


ship with  his  brother-in-law ;  but  they  were  not 
successful.  His  next  venture  was  as  traveler  for 
a  wholesale  oil  house  in  St.  Louis,  in  which  he 
was  very  successful.  His  active  habits  and  busi- 
ness ability  was  not  only  recognized  by  the  firm 
by  which  he  was  engaged,  but  by  business  men 
generally  ;  and  he  was  offered  such  inducements 
by  a  Chicago  house  in  the  wholesale  woodenware 
trade,  that  he  accepted  tlieir  offer  to  travel  for 
them  in  1873.  After  two  years  he  went  into 
business  for  himself,  first  in  wholesale  wooden- 
ware  and  afterwards  in  the  manufacture  of  fur- 
niture, riu-  firm  of  Mallette  and  ]va_\'nioiul  con- 
tinued successfidly  for  several  years.  About  this 
time  Mr.  M.dlette  became  interesteil  in  real-estate 
speculations,  in  connection  with  Charles  H. 
Eggleston,  and  tiiese  \entures  proving  liighly 
successful,  the  firm  of  J.  1'.  Mallette  &  Co.  was 
organizeil,  and  he  sokl  his  interest  in  the  furniture 
business  and  devoteil  his  time  entirely  to  real- 
estate  transactions.  The  l)us\-  and  active  habits 
of  Mr.  Mallette  soon  after  found  another  field  for 
work  and  wc  find  him  a  member  of  the  firm  of  R. 
E.  RrowncU  &  Co.,  contractors  for  street  building 
and  other  [jublie  iniprox'ements,  with  t|uariies 
opened  at  Thornton,  Illinois,  averaging  about  one 
hundred  cars  of  stone  a  da_\-.  Both  the  real-estate 
and  contracting  proved  very  successful,  were  con- 
solidated under  the  name  of  Eggleston,  Mallette 
&  Brownell,  and  are  continued  to  the  present  date. 


^2i^ 


niOGRAPHICAL  DICriOXARV  AXI'>  roHTRAIT  (..AI.I.I-.RV. 


609 


The  beautiful  residence  suburbs,  Auburn  I'ark 
and  Flggleston,  give  proof  of  progressive  ideas  and 
business  foresight ;  they  are  so  well  known  as 
attractive,  healthful  and  well  laid  out  residence 
districts  that  it  is  unnecessary  to  add  that  the  firm 
deserves  the  very  highest  credit  and  that  they  are 
receiving  a  very  large  patronage  from  the  Chicago 
public. 

Mr.  Mallette  is  not  only  a  man  of  good  business 
training,  industrious  habits  and  of  great  executive 
ability,  but  he  has  the  reputation  in  all  his  busi- 
ness transactions  of  the  highest  honor  and  of 
incorruptible  integrity.  For  a  number  of  years 
he  has  devoted  himself  to  the  duties  of  vestryman 
of  Trinity  Reformed  Episcopal  Clniich.  He  was 
one  of  the  organizers  of  the  '•Hume'  Club  of 
Englewood,  a  social  organization,  of  which  he  was 
afterwards  president  for  three  consecutive  years  ; 
he  is  also  a  member  of  the  Union  League  Club  and 
a  Knight  Templar  in  the  Masonic  fraternity.     Al- 


though his  life  has  been  a  busy  one,  Mr.  Mallette 
has  found  time  to  inform  himself  by  travel,  and 
has  enlarged  his  mind  and  increased  his  knowledge 
by  that  means,  which  is  so  often  neglected  by 
business  men.  In  politics  he  is  a  Republican  and 
takes  a  great  interest  in  local  affairs;  while  a 
strong  advocate  of  the  principles  of  his  party,  he 
is  tolerant  and  liberal  with  all  who  differ  from  him. 
Mr.  Mallette  was  married  June  27,  1877,  to 
Miss  Mabel  L.  Stevens,  of  Chicago,  and  their 
union  has  been  blessed  with  a  family  of  seven 
children — three  boys  and  three  girls  of  whom  are 
living.  While  of  a  social  and  buoyant  disposition, 
Mr.  Mallette  is  a  thoroughly  domestic  man,  who 
finds  in  the  companionship  of  his  accomplished 
wife  ami  in  the  affection  <>f  his  children  his 
greatest  happiness;  and  in  his  home,  which  he 
has  surrounded  with  everything  that  can  increase 
the  comfort  or  add  to  the  pleasure  of  his  family, 
he  spends  the  most  pleasant  hours  of  his  life. 


NICHOLAS    B.    DELAMATER,    A.M.,   M.D. 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


THE  practice  of  medicine  may  consistently 
be  said  to  have  fallen  by  inheritance  to 
him  whose  name  heads  this  sketch,  he  being  the 
eighth  son  in  the  genealogical  order  of  his  family 
to  follow  that  profession.  He  was  born  February 
21,  1844,  in  Albanj^  county.  New  York,  the  son  of 
Ira  M.  Uelamater,  M.D.,  and  Elizabeth  (Beebee) 
Uelamater.  Both  his  paternal  and  maternal  an- 
cestors were  among  the  pioneer  settlers  of  Albany 
county,  New  York,  and  came  originally  from  Hol- 
land, and  were  active  participants  in  the  Revolu- 
tionary war.  Our  subject  is  one  of  three  chil- 
dren. After  leaving  the  public  schools,  Nicholas 
completed  his  preparatory  studies  at  the  Albany 
-Academy  and  afterward  entered  as  a  student  at 
Harvard  College.  This  was  during  the  early  part 
of  the  war  of  the  rebellion.  And  in  1 863,  catching 
the  spirit  of  the  times,  and  true  to  his  sense  of 
duty  and  |)atriotism,  he  exchanged  the  student's 
"  ca])  and  gown  "  for  the  uniform  of  the  sf)ldier, 
and  enlisteil  in  the  service,  becoming  second 
lieutenant  in  a  company  of  the  Seventeenth  Regi- 
ment, State  Volunteers.  He  was  in  active 
service    until    the    close    of     the    war     in      1 865, 


and  participated  in  many  of  its  famous  battles, 
such  as  Gettysburg,  the  Battle  of  the  Wilderness, 
etc.  After  the  close  of  the  war  he  turned  his 
attention  to  mercantile  pursuits,  and  for  about 
three  years  was  engaged  in  the  wholesale  dry- 
goods  trade  at  Richmond,  Indiana.  During  these 
years  of  army  service  and  business  life,  he  retained 
his  love  for  study,  and  made  good  use  of  such  op- 
portunities as  offered  to  cultivate  his  mind  and  in 
crease  his  store  of  knowledge.  He  then  engaged 
in  farming  for  a  short  time  and  also  taught  school, 
and  having  determined  to  carry  out  his  earlier 
plan  of  entering  the  medical  profession,  pursued 
a  course  of  medical  studies  at  Hahnemann  Medi- 
cal College,  Chicago,  graduating  from  that  insti- 
tution with  the  degree  of  M.  D.,  in  1873.  He 
thereupon  established  himself  in  practice  in  Chi- 
cago and  began  that  professional  career  in  which 
he  has  achieved  great  success.  Recognizing  his 
eminent  fitness  for  the  position,  the  authorities  of 
the  Chicago  Hom(eoi)athic  Medical  College,  in 
1881,  elected  him  lecturer  on  mental  and  nervous 
diseases,  a  position  which  he  still  ( 1890)  holds.  Ur. 
Delamatcr   is  also  on   the   staff  of  attending  pliy 


6io 


KIOGIiAFHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


sicians    at    the    College    Hospital    and    at    Cook- 
County  Hospital. 

Dr.  Delamater  has  been  honored  with  member- 
ship in  many  prominent  associations  and  societies, 
particular!)-  the  Chicago  Academy  of  Homceopa- 
thy :  the  Wisconsin  Homoeopathic  State  Society 
and  the  Illinois  Homoeopathic  State  Society.  He 
is  also  a  member  of  the  Royal  League,  the  Royal 
Arcanum  and  the  Union  League  Club  of  Chicago. 
About  1886  he  becapie  a  membtr  of  Landmark 
Lodge  of  Free  and  Accepted  Masons.  Dr.  Dela- 
mater's  travels  have  been  confined  to  the  United 
States.     He  has  ahva"\s  been  a  close  observer  of 


events  and  makes  it  his  business  to  keep  in  touch 
with  the  progress  of  the  times,  not  only  in  the  line 
of  his  profession,  but  also  in  all  matters  of  public 
or  general  interest.  For  more  than  twenty  years 
he  has  been  a  consistent  member  of  the  Haptist 
denomination.  His  political  sentiments  have  al- 
ways been  Republican,  though  he  takes  little  active 
interest  in  political  affairs  more  than  to  perform 
his  duties  as  a  loyal  citizen.  Dr.  Delamater  was 
married  November  3,  1870,  to  Miss  Ella  J.  Link,  of 
Woodstock,  Illinois:  a  most  estimable  woman, 
who  figures  prominently-  in  charitable  and  benev- 
olent work. 


CHARLES    H.    FERGUSON, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


IX  the  front  rank  of  the  great  financial  insti- 
tutions of  the  world  stands  the  Mutual  Life 
Insurance  Company  of  New  York,  it  having 
the  largest  cash  assets  of  any  company  in  the 
world.  To  manage  the  affairs  of  the  Chicago 
agency  of  such  a  corporation  requires  a  man 
of  superior  ability,  tact,  industry-  and  firm  integ- 
rity. Such  a  man  was  found  in  the  subject  of 
this  sketch,  who  has  mastered  the  problems  of  life 
insurance.  He  has  under  his  control  one  hundred 
and  fifty  agents,  and  his  skill  and  ability  as  a 
manager  and  e.xecutive  officer  has  been  shown  in 
the  phenomenal  growth  of  the  company's  business 
in  Illinois  since  he  has  had  charge  of  it. 

Charles  H.  Ferguson  was  born  in  Oswego,  New 
V'ork,  August  13,  1846,  the  son  of  George  L.  and 
Amanda  (  Hoes)  Ferguson.  His  father  was  a  promi- 
nent furniture  manufacturer  and  dealer  at  Oswe- 
go, Hannibal,  Fulton,  and  Auburn,  New  \"ork, 
for  over  fifty  years,  and  died  in  the  i.ittcr  city  at 
the  age  of  seventy-si.\. 

Charles  attended  the  public  sclu)ols  until  he 
was  thirteen  years  okl.  From  his  thirteenth 
to  his  sixteenth  year  he  was  a  clerk  in  a 
drug  store  at  Auburn,  New  York,  after  which  he 
went  west  and  became  a  clerk  in  the  wholesale 
grocery  house  of  Messrs.  Blair  ami  Persons  at 
Milwaukee,  Wisconsin. 

When  the  war  of  the  Rebellion  o[)ened  he  en- 
listed in  Comjiany  A,  Thirty-ninth  Regiment, 
Wisconsin  \'olunteer  Infantr\-.     His  regiment  was 


assigiicii  to  the  ,\rmy  of  the  Tennessee,  under 
Gen.  A.  J.  Smith.  After  serving  the  full  term  of 
his  enlistment,  he  was  honorably  discharged. 

Returning  to  Milwaukee,  he  was  in  the  pay- 
master and  purchasing  departments  of  the  Chi- 
cago, Milwaukee  and  St.  Paul  Railroad,  and 
express  business,  until  about  1869,  when  he 
returned  to  Auburn,  New  York,  and  became  a 
solicitor  for  the  Mutual  Life  Lisurance  Com- 
pany of  New  York,  under  Mr.  Albert  W.  Law- 
ton,  then  and  now  (1892)  district  manager  at 
that  place.  In  1873  he  accepted  the  general 
agency  of  the  O.swego  and  Onondaga  Fire 
Insurance  Company  for  the  west.  Three  years 
later  the  company  retired  from  business,  reinsur- 
ing with  the  Commercial  Union  of  London. 

In  June,  1876,  Mr.  Ferguson  entered  the  em- 
p]o\-  of  the  Mutual  Life  Insurance  Company  of 
New  York,  at  Chicago,  as  cashier,  and  remained 
until  1 88 1,  when  he  was  appointed  acting  agent,  to 
succeed  Mr.  John  W.  Meaker,  resigned.  In  1883 
he  received  from  Messrs.  Merrell  and  Ferguson, 
general  agents  at  Detroit,  the  appointment  as 
local  agent  for  Chicago.  In  1886  he  formed  a 
copartnership  with  Mr.  II.  .S.  Winston,  as  man- 
aging agents  for  Chicago  and  Cook  county.  The 
partnership  terminated  by  limitation  February  i, 
1889.  In  June,  1887  (prior  to  the  dissolution),  he 
was  appointed  b}'  the  Mutual  Life  Insurance 
Company,  general  agent  for  Illinois,  which  posi- 
tion he  now  holds. 


wyfym^<my 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARV  A.\n  rORTRAIT  CA/./.ERV. 


613 


Mr.  F"cT^uson  is  a  nienibor  of  the  (icortjc  H. 
Thomas  Post,  G.  A.  R..  ami  also  of  the  Union 
Leatjue  and  Calumet  clubs,  and  is  now  (1892) 
president  of  the  Life  Underwriters'  Association  of 
Chicago,  and  a  member  of  the  executive  commit- 
tee of  the  Life  Underwriters'  Association  of  the 
United  States. 

Mr.  Ferguson  was  awarded  the  Ljencral   agent's 


Xew  York,  in   June,  1S88,  for   good    management 
and  success. 

Mr.  Ferguson  married  Miss  Sarah  L.  Miller, 
at  Auburn,  New  York,  whose  ileath  occurred  in 
December.  1885.  Four  children  were  born  to 
them,  viz.,  (ieorgc  Miller.  ni>«  in  business  with 
his  father  ;  James  Laniard,  a  student  in  the  Uni- 
versit)-  of    Michigan;    Charles  1 1..  Jr.,   and   Jessie 


prize,  a  beautiful    solid    silver  bowl,   at    Saratoga,      May,  deceased. 


HON.    ALBERT    G.   SCOTT. 


KKARNKY,    NKI!. 


ALHLR  r  G.  SCOTT  was  born  at  Harre,  Ver- 
mont, on  June  12.  1825,  to  Jacob  and  Laura 
Scott.  His  father,  who  was  a  prosperous  farmer, 
was  a  man  of  considerable  prominence.  He  served 
two  terms  in  each  branch  of  tile  \'ermont  Legis- 
lature, and  was  twice  elected  Probate  Judge  and 
once  County  Commissioner.  In  1849  he  retireil 
from  farm  life,  and  became  editor  and  publisher 
of  the  Green  Mountain  Freeman,  an  anti-slavery 
journal  published  at  Montpelier,  Vermont,  which 
under  his  management  became  one  of  the  leading 
papers  of  New  England  in  the  cause  of  freedom 
and  equal  rights.  He  was  colonel  of  the  State 
militia  for  several  years. 

Albert  spent  his  boyhood  on  his  father's  farm, 
and  attended  the  district  school,  and  later  com- 
pleted his  schooling  at  Newbury  Seminar}',  Ver- 
mont. After  leaving  school  he  engaged  in  farm- 
ing, spending  the  winter  months  in  teaching  dis- 
trict school,  for  which  he  received  a  compensation 
of  thirteen  dollars  per  month  and  his  board. 

In  1851  he  moved  to  La  Salle,  Illinois,  and  en- 
gaged in  general  merchandising  until  1856,  when 
he  removed  to  Sheffield  and  established  himself 
in  the  lumber  trade.  Two  years  later  he  added 
to  his  business  that  of  general  merchandising  and 
buying  and  selling  grain,  and  also  gratified  his 
love  for  farming  by  engaging  in  agricultural  pur- 
suits. He  did  a  thriving  business  and  accumulateii 
considerable  property.  In  1879  he  removed  to 
Kearney,  Nebraska,  his  present  home.  He  here 
continued  the  lumber  business,  and  dealt  in  grain 
extensively,  and  also  bought  several  large  farms 
and  raised  grain  on  an  extensive  scale.  He  built 
seven  elevators  along  the  line  of  the  Burlington 


and  Missouri  Railroad.  In  1S8;;  he  became  one  of 
the  founders  of  the  h'irst  National  Hank  oi  Kear- 
ney, and  has  been  chairman  of  its  board  of  directors 
and  a  member  of  its  finance  committee  since  its 
organization.  The  bank's  capital  is  one  hun- 
dred and  fift\'  thous.uul  dollars,  besides  a  large 
surplus. 

Mr.  Scott  has  always  taken  a  commendable  in- 
terest in  public  matters,  and  is  known  for  his  pub- 
lic spirit.  While  residing  at  Sheffield,  he  repre- 
sentetl  his  district  in  the  Thirty-first  General 
Assembh'  of  Illinois,  it  being  the  session  at  which 
General  John  A.  Logan  was  elected  to  the  United 
States  Senate.  He  was  also  a  member  of  the  city 
council  four  successive  terms,  and  trustee  of  the 
public  school  fund,  and  was  alternate  delegate  to 
the  National  Republican  Convention  in  1876. 
Since  removing  to  Nebraska,  in  1884,  he  was  elect- 
ed alternate  to  the  .National  Republican  Conven- 
tion at  Chicago. 

In  May,  189O,  he  was  nominateil  b\-  Goxernor 
John  M.  Thayer,  of  Nebraska,  as  a  Commissioner 
for  the  World's  Columbian  Exposition,  and  his 
appointment  was  confirmeil  by  the  State  Depart- 
ment at  Washington,  D.  C,  May  21,  1890. 

In  politics,  Mr.  Scott  is  a  staunch  Republican. 
He  voted  the  "  Liberty  ticket  "  for  representatives 
to  the  State  Legislature  of  Vermont  in  1847. 

His  religious  faith  has  alwa\'s  been  thoroughly 
orthodox  ;  his  first  teachings  were  in  that  direc- 
tion, and  he  has  never  di.scovered  an)'  good  reason 
for  changing  his  views.  In  1889,  he  was  a  State 
delegate  to  the  triennial  association  of  the  Con- 
gregational Church  held  ,it  Worn  ster,  Massa- 
chusetts. 


6i4 


BIOGRAI'IIICAL  DICTIOXARV  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


He  has  been  a  member  of  the  Masonic  fraternity 
since  1854,  and  became  a  member  of  the  Inde- 
pendent Order  of  Good  Templars  in  1S55. 

In  March,  1849,  Mr.  Scott  married  Miss  Ehza- 
beth  A.  Hatch,  who  died  in  1852.  In  1857  he 
married  Miss  Emily  A.  Smith. 

Mr.   Scott    is  a   man    of    tenii)crate   habits    and 


refined  tastes,  and  posse.s.ses  personal  qualities  of 
the  highest  order.  He  exerts  a  wide  influence  in 
ids  .State,  and  is  greatly  esteemed  by  a  wide  range 
of  loyal  friends.  His  business  ventures  have  been 
uniformly  successful,  and  he  enjoys  an  ample  for- 
tune, lie  is  withal  domestic  in  his  tastes,  and  en- 
joys more  than  all  else  his  social  and   home  life. 


JOHN    M.    GARTSIDE, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


JOHN  M.  GARTSIDE  was  born  in  Philadel- 
phia, Pennsylvania,  August  24,  1849,  the  son 
of  Benjamin  and  Caroline  (Measey)  Gartside,  who 
were  natives  of  Lancashire,  England.  His  parents 
came  to  this  country  early  in  life  and  settled  in 
Philadelphia,  where  they  lived  for  many  years. 
Here  the  father  became  a  steel  portrait  artist  and 
was  in  the  employ  of  John  Sartain,  editor  of  "  Sar- 
taiii's  Magasinc"  of  Philadelphia. 

In  1855,  the  family  moved  to  Iowa  City,  Iowa. 
Their  limited  means  became  more  so  during  the 
financial  crisis  of  1857.  The  change  of  climate 
and  other  causes  incident  to  settlement  in  a  new 
country'  combined,  so  wrought  upon  the  father's 
health  that  he  was  prostrated  upon  a  bed  of  sick- 
ness, leaving  the  care  of  the  family  to  his  courage- 
ons  wife  and  eldest  son,  the  subject  of  this  sketch. 
He  chopped  wood,  worked  on  the  farm,  often  do- 
ing a  man's  work,  and  never  letting  an  opportu- 
nity go  unimproved  whereby  he  might  contribute 
to  the  needs  of  the  family.  In  1861  the  family 
moved  to  Davenport,  Iowa,  where  John  was  per- 
mitted, in  a  measure,  to  gratify  his  burning 
desire  for  an  education,  ami  where  he  obtained 
work  at  once  in  the  merchant  tailoring  establish- 
ment of  Mr.  1'.  I..  Cone,  at  one  dollar  per  week, 
but  reserving  a  portion  of  his  time  for  study.  In 
this  manner  for  four  \cars  he  worketl  ami  attended 
the  common  and  high  schools,  and  later  attended 
the  evening  sessions  of  the  Bryant  and  Stratton 
Business  College. 

He  remained  with  Mr.  Cone  about  seven  years, 
being  promoted  from  time  to  time,  until,  in  1868, 
he  had  almost  the  entire  charge  and  control  of  the 
business. 

For  the  next  two  )-ears  he  was  employed  as 
book-keei)er,    cashier    and   office   manager  of  the 


Mutual  Life  Insurance  Compan}-  of  Chicago.  The 
change  was  to  him  most  opportune.  The  boy  be- 
came a  rrtan,  catching  glimpses  of  the  busy  world 
lying  outside  that  to  which  his  life  had  thus  far 
been  confined,  and  discovering  in  himself  a  pecu- 
liar tact  and  skill  in  dealing  with  men,  he  was  un- 
able longer  to  content  himself  in  the  narrow  rou- 
tine of  clerical  life,  and  resolved,  at  any  cost  of 
self-sacrifice  or  labor,  to  fit  himself  for  the  practice 
of  law.  Giving  up  a  lucrative  position,  he  started 
for  Chicago  with  the  determination  to  study  law. 
After  a  week's  search  he  secured  a  position  in  the 
law-of^ce  of  Messrs.  Dent  and  Black  (October  10, 
1870),  his  duties  being  to  keep  the  books  of  the 
firm  and  do  general  ofifice-work,  for  which  he  was 
CO  receive  seven  dollars  per  week.  He  went  to  his 
task  with  a  will  and  soon  became  a  proficient  law- 
tlerk.  In  addition  to  his  law  studies,  he  pursued 
other  branches  under  private  tutors,  and  thus  early 
and  late  applied  himself  to  study  and  work. 

In  June,  1873,  Mr.  Gartside  was  examined  by 
the  Supreme  Court,  sitting  at  Mt.  Vernon,  Illinois, 
and  was  admitted  to  the  bar.  He  continued,  how- 
ever, with  Messrs.  Dent  and  Black  until  February, 
1876,  as  chief  clerk,  and  was  entrusted  with  many 
important  matters  in  the  courts,  and  during  the 
last  \ear  of  his  clerkship  recei\ed,  aside  from  the 
pii\ilege  of  practicing  on  his  own  account,  a 
salar\'  of  twelve  hundred  dollars.  To  most  young 
lawyers  this  would  have  been  satisfactory,  but  Mr. 
Gartside,  with  characteristic  independence,  re- 
solved to  establish  a  reputation  and  practice  for 
himself,  and  accordingly  resigned  this  position  and 
opened  an  office  on  his  own  account.  The  decis- 
ion proved  a  wise  one.  The  few  clients,  who  had 
entrusted  their  business  to  him  while  a  law-clerk, 
innluiooed  with  him  and  h.nmhto  thers,  anil  from 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARV  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


615 


the  first  he  had  a  fair  practice  whicli  hasijradiially 
grown,  each  year  exhibitiii<j  a  markeil  increase  of 
business,  which  finally  became  more  extensix'e 
tiian  he  could  superintend  individuall\-,  and  led  to 
his  associating^  with  himself  Mr.  Frank  V.  Lef- 
finj^well,  untler  the  firm  name  of  Gartside  and 
Letringwell. 

As  a  lawyer,  Mr.  Gartside  shows  thorough  and 
careful  professional  training;  readily  analyzes  and 
comprehends  the  bearing  of  questions  presented  ; 
quickly  applies  his  knowledge,  and  in  whatever  he 
undertakes  shows  himself  a  skillful  master  of  the 
situation.  As  a  counselor,  his  advice  and  opinions 
are  reliable  ;  as  a  special  pleader  he  excels,  while 
as  an  advocate  before  court  or  jury,  he  ranks 
among  the  most  successful. 

On  September  22,  1874,  Mr.  Gartside  was  mar- 
ried to  Miss  Annie  L.  Davis,  daughter  of  Levi 
Davis,  editor  and  founder  of  the  Davenport  (^lowa) 
Gazette.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Gartside  are  blessed  with 
two  hapi)y  children:  John  Love,  aged  five,  and 
Grac»  Louise,  aged  two.  They  met  with  a  sad 
bereavement  in  the  death  of  their  oldest  child, 
Lilv  Claribel. 


Mrs.  Gartside  is  a  highl)'  educated  and  refined 
woman,  and  is  in  full  accord  with  Mr.  Gartside  in 
ail  his  work.  She  is  a  connoisseur  in  works  of  art, 
and  has  executed  many  paintings  of  merit,  both 
in  oil  and  water-colors.  She  is  esteemed  by  all 
who  know  her. 

Socially,  Mr.  Gart'side  is  much  esteemed.  He 
is  a  member  of  the  Union  League  Club;  but 
outside  of  his  busincs,  it  is  with  his  family  in  his 
elegant  home  on  Drexel  boulevard,  that  he 
finds  his  highest  enjoyment.  He  is  interested 
in  church  matters,  and  is  an  active  member  of 
the  First  Baptist  Church.  Personally  he  is  genial, 
companionable  and  generous. 

In  conclusion  it  should  be  stated  that  among 
those  esteemed  members  of  the  bar  of  Chicago, 
who  are  respected  and  honored  for  their  worth, 
none  is  more  deserving  than  he.  He  has  climbed 
from  the  bottom  round  of  the  ladder  that  reaches 
to  success  and  fame  ;  step  by  step  he  has  sur- 
mounted the  difficulties  that  were  in  his  path,  and 
now,  while  still  in  his  younger  manhood,  he  has 
attained  to  a  position  of  influence  of  which  any 
man  might  justly  be  proud. 


D.   V.    PURINGTON, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


THE  Purington-Kimball  Brick  Company  of 
Chicago  ranks  high  among  the  brick 
manufacturers  of  the  United  States.  There  was 
a  time  when  Chicago  imported,  chiefly  frorn  the 
east,  the  greater  portion  of  the  brick  consumed, 
but  to-day,  so  great  is  her  out-put  that  her  pro- 
ducers ship  great  numbers  to  other  places. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch,  the  founder  of  the 
Purington-Kimball  Brick  Company,  was  born 
January  22,  1841,  at  Sidney,  Kennebec  county, 
^L■line.  He  is  the  son  of  Daniel  S.  and  Sarah 
(  V'arney)  Purington,  both  members  of  the  Society 
of  F'riends.  His  early  education  was  obtained  in 
the  public  schools  of  his  native  place,  which  fitted 
him  for  a  course  at  Oak  Grove  Seminary,  Vassal- 
borough,  Maine,  where  he  was  graduated  in  1859. 

After  leaving  school  he  taught  for  two  years  in 
New  Jersey.  At  the  outbreak  of  the  Rebellion, 
young  Purington  enlisted  as  a  private,  August 
23,    1861,    in   the  Fourth   Regiment    New  Jersey 


Volunteers,  Infantr)^  A  year  later  he  was  made 
quartermaster  sergeant,  and  in  January,  1863,  first 
lieutenant  and  quartermaster  of  the  regiment. 
In  January,  1864,  he  was  commissioned  captain 
and  assistant  quartermaster  United  States  Volun- 
teers. One  year  later  we  find  him  on  the  stafT  of 
Gen.  Weitzel,  and  holding  the  important  position 
of  depot  quartermaster  at  Brownsville,  Texas. 
The  Maximilian  trouble  was  at  that  time 
causing  much  uneasiness  in  Mexico,  and  the 
presence  of  our  troops  on  the  border  was  required 
to  maintain  neutrality  and  non-interference. 
Gen.  Bragg  was  also  at  this  time  in  Texas,  but, 
upon  the  approach  of  the  Union  troops,  fled  to 
the  woods  and  ultimately  disbanded  his  force. 

Mr.  Purington  was  mustered  out  of  service 
on  January  8,  1866,  with  an  exemplary  record, 
having  served  on  the  staffs  of  Generals  William 
Birney,  Joseph  Hawley,  Godfre>-  Weitzel  and 
Frederick  K.  Steele. 


6i6 


BKXIRAI'HICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  CALLERY. 


Immediately  after  his  discharge  he  joined  his 
brother  in  conducting  a  country  store  at  Ames- 
bury,  Massachusetts,  but  soon  tired  of  tlnit  and 
became  connected  with  the  Frccdnian's  Bureau 
of  Virginia.  There  he  was  associated  with  Gen. 
S.  C.  Armstrong,  who  founded  the  Hampton  In- 
dustrial School,  at  Hampton,  Virginia. 

In  1869,  Mr.  Purington  embarked  in  the  lumber 
business  at  Chicago.  The  disastrous  fire  of  1871 
caused  a  great  demand  for  building  materials  of 
a  substantial  nature,  which  led  him  to  abandon 
the  lumber  business,  and  turn  his  attention  to  the 
manufacture  of  brick.  He  first  became  general 
manager  of  Messrs.  Straus,  Hahnes  and  Com- 
pany's works,  having  at  that  time  under  his  super- 
vision four  brickyards.  In  1874  he  formed  a  co- 
partnership with  Mr.  Christopher  Tegtmeyer, 
under  style  of  Tegtmeyer  and  Company.  This 
partnership  was  dissolved  in  1878,  and  in  the 
following  year  he  associated  himself  with  Mr. 
Norman  B.  Ream,  under  the  firm  name  of  D. 
V.  Purington  and  Company.  This  firm  contin- 
ued in  business  two  years.  In  188 1,  Mr.  Pu- 
rington, with  Mr.  Spencer  S.  Kimball,  organ- 
ized the  Purington-Kimball  Brick  Company, 
which  has  conducted  a  prosperous  business  to 
the  present  time  (1892). 


In  1885,  Mr.  I'urington  founded  the  village  of 
Purington,  on.  the  Chicago,  Rock  Lsland  and  Pa- 
cific Railroad,  where  their  works  are  located,  and 
wliere  two  hundred  and  fifty  men  find  regular 
employment.  The  Purington-Kimball  Brick  Com- 
pany is  noted  for  its  just  and  liberal  treatment  of 
its  employes. 

Politically,  Mr.  Purington  is  a  staunch  Republi- 
can, and  a  firm  believer  in  the  principles  of  that 
party,  as  advocated  by  Mr.  McKinley.  He  takes 
deep  interest  in  political  affairs,  both  local  and  na- 
tional. He  was  county  commissioner  of  Cook 
county  from  1879  to  1882,  and  was  elected  to  serve 
out  the  unexpired  term  of  one  of  the  "boodler" 
commissioners,  who  had  been  sent  to  the  peni- 
tentiary. 

He  is  a  member  of  the  Loyal  Legion,  Grand 
Army  of  the  Republic,  and  of  the  Union  League 
Club.  In  1878,  he  became  a  member  of  Lakeside 
Lodge,  No.  727,  A.  F.  and  A.  M.,  and  is  now  a 
member  of  Chicago  Chapter  and  Chevalier  Bayard 
Commandery.  • 

In  July,  1886,  Mr.  Purington  married  Mrs. 
Jennie  F.  Crandall,  a  lady  of  estimable  worth, 
social  and  refined,  and  in  the  circle  of  his  home,  in 
the  society  of  his  wife,  he  passes  the  happiest 
moments  of  life. 


WILLIAM    DEERING, 


CHICAGO,    ILL 


Tl  1  F  history  of  the  great  west  contains  many 
characters  of  real  worth  and  excellence,  as  is 
attested  in  this  work ;  characters  furnishing  such 
practical  illustrations  of  the  value  to  society  of 
the  cardinal  virtues  of  business  life,  as  to  make  it 
not  only  desirable,  but  eminently  important  that 
record  of  the  more  prominent  examples  of  per- 
sonal commercial  integrity  and  success  should  be 
presented  to  the  world,  not  only  for  honorable 
commendation  of  that  life,  but  as  a  worthy  guide 
for  the  footsteps  of  those  who  follow  after. 

Men  who  live  in  the  eye  of  the  public  as  incum- 
bents of  oiifice,  conferred  by  suffrages  of  the  peo- 
ple, reach  places  in  history  by  the  force  in  cir- 
cumstances, as  well  as  by  personal  worth  and  the 
faithful  employment  of  great  abilities  for  the  good 
of  the  nation.     Men  in  business  life  can  rise  into 


prominence,  and  become  objects  of  high  considera- 
tion in  public  estimation,  only  by  the  develop- 
ment of  the  noblest  attributes  of  manhood  and 
mentality,  in  enterprises  that  largely  affect  the 
well-being  of  communities. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  finds  an  appropriate 
place  in  the  history  of  the  men  of  business  and 
enterprise  in  the  great  west,  whose  force  of  char- 
acter, whose  sterling  integrity,  whose  fortitude 
amid  discouragements,  whose  good  sense  in  the 
management  of  complicated  afTairs,  whose  con- 
trol of  agencies  and  circumstances,  and  whose 
marked  success  in  establishing  great  industries 
and  bringing  to  completion  advanced  schemes  for 
the  betterment  and  comfort  of  mankind,  have  con- 
tributed to  such  an  eminent  degree  to  the  solidity 
and  progress  of  the  cit>-  and  country. 


^££^^>^^^^ 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARV  AXD  PORTRAIT  C.AI.LERY. 


619 


The  biographical  data  in  Mr.  Dcerinjjs  life 
claim  a  brief  space.  He  was  born  in  Oxford 
county,  Maine,  April  24,  1836.  His  father  and 
mother  were  James  and  Eliza  (Moore)  Deerin^. 
His  ancestors  immigrated  from  England  in  1634. 
and  in  all  the  histories  of  New  England  from  that 
time  the  name  of  Deering  finds  most  honorable 
mention.  Ehvell's  History  of  Maine,  Savage's 
Genealogical  Dictionary,  Cushman's  New  England 
and  Williamson's  Genealogy  of  New  England,  all 
devote  honorable  notice  to  the  Deering  family. 

William  Deering's  boyhood  was  much  the  same 
as  that  of  other  boys  reared  by  earnest  Christian 
parents.  His  scholastic  education  consisted  of 
the  full  and  regular  course  of  studies  in  vogue  at 
that  time  in  the  common  and  graded  .schools,  and 
was  finished  in  the  high  school  of  Readfield, 
Maine.  He  went  into  business  while  yet  in  his 
"  teens,"  and  while  yet  in  his  earliest  manhood  he 
assumed  for  a  time  the  duties  of  his  first  impor- 
tant position,  that  of  manager  of  a  woolen  mill  in 
Maine,  in  which  he  was  interested  by  natural  taste 
and  inclination.  He  discharged  every  trust  re- 
posed in  him  to  the  eminent  satisfaction  of  his 
directors,  and  after  the  termination  of  his  labors 
there  he  engaged  in  various  business  enterprises, 
to  which  is  doubtless  largely  due  his  marked  fer- 
tility and  genius  in  handling  manufacturing  de- 
tails. 

In  1871  he  became  interested  in  the  manufac- 
ture of  the  Marsh  harvester,  in  which  he  had  un- 
limited confidence  for  a  great  future,  and  in  1873 
he  removed  with  his  family  to  Evanston,  near 
Chicago.  The  confidence  Mr.  Deering  had  placed 
in  the  true  merits  of  his  manufacture  was  not 
misplaced  ;  the  demand  for  harvesters  increased  so 
rapidly  in  the  first  few  years  of  his  management 
that  he  decided  to  remove  to  a  point  of  greater 
railroad  facilities,  and  in  1880  he  removed  his  en- 
tire harvesting  machine  works  to  their  present 
location,  in  Chicago.  The  twelve  years  intervening 
since  that  removal  has  amply  demonstrated  the 
wisdom  of  it ;  as  it  has  not  only  placed  the  archi- 
tect of  its  great  fortune  in  the  first  rank  of  manu- 
facters,  in  the  United  States,  but  has  afforded 
steady,  uninterrupted  employment  of  thou.sands 
of  men,  and  placed  its  name  as  a  liousehold  word 
throughout  the  agricultural  world. 

Mr.  Deering's  religious  views  are  fitly  tho.se  of  a 
good  Christian,  both  in  theory  and  practice. 


In  politics,  AFr.  Deering  is  an  old-school  Repub- 
lican, ever  faithful  to  the  jjatriotism  of  that  grand 
old  party,  and  ever  unchanging  in  his  belief  in 
its  principles,  as  the  basis  for  hope  and  security  in 
the  rights  and  privileges  of  man's  personal  liber- 
ty, as  proclaimed  in  the  sacred  lines  of  our  con- 
stitution. 

Mr.  Deering  differs  widel_\-  from  many  of  the 
leading  men  of  to-day,  in  that  he  has  never  sought 
nor  accepted  office,  with  but  one  exception,  when 
he  was  in  the  council  of  Governor  Perham,  of 
Maine,  during  that  gentleman's  incumbency.  Mr. 
Deering  is  a  liberal  subscriber  to  public  and  pri- 
vate charities,  and  to  many  of  Chicago's  most 
thriving  public  institutions.  He  is  a  trustee  of  the 
Northwestern  University  and  also  interested,  as  a 
philanthropist,  in  several  other  like  institutions  ; 
but  is  not  associated  with  any  secret  society, 
political  or  social,  either  as  a  member  or  patron. 

Mr.  Deering  has  been  twice  married,  his  first 
marriage  being  to  Miss  Abby  Barbour,  of  Maine, 
daughter  of  Charles  and  Joanna  (Cobb)  Barbour, 
October  31,  1849.  irom  this  union  there  was  one 
child,  Charles,  born  in  1852,  and  now  the  secretary 
of  the  great  firm  of  Wm.  Deering  and  Companj-. 
Mr.  Deering's  second  wife  was  Miss  Clara  Ham- 
ilton of  Maine,  daughter  of  Charles  and  Mary 
(Barbour)  Hamilton.  This  marriage  took  place 
December  15,  1857,  from  which  there  were  two 
children,  James  and  Abby  Marion,  both  born  in 
Maine  ;  the  former  in  1859  and  the  latter  in  1867 — 
Mr.  James  Deering  being  treasurer  and  general 
manager  of  the  Deering  firm. 

Personally  Mr.  Deering  is  tall,  sparely  built, 
and  weighing  in  the  neighborhood  of  i70-pounds; 
he  is  modest  and  retiring  and  rather  given  to  se- 
clusion during  business  hours,  but  out  of  the  office 
and  when  not  engaged  in  evolving  some  new  im- 
provement for  the  future  advancement  of  his  vast 
business,  he  is  the  soul  of  affability  and  liberal 
consideration. 

Mr.  Deering's  interest  in  his  employes  and  his 
great  qualities  of  sympathy  find  fitting  place  as  a 
factor  of  success  in  his  business  life.  Fairly  un- 
derstanding men  he  is  not  afraid  to  trust  them, 
and  the  confidence  thus  reposed  in  his  em- 
ployes inspire  them  with  strong  attachments  to 
his  person  and  his  fortunes.  Their  fidelity  and 
devotion  to  his  interests  always  meet  with  ample 
reward. 


620 


BJOGRAPinCAl^  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Mr.  Ueering's  business  career  has  been  singu- 
larly free  from  all  troubles  involved  in  the  relation 
of  capital  to  labor.  The  attachments  and  friend- 
ships that  associate  themselves  around  him,  make 
his  life  a  rich  inheritance  as  thou-dits  of  age  steal 


in  u])on  his  vig(jrous  understanding.  The  highest 
relation  that  man  sustains  to  society  and  his  race, 
furnish  the  concluding  observation  on  Mr.  Deer- 
ing's  character — a  Christian  gentleman  and  a 
manlv  man. 


EDWARD   S.   STICKXEV, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


EDW.ARD  SWAN"  STICKXRV  was  born  in 
the  old  Stickney  homestead  in  Newburjport, 
■Massachusetts,  on  October  7,  1824.  The  Stickney 
family  is  of  English  descent.  Its  first  representa- 
tive in  this  country-  was  William  Stickney,  who 
immigrated  from  Hampton,  Lincolnshire,  England, 
in  1637 ;  and  a  monument  to  his  memor\-  is  erect- 
ed in  the  old  grave  yard  at  Rowley,  Massachusetts. 
Several  generations  of  the  family  lived  in  New- 
burj'port,  and  there  the  grandfather  and  father  of 
our  subject  were  born. 

Enoch  Stickney,  his  father,  was  born  on  De- 
cember 20,  1789;  he  married,  November  16,  1823, 
Sarah  Wyer,  a  daughter  of  Nathaniel  and  Sarah 
(Nevins)  Knapp,  whose  family  historj-  dates 
from  early  colonial  times.  He  was  a  merchant  in 
Newburyport,  and  highly  esteemed  for  his  upright 
and  virtuous  character.  Edward's  mother  lived  in 
the  house  in  which  he  was  born  until  her  decease 
in  1 891,  at  the  advanced  age  of  ninety-five  years. 

Mr.  Stickney  was  naturally  inclined  to  study, 
and  in  early  life  evinced  that  love  for  literature 
and  the  arts  that  characterized  his  subsequent  ca- 
reer ;  but  owing  to  his  father's  long  illness  and 
death,  while  he  was  yet  a  youth,  the  care  of  his 
mother  and  younger  brother  and  sister  devolved 
upon  him,  and  he  was  compelled  to  forego  his 
studies  and  turn  his  attention  to  business.  His 
aptitude  and  efficiency  are  best  evidenced  by  the 
fact  that  before  he  attained  his  majority  he  held 
important  positions  of  trust  with  the  Boston, 
Concord  and  Montreal  Railroad  Company  and 
the  old  Mechanics'  Bank  of  Concord,  New  Hamp- 
shire. In  1855  he  removed  from  the  last  named 
city  to  Chicago,  which  was  thenceforward  his 
home  until  his  decease,  which  occurred  on  March 
20,  1880.  For  about  four  years  after  his  arrival  in 
Chicago  he  was  a  faithful  and  trusted  employe  of 
Mr.  .S.  Wright,  a  manufacturer  of  agricultural  im- 


plements. During  the  financial  crisis  of  1S59  ^"'i 
i860,  Mr.  .Stickney  was  made  manager  of  the 
special  clearing-house  which  was  established  in 
Chicago,  and  made  necessary  by  the  unstable  con- 
dition of  the  paper  currency  then  circulating  in 
the  west ;  and  such  was  the  skill  with  which  he 
managed  this  office,  making  satisfactory  and  equit- 
able daily  settlements  for  the  banks  of  Chicago, 
when  a  fluctuating  currency  made  such  settlements 
exceedingly  difficult,  that  he  became  widely  known 
as  an  able  financier,  and  was  tendered  a  responsi- 
ble position  in  the  banking  house  of  Messrs. 
Drexel  &  Company,  which  he  accepted  and  held 
until  1868.  Upon  the  organization  of  the  Stock 
Yards  National  Bank  he  was  elected  its  cashier : 
and  during  the  ten  years  that  he  filled  this  office 
the  institution  grew,  under  his  careful  and  skillful 
management,  from  a  modest  beginning  to  be  one 
of  the  largest  and  strongest  financial  houses  of 
Chicago.  He  became  president  of  this  bank  in 
1878,  and  so  continued  until  the  time  of  his  de- 
cease. 

In  all  his  business  relations  Mr.  Stickney  was 
careful,  cautious  and  conservative,  and  uniformly 
successful.  But  his  success  in  business  never,  in 
any  degree,  dwarfed  the  finer  sensibilities  of  his 
higher,  nobler  nature ;  his  love  for  the  fine  arts, 
his  passionate  fondness  for  music  and  his  tastes  for 
literature  and  general  culture  increased  more  and 
more  as  life  advanced.  His  was  a  well  roundeil 
character  ;  thoroughly  a  business  man,  he  was  yet 
neither  austere  nor  selfish.  He  never  forgot  the 
struggles  of  his  early  life,  and  always  had  a  word 
of  cheer  and  a  helping  hand  for  worthy  young  men 
battling  for  a  start  in  life.  He  was  a  man  of 
marked  personality,  but  withal,  modest  and  unas- 
suming. His  religious  instincts  were  strong  and 
his  sense  of  honor  gave  color  to  all  his  actions. 
He  was  a  firm  friend  to  those  who   won   his  confi- 


^\Jl'  IL^^^^u^  / 


BlOCIiAI'HICAl.  DICTIOXAliV  AXD  rOKTRAIT  HA/./.KKV. 


623 


ilcncc,  and  in  all  his  social  relations  ho  was  ;^cnial, 
courteous  and  chivalrous.  His  was  a  knightly 
soul :  he  knew  not  meanness,  and  in  his  thought 
and  care  for  others  he  lost  sight  of  self.  To  him 
business  and  its  emoluments  were  only  means  to  an 
end,  and  he  prized  riches  only  as  they  contributed 
to  making  the  world  better  and  brighter,  and 
building  up  noble  manhood  and  womanhood. 
Upon  his  first  arrival  at  Chicago  he  identified  him- 
sejf  with  musical  and  literarj-  culture,  then  in  their 
infancy  in  his  new  home:  he  was  one  of  the  found- 
ers and  promoters  of  the  Philharmonic  Society,  to 
which  Chicago  is  largely  indebted  for  her  present 
standing  as  a  musical  center.  The  following 
tribute  to  his  character  and  worth  is  by  one  of  his 
intimate  friends  and  associates  : 

"  Mr,  Stickney  had  a  refined  taste  and  cultivated 
mind.  Early  in  life  he  developed  an  earnest  de- 
sire for  the  study  of  the  choicest  classics  in  English 
literature.  He  had  a  great  avidity  for  first  and 
rare  editions.  In  his  earlier  manhood  he  denied 
himself  many  well-earned  lu.xuries  for  the  sake  of 
securing  costly  copies  of  the  great  writers  of  the 
Elizabethan  period,  and  other  literary  treasures 
and  rarities :  and  he  not  only  owned  these  works, 
but  read  them  with  assiduous  care  and  untiring 
interest  and  pleasure.  His  love  for  the  best 
authors  and  for  the  greatest  masters  of  the  Eng- 
lish language,  and  his  companionship  with  friends 
of  kindred  taste,  bore  fruit  in  a  life  of  high  intel- 
lectual enjoyment.  He  was  also  a  collector  of  fine 
editions  of  standard  authors,  and  never  wearied  in 
the  search  for  choice  additions  to  his  remarkable 
library.  His  fondness  for  music,  and  for  the  great 
productions  of  the  masters  was  a  marked  and 
charming  trait  of  his  character;  and  for  the  kin- 
dred arts  of  the  painter,  the  etcher  and  the 
engraver,  he  had  an  intelligent  and  glowing 
admiration.  He  collected  the  best  productions  of 
these  arts  and  made  his  home  ilelightful  with  the 
atmosphere  of  books  and  pictures  and  music  and 
all  the  gentle  arts.  He  was  devoted  to  his  home 
and  domestic  circle,  and  his  lovalty  to  his  friends 
was  of  that  chivalric  character  that  won  their 
earnest  and  enthusiastic  admiration." 

Another  intimate  friend  writes  of  him:  "  \\c 
was  the  center  of  that  grouj)  of  congenial  men  who 
set  out  together,  when  they  and  Chic.igo  were 
young.  They  were  all  men  more  or  less  gifted 
and   promising,  and   were  given   to   thinking  and 


saying,  in  after  days,  that  the  tone  of  tliiit  little 
society  was  good.  Looking  back  now  we  know 
that  he  hatl  himself,  unconsciously,  contributeil  to 
maintaining  the  gentleness  and  refinement  of  the 
little  circle,  which  now  is  broken  and  scattered. 
But  those  who  remain  always  speak  of  him  with 
honor  and  affection.  That  which  impressed  them 
most,  and  had  the  most  lasting  influence  upon 
those  near  him,  was  his  singular  purity.  Other 
virtues  of  his  are  as  familiar,  to  those  who  knew 
him  well,  as  are  the  refined  gentleness  and  genial 
sweetness  of  his  bearing  :  but  this,  naturally,  is 
known  only  to  those  who  were  his  c-ompanions 
when  young  men.  He  had  a  robust,  manly  nature, 
with  the  sensitive  modesty  of  a  girl.  When  he 
was  present,  the  talk  and  story  were  always  kept 
within  their  proper  license.  He  shrank  from  an 
indelicate  allu.sion  with  visible  pain,  as  from  a 
blow.  In  this  he  stood  above  all  the  men  whom  I 
have  ever  known.  He  was  truly  pure  in  heart." 
The  following  resolution  adopted  by  the  Com- 
mercial Club  of  Chicago,  at  its  meeting  held  at 
the  Palmer  House  on  the  day  of  his  decease: 

Whkreas,  It  has  pleased  an  all-wise  Providence  to  take 
from  our  midst  and  from  the  various  scenes  of  his  earthly  use- 
fulness our  esteemed  associate,  Edward  S.  Stickney,  and 

Whkrkas.  The  high  estimation  in  which  he  was  held  by 
all  his  associates,  and  their  sorrow  at  his  death,  deniand  a 
record  in  the  minutes  of  this  Club;  therefore. 

Resolved,  That  in  the  death  of  Edward  S.  Stickney  the 
Commercial  Club  has  lost  a  wise  counselor,  a  genial  associate 
and  a  warm-hearted  friend. 

Resolved,  That  in  his  death  the  city  has  lost  an  estimable 
citizen,  high-mmded,  honorable  and  conservative,  intelligent, 
active  and  generous  in  his  liberal  and  cheerful  support  of  its 
religious,  benevolent  and  literary  institutions." 

The  Chicago  Historical  Society,  on  April  21, 
1880;  at  the  first  meeting  after  the  death  of  Mr. 
Stickne)-,  adojjteil  the  following: 

Resolved.  That  in  the  death  of  the  late  Edward  S.  Stickney 
the  Chicago  Historical  Society  has  lost  a  valuable  member, 
the  cause  of  line  arts  a  fostering  patron  ;  music,  a  zealous 
supporter ;  literature,  a  worthy  and  polished  sympathizer  ; 
the  city  of  Chicago  a  valuable  citizen,  and  Chicago  at  large  an 
ornament. 

Resolved,  That  this  declaration  of  our  estimate  of  the  de- 
ceased be  entered  u|xin  our  records,  and  that  a  copy  of  it  be 
sent  by  our  secretary  to  the  widow  of  our  late  friend,  with  the 
expression  of  the  cordial  sympathy  of  our  association  with  her 
in  her  bereavement. 

Such  testimonials,  from  persons  who  knew  the 
genuineness  of  his  varied  acliievenients  and  attain- 
ments, present  a  fine  portraiture  t)f  the  man  in  his 


624 


BIOGRAPinCAL  DICTIOXARY  A\D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


ciitfercnt  jihasL-s  of  character.  He  was  a  Ljood  man 
and  true,  of  whom  his  intimate  friends  and  asso- 
ciates can  speak  no  ill. 

At  the  time  of  his  decease  Mr.  Stickney  owned 
a  large  collection  of  rare  books  and  engravings 
and  etchings,  to  which  he  was  making  constant 
additions.  Many  of  these  ha\e  since  been  pre- 
sented to  the  Chicago  Art  Institute,  in  which  he 
was  deeply  interested.  His  collection  of  prints 
from  the  hands  of  Edelinck,  Masson  and  Nantueil 
was  especially  fine  ;  and  in  these,  as  in  other  old 
rare  works  of  art,  he  was  a  recognized  connoisseur. 
His  home  was  a  veritable  museum  of  art,  with  its 
library  filled  with  the  choicest  volumes ;  its  walls 
hung  with  rare  paintings;  its  portfolios  filled 
witli  costh'  prints,  and  every  nook  and  corner 
adorned  with  fine  bronzes,  rare  pottery,  anil  ex- 
quisite specimens  of  the  sculptor's  chisel. 

Mr.  Stickney  identified  himself  with  St.  James' 
Episcopal  church  soon  after  coming  to  Chicago, 
and  for  twenty-five  years  was  one  of  its  most 
valued  and  devoted  members. 

In  1869  he  married   Miss   Elizabeth    Hammond, 


daughter  of  Mr.  .Andrew  Woodbury  Hammond, 
of  Massachusetts,  whose  family  is  of  Puritan  de- 
scent and  closely  related  to  some  of  the  most 
distinguished  families  of  New  England. 

In  his  business  career,  in  his  social  life,  in  his 
domestic  affairs,  in  all  his  \arie(_l  relations,  Mr. 
Stickney  impressed  all  with  whom  he  came  in  con- 
tact, with  his  high  moral  tone.  He  was  a  man  of 
rare  intellect  and  the  strictest  integrity ;  broad  and 
liberal  in  his  views,  he  was  ever  ready  to  assist 
those  who  were  less  fortunate.  His  many  deeds 
of  philanthropy,  not  alone  to  individuals,  but  to 
worthy  institutions,  to  which  his  talent  and  money 
were  freely  given,  will  long  serve  to  perpetuate 
his  memory.  Few  men  had  more  devoted  friends 
than  he;  none  excelled  him  in  unselfish  devotion 
and  unswerving  fidelity.  The  name  of  Edward  S. 
Stickney  will  always  be  prominently  associated 
with  the  history  of  Chicago  as  one  of  the  foremost 
promoters  of  its  business,  its  moral  and  intellect- 
ual advancement.  His  life  was  one  of  unselfish 
devotion  to  noble  principles,  and  the  world  is 
richer  and  better  because  he  lived. 


PAUL    O.   STENSLAND, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


TRADITION  informs  us,  and  learned  archae- 
ologists confirm  the  statement,  that  a  num- 
ber of  bold  and  experienced  Scandinavian  seamen, 
led  by  Lief  Erickson,  visited  this  countr}-  in  the 
tenth  century — four  hundreil  \ears  before  Colum- 
bus crossed  the  broad  waters  of  the  Atlantic,  anil 
proclaimed  to  the  inhabitantsof  the  old  world  the 
existence  of  a  new  continent.  These  hardy 
Norsemen  were  the  ancestors  of  the  race  that  at 
present  inhabit  the  rugged  soil  of  the  Scamlina- 
vian  peninsula,  and  which  has  gi\en  to  the  wurld 
such  men  as  (iusta\us  Adolphus,  the"  Lion  of  the 
North,"  Karl  Linne,  better  known  b}-  his  Latin- 
ized name,  Linniuus,  and  in  our  own  day  the  cele- 
brated inventor  of  a  new  class  of  battle-ships, 
Ericsson. 

No  race  has  done  more,  in  proportion  to  its 
numbers,  to  build  up  and  to  delend  this  great 
western  republic  than  the  intelligent  and  indus- 
trious sons  of  the  northern  peninsula. 

Prominent  among  our  public  men  is  the  subject 


of  this  sketch,  Paul  ().  Stensland,  who  stands 
forth  not  only  as  a  re[3rcscntative  citizen  -of  this 
great  conmionw  ealth.  but  as  the  type  of  the  pimul 
and  ancient  nationally  from  which  he  came,  and 
as  the  embodiment  of  the  energetic,  ri'sourcetul 
and  earnest  character  of  his  Scamlinasian  country- 
men. 

I'aul  (),  Stensland  was  born  in  .Sandeid  .Sta\- 
anger  Amt,  Noi-\\  a_\-,  on  the  (^th  d.i\-  of  Ma)-,  1  S47. 
He  was  the  fifth  son  in  a  family  of  nine  children. 
Young  Stensland  grew  up  in  the  healthful  sur- 
roundings of  farm  life  in  his  nati\e  l.md.  ,ind  re- 
ceived his  early  elementary  education  in  the 
schools  of  the  district,  lie  must  have  made  good 
use  of  his  time  at  stuii\-,  and  have  hail  a  great 
facult)-  in  acipiiring  knowledge  ;  for  at  the  earl_\- 
age  of  eighteen  _\-ears  we  find  him  lea\ing  the 
famih'  home  and  faiin  and  tia\-eling  to  llindo- 
stan,  in  Peninsular  Asia. 

In  this  new  field  Mr.  Stensland  labored  with  his 
characteristic    energv    and     success.       He    imme- 


■\; 


/- — ynni/ti^'^-t-t^^ 


fe^^-t-u^^^^S^i^^ 


''Z-Cti-^^tiZ-t-t- <: 


KIOGRArillCAI.  niCTIOXARV  AM)  PORTRAIT  CALI.ERY. 


627 


\ 


I 


diatcly  connected  himself  with  the  cotton  ami 
wool  industries  of  India,  and  became  a  large  buyer. 
F"or  almost  six  years  he  traveled  extensivel)- 
through  that  country  in  the  interest  of  his  busi- 
ness. In  the  success  which  crowned  his  efforts,  at 
that  early  age,  in  a  land  so  exclusive  and  peculiar 
as  Hindostan.  we  have  a  proof  of  the  business  in- 
stincts and  foresight  which  market!  Mr.  .Stens- 
land's  career. 

His  residence  in  the  East  he  made  good  use  of. 
not  only  to  transact  business,  but  to  accjuire 
knowledge  and  experience  by  travel.  From  Cape 
Comorin  to  the  Himalayas,  and  from  the  Indus  to 
the  Hrammapootra  he  traveled,  gaining  a  thorough 
knowledge  of  the  customs  of  the  people,  and  the 
physical  features  of  the  country. 

After  a  residence  of  five  and  a  half  years 
amongst  the  Hindoos  he   returned,  in    the   fall  of 

1870,  to  his  native  land  on  a  visit    to   his  parents. 
His  return  was  most  timely,  for  his  parents,  who 

had  been  for  some  time  in  delicate  health,  were 
much  pleased  to  see  him,  but  unfortunately,  during 
his  short  stay  of  three  months,  both  died.  This 
severe  family  bereavment,  and  the  natural  dispo- 
sition for  venture  which  he  possessed,  i)r<jmi)tctl 
Mr.  Stensland  to  again  leave  his  home. 

This  time  he  chose  Chicago  as  the  field  of  his 
future  labors.     He  arrived  here   in   the  spring  of 

1871,  and  has  resided  here  uninterruptedly  e\'cr 
since. 

His  first  venture  here  was  in  the  dry  goods 
trade.  His  efforts  were  successful,  and  for  four- 
teen years  he  carried  on  a  lucrative  business.  In 
1885  he  entered  the  real  estate  and  insurance 
business ;  but  four  years  later  he  felt  sufificient 
confidence  in  himself,  and  was  sufficiently  known 
in  the  northwestern  section  of  this  city,  to  guaran- 
tee him  in  commencing  a  private  banking  business. 
He  was  not  disappointed  in  his  e.xpectations,  for 
he  was  so  far  successful  tliat  it  warranted  him  in 
changing  his  private  bank  to  a  State  bank  in  1891. 
He  is  at  present  president  of  the  institution  known 
as  the  Milwaukee  Avenue  State  Hank,  and 
which,  from  the  efficient  and  business-like  man- 
ner in  which  it  is  conducted,  he  gained  the  con- 
fidence and  support  of  the  business  men  of  the 
district. 

Mr.  Stensland  is  also  secretary  and  treasurer  of 
the  cemetery  of  Mount  Olive,  and  also  the  pub- 
lisher of  the   Scandinavian  newspaper,  "  Xorden." 


He  is  also  largely  interested  in   real   estate  in   the 
northwestern  part  of  the  city. 

For  nine  years,  from  1879  to  18SS.  he  was  a 
member  of  the  Board  of  Education,  a  position  to 
which  he  brought  his  large  business  experience 
and  varied  knowledge  with  good  effect,  and  ac- 
quired a  high  reputation  by  the  energy  and  exec- 
utive abilit}-  which  he  displayed  in  the  discharge 
of  his  duties  as  member  and  chairman  of  the  most 
important  committees. 

Another  honor  was  paid  to  Mr.  Stenshuul  b>- 
the  late  mayor  of  this  city.  Hon.  DeVVitt  C. 
Cregier,  who  appointed  him  a  member  of  a  com- 
mittee in  connection  with  I'red.  \V.  Peck,  General 
Fitzsimmons  and  Washington  Ilcsing,  forthepur- 
pose  of  revising  the  charter  of  the  city  of  Chi- 
cago. 

On  the  occasion  of  the  resignation  of  Mr. 
James  Scott,  managing  editor  and  part  owner  of 
the  Chicago  Herald,  from  the  ])osition  as  director 
of  the  World's  Columbian  Exposition's,  the  va- 
cancy was  filled  by  the  election  of  Mr.  Stensland 
to  the  position.  He  was  re-elected  director  in 
.A.pril,  1892.  This  was  a  high  compliment  paid  to 
him  by  his  fellow-citizens,  one  to  which  lie  was 
justly  entitled  as  a  representative  man,  and  for  the 
character  of  high  business  ability  which  he  has 
earned.  Veiy  few  of  the  many  excellent  and  able 
men,  who  direct  the  work  of  this  great  national 
undertaking,  will  bring  so  much  experience  and 
varied  knowledge  to  the  discharge  of  their  duties 
as  will  Director  Stensland.  To  the  knowledge  of 
the  people,  the  language  and  the  geography  of 
Asia,  he  adds  an  extensive  travel  through  Africa 
and  Europe ;  but  In-  lias  not  contented  himself 
with  travel  in  the  <ilil  \w.rKl  his  enquiring 
mind  has  sought  information,  not  only  by  care- 
ful study,  but  by  years  of  travel  through  the 
new    world. 

In  politics  Mr.  Stensland  is  a  Democrat;  but 
only  takes  that  interest  in  elections  which  he 
considers  the  duty  of  every  good  citizen. 

He  is  a  member  of  the  Lutheran  Church,  and 
while  earnest  in  the  defense  of  its  doctrine  and 
teaching,  he  is  tolerant  and  liberal  to  others. 

He  is  a  member  of  the  Iroquois  Club,  and  sev- 
eral Scandinavian  organizations. 

Mr.  Stensland  was  married  in  .August,  1S71,  to 
Karen  (Juerk,  daughter  of  Torris  Eide,  of  Sond- 
hordland,    Norway.     The    result    of    this    happy 


628 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AND  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


union  has   been  two   cliililrcn,  one   boy  and    one  few    men  exert   tlicmselves  more  to  surround  it 

L;irl.     In  the  cnnipanionsliip  of  his  devoted  wife,  with  every  comfort  and  luxury, 

and    in  tiie  affection  of  his   children,    Mr.  .Stens-  His  son,   Theodore,    is    attending    the    Phillips 

land' enjo\-s   his  greatest    happiness.       h'ew   men  Exeter   Academy,    preparing    for    Harvard.      His 

more  full}'   eiiji>\-  or  tlescrve  the   smiles   and  sun-  daughter  is  married  to  Dr.  Karl  .Sandberg,  of  this 

shine  of  a  happ_\-  home  tlian  Mr.   Stensland,  and  city. 


JOHN    HAMILCAR    HOLLISTER,    A.M.,  M.D. 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


TH  I*"-  eighth  lineal  descendant  of  John  Hol- 
lister,  who,  coming  from  England,  settled  in 
Glastonbury,  Connecticut,  in  1642,  is  John  Ham- 
ilcar  Hollister,  son  of  Mary  (Chamberlain)  and 
John  Bently  Hollister.  Marked  family  charac- 
teristics are  the  result  of  the  long  line  of  Puritan 
and  Revolutionary  ancestry,  combining  strict 
conscientiousness,  uprightness  and  integrity,  with 
manliness,  courageousness,  and  an  unflinching  de- 
votion to  principle.  To  these  Ur.  Hollister  is  no 
stranger. 

He  was  born  in  Riga,  New  York,  in  1824,  where 
he  lived  but  two  years,  his  parents  then  removing 
to  Romeo,  Michigan,  where  the  early  part  of  his 
life  was  spent.  In  1831  the  father  died,  leaving 
the  widow  with  three  little  children,  of  whom 
John,  then  seven  years  of  age,  was  the  oldest. 
Considering  the  times  and  its  frontier  position, 
exceptional  advantages,  both  educational  and  so- 
cial, were  offered  by  the  town  of  Romeo.  Its 
few  inhabitants  were  largely  younger  members  of 
old  New  England  families,  bringing  with  them 
into  the  new  West  a  tknnand  for  refinement  and 
culture.  The  children  who  canu'  up  vnulcr  this 
inlluence  were  imbued  with  all  that  is  best  in 
American  civilization. 

Having  diligently  availed  himself  of  all  the  ad- 
vantages offered  at  home,  the  boy,  at  se\enteLMi, 
went  to  Rochester,  New  York,  to  ])Lnsue  his 
studies  and  determine  u])on  his  life  work.  Here 
he  resided  in  the  family  of  his  uncle,  George  A. 
Hollister,  a  wealthy  and  influential  citizen,  while 
taking  a  full  course  in  the  Rochester  Collegiate 
Institute.  Deciding  upon  a  professional  career, 
he  returned  to  Massachusetts,  the  home  of  his 
ancestors,  and  entered  the  Berkshire  !\Iedical 
College,  from  which  he  gr.uluated  in  1 S47.  The 
mother  and   home   were    slill    in    l\(nne'o,  and   the 


West  claimed  the  new-made  doctor  by  ties  not  to 
be  sundered.  His  first  professional  experience 
was  gained  at  Otisco,  Michigan,  where  he  re- 
mained until  1849,  when  he  remo\-ed  with  his 
family  to  Grand  Rapids,  Michigan,  and  where  his 
brother  Harvey,  with  w'hom  he  has  always  been 
closely  associated,  still  resides.  In  this  year  he 
married  Miss  Jennette  Windiate,  to  whose  devo- 
tion, sym[)athy  antl  counsel  much  of  his  subse- 
quent success  is  due.  After  six  happy  and  pros- 
perous years  in  Grand  Rapids,  the  claims  of  Chi- 
cago for  future  greatness  impressed  the  \-oung 
man,  and  a  desire  to  be  in  the  midst  of  such  ad- 
vantages as  would  be  offered,  led  him,  in  1855.  to 
locate  with  his  wife  and  son  in  this  city.  From 
that  time  his  life  divides  itself  into  three  ilistinct 
channels:  the  man  professional,  the  man  [jhilan- 
■  thropic,  the  man  domestic. 

In  his  profession  no  man  holds  a  higher  or  more 
respected  position  than  Dr.  Hollister.  As  one  of 
the  oldest  and  most  successful  general  [)ractition- 
ers,  he  is  w'idel\'  and  popularly  known  among  the 
lait)-,  while  among  his  fellow  physicians  his  career 
has  been  such  as  to  merit  their  aihniration  and 
esteem.  In  1856,  he  was  one  of  the  founders  of 
the  Chicago  Medical  College,  and  since  its  organi- 
zation he  has  held  the  chairs  of  physiology, 
anatonu',  j)athological  anatomy  and  general 
patholog\'.  .\side  from  this,  he  has  occupied 
man\'  positions  of  honor  and  trust:  1855,  dem- 
onstrator of  anatomy  at  Rush  Medical  College; 
1863-4,  surgeon  to  Merc\'  Hospital;  toi'  twfiit)- 
years  clinical  professor  to  the  same  iiislilution  ; 
attendant  at  Cook  County  Hospital,  and  one  of 
tin-  presidents  of  its  staff;  president  of  the  Illi- 
nois .State  Medical  Society,  and  its  treasurer  for 
over  twenty  years;  trustee  of  the  American  Med- 
ical Association  for  eioht   \-ears,  and   editor  of  its 


^^  ;^^ 


rtiocRArmcM.  iuctioxarv  .ixn  j'oktr.ut  (I.u./.f.kv. 


631 


journal  for  two  years;  member  aiul  president  of 
the  Chicago  Medical  Society,  and  charter  member 
of  the  Academy  of  Sciences.  These,  with  all  the 
duties  pertaining  to  a  large  practice,  go  to  make 
up  the  professional  career  of  Dr.  Hollister.  True, 
they  are  many  and  have  been  conscientiously  per- 
formed, but  they  claimed  but  a  portion  of  his  time. 
Surrounded  from  childhood  by  all  the  influ- 
ences of  a  devout  mother  and  a  Christian  home, 
his  life  has  been  one  long  consecration  to  his  Mas- 
ter's work.  The  minister  and  the  Christian  physi- 
cian go  side  by  side,  lightening  the  load  of  sinful 
and  sick  humanity.  The  opportunities  opening 
on  ever\-  side  for  a  helping  hand  or  an  encourag- 
ing word  in  such  a  life  are  incalculable,  and  those 
who  turned  to  Dr.  Hollister  for  aid  never  came  in 
vain.  His  sympathy,  his  counsel,  his  prayer  was 
ever  ready  for  the  tempted  and  the  afflicted.  All 
his  life  has  been  devoted  to  Sunday-school  work, 
sometimes  as  a  teacher,  or  leader  of  young  men, 
sometimes  as  superintendent,  but  always  there. 
As  superintendent  he  has  served  for  many  years 
at  Tabernacle,  Clinton,  Plymouth  and  Armour 
missions.  The  Union  Park  Church  grew  out  of 
a  Sunday-school  which  he  organized,  and  many 
weak  and  struggling  churches  owe  their  present 


life  to  his  timely  work  and  generosity.  I-"or  thir- 
ty years  lu-  has  been  a  member  of  Plymouth 
Church,  and  for  years  one  of  its  deacons.  His 
positions  in  societies  organized  for  Christian  work 
are  varied  and  numerous.  He  has  been  presi- 
dent of  the  V.  M.  C.  .\.:  presiilcnt  <>f  the  Chi- 
cago Congregational  Club:  president  of  the  Chi- 
cago Bible  Society;  vice-president  of  the  Amer- 
ican Sunday-school  Union;  member  of  the  Hoard 
of  Guardians  of  the  Reform  School ;  director  of 
the  Illinois  Home  Missionary  Society,  and  active 
member  of  the  Board  of  Commissioners  of  New 
West  Commission. 

In  his  home  life  Dr.  Hollister  has  always  been 
most  happy;  surrounded  by  friends,  endeared  to  a 
vast  circle,  he  has  held  a  position  to  be  won  onl)- 
by  intelligence,  culture,  and  manly  integrity. 
His  family  is  small.  In  1S58  death  claimed  his 
only  son,  and  in  1861,  the  only  daughter.  Later 
another  little  one  came  to  gladden  the  household, 
who  still  survives:  Helle,  wife  of  \)\-.  Franklin  11. 
Martin,  of  this  city. 

We  have  among  us  many  prosperous  and  suc- 
cessful men,  but  none  whose  lives  offer  to  young 
men  a  more  fruitful  example  of  all  that  is  up- 
right, noble  and  manly  in  life,  than  Dr.  Hollister. 


JOHN    P.   WILSON, 


CHICA(;0,    ILL. 


THE  subject  of  this  sketch  is  a  specialist  in 
corporation  and  real-estate  law,  and  one  of 
the  most  eminent  attornex-s  we  ha\e  in  the  eity 
of  Chicago.  He  was  born  in  Whiteside  couiitw 
Illinois,  July  3,  1844,  his  parents  being  Thomas 
and  Margaret  Wilson.  He  recei\'ed  his  early 
education  in  the  neighboring  schools,  anil  in  1865 
was  graduateil  from  Kno.K  College,  Galesburg,  111. 
He  had  decided  to  fit  liimself  for  the  legal  ])ro- 
fession,  and  after  two  years,  assiduous  study 
was  admitted  to  the  bar  at  Chicago.  His  emi- 
nence and  authorit)'  on  all  matters  of  corporation 
and  real-estate  law  led  to  his  being  retained  as 
counsel,  first  by  the  Committee  on  Grounds  and 
Buildings  of  the  World's  Columbian  ICxposition, 
and  subscc|uently  for  the  corporation,  while  he  is 
at  present  also  the  attorney  for  the  Real  Kstate 
Board. 


Among  the  numerous  and  more  prominent  mat- 
ters upon  which  Mr.  Wilson  has  given  his  legal 
opinion  and  aiKice  was  the  intricate  and  ex- 
Irenul)-  i.-oni])liealeil  question  of  the  Lake  Front, 
this,  as  its  imjjortance  warranted,  being  an  ex- 
haustive and  masterlj-  report,  and  one  which  gave 
ample  evidence  of  the  author's  profound  knowl- 
edge of  the  case  and  the  law  in  all  its  bearings. 
His  opinion  as  to  the  power  of  the  .South  Park 
Commissioners  to  permit  the  use  of  the  parks  tor 
"  exposition  "  purposes  was  further  eviilence,  were 
such  needed,  of  his  great  legal  ability,  while  his 
authority  on  constitutional  law,  and  law  relating 
to  tax  titles,  revenue  and  real-estate  law.  is  an  ad- 
mitteil  fact  beyond  dispute. 

Owning  to  the  difficult  constitutional  question, 
invoKed,  he  was  emjiloyed  by  Mayor  Roche,  on 
behalf  of  the  city  of  Chicago,  to  draft  the  legisla- 


632 


lilOGRAI'HICAL  DICTIOXARV  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


tion  necessary  to  authorize  the  construction  of  an 
outlet  for  the  sewage  of  the  city  througli  the  Illi- 
nois River.  The  bill  drafted  by  him,  with  slight 
amendments,  became  a  law,  and  under  it  the  Sani- 
tary District  of  Chicago  was  organized.  He  was 
employed  as  special  counsel  by  this  sanitary  dis- 
trict to  represent  it  in  the  litigation  in\-olving 
the  constitutionalit}-  and  powers  of  the  corpora- 
tion. In  this  litigation  he  was  entirely  success- 
ful in  establishing  the  validity  of  the  law  creating 
the  sanitary  district,  which  had  been  the  subject 
of  great  doubt  and  discussion  both  in  the  legis- 
lature and  at  the  bar.  He  was  also  one  of  the 
counsel  who  successfully  defended  the  con.stitu- 
tionality  of  the  act  creating  the  Probate  Court  of 
Cook  County,  in  the  Supreme  Court  of  Illinois, 
after  said  court  had  declared  tiic  act  invalid.    The 


members  of  Mr.  Wilson's  firm  are  himself.  N.  G. 
Moore,  Esq.,  and  Mr.  William  B.  Mcllvaine. 

In  politics  he  is  a  Republican,  but  has  never 
hung  on  the  skirts  of  ofifice,  believing  rather  in 
men  and  measures  than  in  party  to  the  exclusion 
of  that  which  is  beneficial  to  the  people  at  large. 

He  was  married  in  April,  1871,  to  Miss  Margaret 
C.  Mcllvaine.  The}-  have  five  children.  Mrs.  Wil- 
son is  of  decided  character  and  sterling  worth. 

It  is  unnecessary  to  state  anything  further  with 
respect  to  Mr.  Wilson,  for  he  is  and  has  been  so 
prominently  connected  w-ith  so  many  of  the  prin- 
cipal and  most  important  legal  decisions  and 
opinions  that  have  arisen  in  Chicago  from  time 
to  time,  and  is  so  well  and  favorably  known  and 
so  generally  esteemed  and  respecteil,  that  further 
comment  or  data  seems  out  of  place  here. 


J.   FOSTER    RHODES, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


THE  subject  of  this  sketch  is  one  of  Chicago's 
most  enterprising  citizens,  who  has  done 
much  to  adorn  this  city  with  buildings  whose  arch- 
itectual  merits  arc  of  the  highest  order,  and  whose 
elegance  and  adabtability  for  the  purposes  they 
were  erected,  are  universally  recognized. 

He  is  a  native  of  Pennsylvania,  and  was  born  in 
Brownsville,  September  14,  1850.  He  is  the  son 
of  the  late  Rev.  Daniel  and  Elizabeth  Rhodes. 
His  father  \\  as  a  Methodist  Episcopal  clergj'- 
man,  and  much  esteemed  by  all  who  knew  him. 
He  died  December  11,  1891,  at  the  advanced  age 
of  eighty-four.  The  Rhodes  family  is  of  German 
descent  and  came  originally  from  Frankfort-on-the 
Main,  but  for  the  past  two  hundred  years  its 
members  have  been  prosperous  and  respected  citi- 
zens of  Maryland.  Our  subject  was  educated  at 
St.  Mary's  Institute,  at  Dayton,  Ohio.  In  1868 
he  entered  the  banking  house  of  Andrews,  Bissell 
and  Company,  at  Cincinnati,  Ohio,  and  remained 
with  that  firm,  holding  the  different  positions — 
commencing  as  messenger  and  advancing  from 
time  to  time  until  he  had  charge  of  the  handling  of 
all  the  cash  of  that  great  banking  institution  dur- 
ing the  following  si.x  years.  In  1874  he  removed 
to  Chicago,  where  he  at  once  became  connected 
witii    the    Hibernian    Banking    Associatinii,    with 


which  he  remained  four  years,  employing  his 
spare  time  in  studying  in  the  Union  College  of 
Law.  He  afterward  completed  his  studies  in  the 
law  offices  of  Messrs.  Small  and  Moore,  and  was 
admitted  to  the  bar  in  1877.  He  commenced  the 
active  practice  of  his  profe.ssion  at  once,  and  con- 
tinued the  same  for  six  years,  when  he  became  in- 
terested in  building  and  other  enterprises.  .Mr. 
Rhodes  was  one  of  the  promotors  of  the  Insur- 
ance E.xchange  Building,  on  La  Salle  and  Adams 
streets;  the  Traders'  Building,  on  Pacific  a\enue; 
the  Rialto,  adjoining  the  New  Board  of  Iraile  : 
the  Commerce  Building,  on  Pacific  avenue:  the 
beautiful  and  substantial  fire-proof  linlel,  "The 
Lakota,''  corner  of  Thirtieth  street  ami  Michi- 
gan a\'enue,  now  in  course  of  constructicin.  and 
many  other  office  buiklings  and  fine  a])artnient 
houses  in  Chicago.  He  was  also  one  of  the  i)ro- 
moters  of  the  American  Hank  Buikling  in  Kan- 
sas City  ;  the  Commercial  Buikling  in  -St.  Louis, 
and  other  fire-proof  structui-es  in  xarious  dther 
cities. 

He  has  held  numerous  offices  at  different  times 
in  connection  with  various  corporations,  such  as 
president  and  director  ;  and  is  at  present  (1892) 
director  of  the  Northwestern  Safe  and  Trust 
Comjiany  ;  the  (.'hicago  Deposit  Wiult  Company  ; 


^^^^^^^r"c>^-^0^-^^l<L.£:? 


lilOCRAPHIC.ir.  IIICTIOXARY  AXP  I'ORTRMT  CM.I.KRY. 


635 


tlic  Commercial  Safety  Deposit  Company  ;  the 
Ik-rkshire  House  Company;  the  De\-onshire 
House  Company;  the  Yorksliire  House  Com- 
pany and  other  corporations  of  similar  kind.  He 
is  also  secretary  and  a  director  of  the  Dearborn 
Savings,  Loan  and  Building  Association,  a  cor- 
poration which  was  organized  by  Mr.  Rhodes  in 
1881  and  under  his  management  has  become  one 
of  the  largest  and  most  successful  institutions  of 
its  kind.  Mr.  Rhodes  is  also  a  director  in  several 
Eastern  railroad  companies  and  other  public  corpor- 
ations. He  is  a  prominent  member  of  the  Masonic 
Order  and  other  friendly  societies.  He  is  a  mem- 
ber of  Lake  Side  Lodge  ;  Corinthian  Chapter ;  a 
charter  member  of  Chevalier  Bayard  Command- 
ery  of  Knights  Templar  ;  a  member  of  the  Royal 
Order  of  Scotland  and  the  Nobility  of  the  Mystic 
Shrine  :  a  member  of  the  Chicago,  Washington 
Park  and  Chicago  Athletic  clubs.  He  is  a  mem- 
ber and  President  of  the  Carleton  Club  of  this 
citv. 


In  politics  he  aKva\'s  has  been  a  staunch  Demo- 
crat. 

Mr.  Rhodes  was  married  September  12,  187S,  to 
Miss  Margaret  \V.  Paterson,  descendant  of  an  old 
Connecticut  family.  Of  three  children  born  to 
them,  two  survive,  viz.,  Margaret  Elizabeth,  born 
December  27,  1879,  '"""^  J-  Foster,  Jr.,  born  No- 
vember  18,  1881.  Nellie,  who  was  born  April  8, 
1886,  died  May  8,  1889.  Mrs.  Rhodes  is  a  lady  of 
much  culture  and  refinement,  extremely  sociable, 
and  possesses  many  womanly  virtues  and  she  has 
a  host  of  friends  by  whom  she  is  highly  esteemed. 

Mr.  Rhodes  is  of  medium  height,  has  dark  hair 
and  eyes,  and  is  of  fine  appearance  gencrallj-. 

Genial  and  pleasant  in  manner,  he  is  affable  and 
courteous  to  all  like.  He  is  a  frequent  and  gener- 
ous contributor  to  many  public  and  private  chari- 
ties. 

Mr.  Rhodes  is  much  res[)ected  as  a  citizen  and 
business  man,  and  is  in  the  fullest  sense  a  typical 
Chicaeoan. 


WILLIAM    O.   GOODMAN, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


\ll  ;^ILI.IAM  OWEN  GOOD^LAN  was  born 
V  V  ill  W'ellsboro,  Tioga  county,  Penn.sylvania, 
September,  1848,  and  is  the  son  of  Owen  Bruner 
and  Susan  (Barber)  Goodman,  of  English  and 
F"rench  descent,  respectively.  The  first  of  the 
paternal  ancestors  in  America  came  o\er  with 
William  Penn,  the  Quaker. 

Mr.  Goodman's  father  was  largely  engaged  in 
the  lumber  trade  at  an  early  day,  and  was  one  of 
the  first  to  establish  saw-mills  in  northwest  Penn- 
sylvania. Lumbering  has  been  the  ciiief  business 
of  the  faniil)-  for  generations. 

The  parents  of  Mr.  Goodman  djing  when  lie 
was  quite  young  he  was  put  under  the  care  of  his 
grandparents  and  aunts  who  lived  in  Colimibia, 
Pennsyhania.  He  attended  school  at  the  Colum- 
bia Institute  and  later  at  Athens,  Pennsylvania. 
In  1866  he  entered  the  employ  of  his  uncle. 
General  Williston,  a  lumber  dealer  at  Athens,  and 
in  1868  removed  to  Chicago  and  became  a  book- 
keeper for  Messrs.  Spaulding  &  Porter,  whose 
business  was  afterwards  incorporated  and  is  now 
known  as  the  Menominee  Ri\er  Lumber  Companj'. 


At  the  end  of  a  year  he  became  salesman  for  the 
same  firm,  and  a  little  later  represented  the 
interests  of  Hon.  Philetus  .Sawyer,  of  the  same 
firm.  About  this  time  Mr.  Goodman,  seeing  that 
the  lumber  business  in  the  W'est  promised  good 
returns,  began  investing  on  his  own  account  in 
\arious  parts  of  Illinois,  Iowa   and  Nebraska. 

In  1878,  in  connection  witli  tiic  lion.  Philetus 
.Sawjer,  Edgar  P.  Sawyer,  his  son,  and  his  brother 
James  B.  (ioodman,  he  organized  the  firm  of 
Sawyer,  Goodman  &  Company  which,  in  1880, 
uas  incorporated  under  the  laws  of  the  State  of 
Wisconsin  as  the  Sawyer-Goodman  Compan\-, 
Lumber  Manufacturers,  Mr.  Goodman  becoming 
treasurer  of  the  new  concern,  whose  transactions 
came  to  be  very  large.  Their  logging  opera- 
tions are  Cf^nducted  on  the  Menominee  Riser  and 
its  tributaries,  and  their  manufacturing  is  done  at 
Menekaune,  Wisconsin. 

Mr.  Goodman  is  also  secretar)-  and  treasurer  of 
the  Marinette  Lumber  CompaiU'.  He  is  also  vice- 
president  of  the  Quinnesec  Logging  Company, 
an  extensive  association  recentlj-  organized  to  ope- 


636 


BKH.KAPHICAI.  IIICTIOXANV  AX/)  PORTRAIT  CALLERV. 


rate  in  Wisconsin.  Tliis  company  lias  a  narrow 
gauge  logging  railroad  fifteen  miles  in  length, 
extending  from  the  Menominee  River  into  the 
pine  lands,  greatly  facilitating  the  work  of  trans- 
porting logs  to  the  river. 

Mr.  Goodman  was  married  October  31,  1S78,  to 
Miss  Erna  M.  Sawyer,  daughter  of  Hon.  I'hiletus 
Sawyer,  of  Wisconsin.  They  have  one  child. 
Kenneth  S.,  eight  years  old. 

Mr.  Goodman  is  a  member  of  the  Calumet, 
Union  League,  and  W^ashington  Park  Clubs,  and 
was  one  of  the  first  members  of  the  new  Athletic 
Club    of    Chicago.      He  is  also  a  director  of  the 


Roj-al  Trust  Company  Bank:  a  director  and  one 
of  the  organizers  of  the  Industrial  Banks  of 
Chicago,  and  a  director  in  the  Lumberman's 
Building  and  Loan  Association. 

He  is  a  staunch  Republican,  but  is  not  a  politi- 
cian, his  various  enterprises  claiming  and  receiv- 
ing his  entire  attention. 

Mr.  Goodman  is  personally  \-er\'  popular,  and 
has  always  enjoyed  the  highest  confidence  of  his 
associates  and  acquaintances,  and  his  business 
ability  is  everywhere  recognized.  He  is  a  repre- 
sentative man  in  the  lumber  trade  of  Chicago,  and 
has  the  confidence  of  all  with  whom  he  has  to  do. 


JAMES  VAN    INWAGEN, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


THI'-  subject  of  this  biograph}-,  who  was  born 
in  Fairville,  New  York,  on  June  i,  1837,  is 
a  direct  descendent,  through  his  mother,  of 
Joseph  Jackson,  who  fought  in  numerous  battles 
of  the  Revolution,  especially  distinguishing  him- 
self in  the  battles  of  Bunker  Hill  and  White 
Plains,  and  who  was  personally  acquainted  with 
General  Washington. 

In  the  early  part  of  the  present  century,  his 
grandparents  settled  in  Wayne  county.  New 
York,  where  his  father,  Anthony  \'an  Inwagen, 
and  his  mother,  Maria,  nee  Jackson,  were  born  in 
1809  and  1 8 14  respectively. 

James  spciit  most  of  his  early  life  in  Buffalo, 
New  \ox\<..  He  received  his  education  in  the 
public  and  high  schools  of  that  city.  From  1S50 
to  1854,  and  while  pursuing  his  studies,  he  was  in 
the  employ  of  the  then  well  known  gr.iin  com- 
mission house  of  Cutter  and  Coye.  He  began  as 
office  bo}-,  and  gradually  advanced  to  the  position 
of  book-keeper  and  confidential  clerk. 

In  December,  1854,  he  remox'cd  to  Chicago, 
being  then  but  seventeen  years  of  age,  and  on 
Januarj-  i,  1855,  he  entered  the  service  of  Messrs. 
Reynoltls,  Lly  and  Company,  who  were  at  that 
time  the  leading  wholesale  grocers  of  the  north- 
west, as  assistant  book-keeper.  In  the  following 
year,  1856,  he  became  a  junior  partner  with  his 
father,  in  the  firm  of  Van  Inwagen  and  Company, 
shipping  and  grain  commission  merchants. 

In    1857  he   entered  the   service   of  Samuel  T. 


Atwater,  a  veteran  in  inland  insurance,  and  con- 
tinued with  him  many  years,  first  as  confidential 
clerk  and  afterward  as  partner;  later  the  firm 
was  dissohed.  Mr.  Atwater  retiring  from  the 
business.  While  the  partnership  existed  they 
organized  the  Traders"  Insurance  Company,  and 
in  1867  Mr.  \'an  Inwagen  was  elected  its  secre- 
tary and  manager.  He  continued  in  the  insur- 
ance business,  representing  local  and  eastern 
companies,  until  the  fire  of  October  9,  1871. 

Mr.  Van  Inwagen  had  been  a  member  of  the 
Board  of  Trade  since  1862  ;  and  after  his  return 
from  a  FAiropcan  trip,  in  1872,  he  devoted  him- 
self entirely  to  the  grain  trade.  In  1875  he 
formed,  with  Mr.  Charles  D.  Hamill.  a  ])artner- 
ship  which  continued  eight  years,  and  during  its 
existence  the  firm  of  Van  Inwagen  and  llaniill 
was  one  of  the  best  known  on  the  Boanl. 

In  1883,  Mr.  Van  Inwagen  withdrew  from  the 
grain  commission  business,  and  after  a  recupera- 
tive trip  abroad,  in  the  following  year  he  estab 
lished  llie  Tiffany  Pressed  Brick  Company,  of 
which  he  is  now  (1892)  the  president  and  general 
manager. 

At  Painesville,  Ohio,  in  the  year  1857,  Mr.  \'an 
Inwagen  married  Miss  Mary  L.  Tiffany,  daugliter 
of  Hon.  Joel  Tiffany:  five  children,  all  born  in 
Chicago,  and  four  of  whom  are  living,  have 
blessed  their  union.  The  eldest  son,  Fred,  is 
connected  with  his  father  in  business.  The  onl\- 
dauirhter.    Loui.se,    is    the    wife    of    -Mr.  Whitney 


<2P='T--l_-i,-x^-. 


BIOC.Ii.irniCAI.  l^lcnoXARV  A.\n  J-OUTRAIT  i-.AI.I.ERV. 


639 


Mockrid^fc  :  ami  tlic  yomv^cr  sons.  Jaims,  Jr.. 
ami  Artlnir.  arc  stiidcnls  in  the  iMicliiL;an  L'ni- 
\irsit\'. 

Mr.  \'.in  In\\aL;cn  lias  alw.iys  hern  a  lo\er  nf 
ail,  and  for  many  \cars  was  itlcnlificd  will)  the 
Apollo  Musical  Club,  serving  as  its  president  for 
several  terms,  lie  was  also  one  of  the  promoters 
of  the  erection  of  Central  Music  Hall,  and  later 
assisted  materiaily  in  the  Auditorium  enterprise. 

SocialK-  Mr.  \'an  Inwagen  is  widely  and  favor- 
ablv  known.  He  is  a  member  of  several  social 
and  literary  organizations,  including  the  Chicago, 
Washington  Park,  and  Twentieth  Century  clubs, 
and  is  also  a  go\erning  member  of  the  Art  Insti- 
tute. In  politics  he  has  always  been  a  staunch 
Republican,  and  cast  his  first  vote  for  Abraham 
Lincoln.  He  is  a  Unitarian  in  his  religious  be- 
lief. 

Mr.  Van  Inwagen  has  traveled  extensively,  and 
has  visited  most  places  of  interest,  both  in  this 
country  and  Europe.  He  is  fond  of  rural  life. 
and  has  a  delightful  summer  home  at  Lake 
Cieneva,  Wisconsin,  where  he  siiends  much  ol 
his  time. 

In  his  younger  days  he  was  somewhat  famous 
in  athletic  sjjorts :  the  following  extract  is  from 
the  Chicago  Tribune  of  June  23,  i860:  "Foot 
race — The  reception  at  the  gymnasium,  in  the 
Kingsbury  block,  on  Saturday  evening,  was  at- 
tended by  a  large  number  of  ladies  and  gentle- 
men. After  the  class  exercises  of  the  evening. 
a  foot  race  of  a  quarter  of  a  mile  took  place  for 


the  champiun  i)ell.  Mr.  \  an  Inwagen  was  de. 
elaret-i  the  \  ieloi'  nvei  six  other  contestants,  and 
received  the  belt,  which  is  made  of  silk  velvet, 
with  a  beautiful  silver  clasp."  The  race  was 
run  on  a  small  circular  track,  and  required  six 
circuits  ;  his  time  was  one  minute  and  four  and 
a  half  seconds.  He  has  always  believed  in 
athletic  training,  and  nou,  at  the  age  of  fifty- 
five,  has  a  healthy  and  well  dcNeloped  physique, 
and  is  able  to  enjoy  life.  These  athletic  traits 
have  been  inherited  by  his  sons,  who  are  experts 
in  athletic  sports ;  his  son  James  was  captain  of 
the  foot-ball  team  of  Michigan  University  in 
1 89 1 . 

Mr.  Van  Inwagen  is  a  gentleman  of  a  modest 
nature  and  retiring  disposition,  and  while  occupy- 
ing a  prominent  position  among  the  representa- 
tive citizens  of  Chicago,  has  .llways  refrained 
from  placing  himself  in  a  position  where  he  would 
even  seem  to  appear  conspicious.  His  life  his- 
tor\-  furnishes  another  instance  of  what  a  \-oung 
man  of  determination  can  accomplish  for  him- 
self. He  entered  upon  his  business  career  with 
no  capital  other  than  his  own  abilities.  His 
career  has  been  marked  by  upright  and  fair  deal- 
ings that  have  won  for  him  universal  confidence 
and  esteem.  That  he  has  used  his  natural  abili- 
ties to  good  advantage  is  clearly  apparent,  and  it 
may  be  truly  stated  that  there  is  no  businessman 
in  Chicago  to-day  who  is  more  respected  as  a 
man,  or  more  honored  in  his  business  relations, 
than  he. 


LEWIS    THOMPSON    BAXTER, 


NASIlXll.l.i:.    TKNN. 


TH  E  subject  of  this  sketch  was  born  Novem- 
ber 27,  1S52,  at  Alexander,  North  Carolina, 
the  secontl  son  of  John  and  Orra  A.  (Alexander) 
Baxter.  His  father  was  United  States  Circuit 
Court  Judge  for  the  sixth  judicial  circuit  of  North 
Carolina.  His  mother  is  the  daughter  of  Mr. 
Mitchell  Alexander,  of  Mecklenburg  county. 
North  Carolina.  Lewis  received  an  excellent 
high-class  education,  studying  at  Earham  College, 
Richmond,  Iiuiiana;  the  University  of  Tennessee, 
at  Kno.xviUe  ;  Kenyon  College,  Ohio,  and  was 
graduated    from    Hobart    College,  Geneva,    New 


York,  in  1871.  Shortly  afterward  going  to 
Europe,  he  spent  eighteen  months  in  study  in 
Berlin  and  Paris  (1872^3).  Returning  home,  he 
read  law  in  his  father's  office  at  Knoxville,  and 
after  a  successful  course  of  study  he  passed  an 
honorable  examination  and  was  admitted  to  the 
bar,  February  22,  1875.  He  practiced  his  profes- 
sion some  three  years,  and  on  April  16,  1878,  he 
was  appointed  Clerk  of  the  United  States  Circuit 
Court  for  the  middle  district  of  Tennessee,  at 
.Nashville.  This  position  he  resigned  in  Decem- 
ber, 1886. 


640 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


One  of  the  originators  of  the  Nashville  Com- 
mercial Club,  he  was  its  president  during  i88g 
and  1890,  and  is  now  (1892)  president  of  the  Me- 
chanics' Savings  Bank  and  Trust  Company,  prob- 
ably one  of  the  best  and  most  favorably  known 
institutions  of  its  kind  in  the  State  of  Tennessee. 
He  is  also  president  of  the  Farmers'  Savings, 
Building  and  Loan  Association  of  Nashville.  As 
a  director  he  is  connected  with  several  other  well- 
known  institutions,  and  is  largely  interested  in 
Nashville  real  estate,  and  has  been  highly  success- 
ful in  his  numerous  undertakings. 

He  holds  Republican  views  in  matters  political, 
but  is  by  no  means  what  is  usually  termed  a  poli- 
tician. He  was  nominated  by  acclamation  on  the 
first  ballot  for  Governor  of  Tennessee  by  his  o\\  n 
party  in  1890.  In  that  particular  instance — and 
the  occurrence  is  a  rare  one  in  the  life  of  Lewis 
T.  Baxter — he  was  defeated.  He  is  one  of  the 
Republican  Commissioners  from  the  State  of  Ten- 
nessee to  the  World's  Columbian  Exposition,  a 
position  for  which  his  eminent  abilities  most  ad- 
mirably qualify  him. 

In  188^,  Mr.  Baxter  was  married  to  Miss  Sadie 


Evans,  second  daughter  of  Thomas  W.  Evans,  Esq., 
of  New  York.     They  have  two  children. 

A  member  of  the  Episcopal  Church,  he  is  a 
man  of  broad  views,  and  free  from  bigotrj'  and 
charitable  to  all.  He  is  possessed  of  much  talent 
and  a  character  the  distinguishing  traits  of  which 
are  inflexible  integrity,  great  activity  and  cease- 
less energy,  and  a  determination  incapable  of  wav- 
ering. Mr.  Baxter  is  one  of  the  few  men  who 
foresaw,  ten  years  ago,  the  almost  immediate  phe 
nomenal  industrial  awakening  of  the  South,  and 
had  the  sagacity  to  profit  by  it.  To  him  is  due, 
in  a  very  large  measure,  the  activity  and  apprecia- 
tion of  values  in  the  Nashville  real-estate  market. 
At  a  time  when  few  had  faith,  he  inspired  confi- 
dence b\-  investing  largely.  Mr.  Baxter's  mind, 
naturally  comprehensive  and  well  endowed,  had 
the  advantages  of  an  academical  and  college 
training  and  discipline,  which  has  been  enriched 
by  travel  and  extensive  reading.  His  business 
achievements  and  mental  and  moral  endowments, 
and  his  social  standing,  easily  rank  him  with  the 
first  citizens  of  his  State,  few  being  better  known 
and  few  more  highly  appreciated. 


AXEL  CHVTRAUS, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


THE  subject  of  this  sketch  is  a  member  of  the 
Chicago  bar.  antl  a  man  of  scholarly  attain- 
ments, much  ability,  and  uncompromising  integ- 
rity. He  was  born  in  the  Province  of  Wermland, 
Sweden,  September  15,  1859.  He  is  the  son  of 
Gustaf  E.  and  Maria  (Johnson)  Chytraus.  His 
father  emigrated  to  the  United  States  in  1869,  and 
.settled  in  Chicago.  Here  young  Chytraus  com- 
pleted his  preliminary  education,  and  in  1873,  when 
a  mere  boy,  commenced  the  study  of  law  in  the 
office  of  Messrs.  Howe  &  Russell,  at  that  time 
prominent  lawyers  in  Chicago.  U|)on  attaining 
his  majority,  and  while  yet  with  tiiis  firm,  lie  was 
admitted  to  the  bar.  He  continued  with  Messrs. 
Howe  &  Russell  until  1880.  He  subsequently 
entered  the  office  of  Mr.  Francis  Lackner,  a  well 
known  attorney,  and  there  continued  his  legal 
studies,  and  some  eighteen  months  thereafter  en- 
tered into  partnership  with  Mr.  George  F.  Blanke, 
which  partnership  still  continues.     This  firm  has 


been  successful  from  the  start,  and  has  built  up  a 
large  practice  and  an  honorable  reputation,  and  is 
well  known  among  the  leading  lawyers  of  Chicago. 

Engaged  in  the  general  practice  of  his  profes- 
sit)n,  Mr.  Chytraus  does  not  confine  himself  to  an\- 
[)articular  court,  for,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  he  is  well 
known  in  all.  commanding  the  esteem  and  confi- 
tience  t)f  an  extensive   clientage. 

A  member  of  the  Masonic  fraternit\-.  he  became 
a  member  of  Garden  City  Lodge,  No.  141,  in 
1888,  and  is  also  a  member  of  Oriental  Consistory, 
A.  l*".  and  A.  W.  The  sublime  thirty-second  degree 
was  conferred  upon  him  October  3,  1889.  He  is 
also  prominently  identified  with  the  I.  ().  O.  V ., 
having  held  all  the  offices  up  to  and  including  the 
Noble  Grand  of  the  First  .Swetlish  Lodge,  I.  (X 
O.  I*".,  of  Chicago. 

In  politics,  he  is  inclined  to  the  Republican 
part)-,  though  he  is  independent  to  the  extent  that 
he  prefers  to  \ote  for  men  and   measures  rather 


z::^^^^ 


BIOGRAPHICAL  niCTIO.XARV  A.\n  J'dhTRA/T  uU.I.hRV. 


643 


than  mere  party  a^i^rantlizcniciU.  In  rclitjioiis 
belief,  he  is  a  protestaiit.  Mr.  Chytraiis  is  secre- 
tary of  tlie  First  Swetlish  Ruilclint;  ami  Loan  As- 
sociation of  Chicatjo. 

lie  is  devoteil  to  his  profession  and  i;i\es  to  it 
his  piincipal  attention  and  enersni-.  lie  is  a  j;en- 
tlenian  of  fine  culture  and  elevatetl  tastes:  forci- 


iiiL;  address.  lie  has  lii^hl-comiilexioned  and 
refined  features,  suf^t^estinLj  intellectual  energy, 
in  manmr  dignified  and  courteous,  he  is  both 
atfabie  anil  L;enial.  and  possesses  friends  and 
aci|uainlances  innumerable,  liis  success  in  life  is 
the  natural  result  of  his  own  jiersevering  energy, 
sterling   integrity   and    self-reliance.       I'or   in   hi> 


ble   in    argument    and   winning   as    a    rhetorician,  character  he  combines  those  qualities  of  mintl  aiul 

while    his  oratorj-  to   the   jury    is  often  eloquent,  heart    that    render   inin    dcser\edl\'    pn[)ular,    and 

.dw.iys  telling,  and   seldom   fails  to  convince.      In  secure  to  him    the   w.uin  friemNhii)  and  genuine 

personal  a|)pearance  he  is  tall  and  of  command-  esteem  of  , ill  who  know  him. 


ALBERT    FISH  I'LL, 

CHICAc;o,   ILL. 


IN  IMowilz,  liohemia,  on  June  13,  1844,  a  child 
was  born  to  Leopold  Fishell  and  Rebecca 
I-'isheli,  m'c  Gutwillig.  That  child  was  the  sub- 
ject of  this  sketch.  Leopold  Fishell  was  a  leading 
merchant,  at  one  time  mayor  of  his  native  city, 
and  highly  esteemed  by  his  fellow-citizens. 

Young  Fishell  was  educated  in  the  I'ilsen 
"  Real  School,"  the  Academy  of  Commerce  in 
Prague,  and  also  attended  a  series  of  lectures  at 
the  St.  Charles  University  in  that  city.  At  the 
age  of  eighteen  (in  1862),  he  began  his  business 
life  as  an  employe  in  the  manufacturing  depart- 
ment of  the  large  banking  and  manufacturing 
establishment  of  L.  Forchheimer  Sons.  He 
remained  there  three  years,  and  became  manager 
of  the  manufacturing  department.  In  1865  he 
became  manager  of  the  oil  works  of  Mr.  A. 
I  lartman,  in  the  celebrated  mining  city  of  Kut- 
tenberg,  Bohemia.  A  year  later  he  determined 
to  seek  his  fortune  in  the  New  World,  and  re- 
mcjved  to  the  United  States,  where  he  soon 
accumulated  money  enough  to  begin  business  on 
his  own  account.  Associating  with  himself  a  Mr. 
Loth,  under  the  firm  name  of  Fishell  and  Loth, 
he  opened  a  general  store  at  Pittsfield,  Illinois. 
In  1870  he  withdrew  from  mercantile  life,  and, 
associated  with  Judge  Atkinson  and  others, 
organized  the  Bank  of  Pike  County,  of  which  he 
was  elected  cashier,  which  office  he  filled  from 
June,  1870.  when  the  bank  was  opened,  until 
December,  1883,  when  it  was  compelled  to  make 
an  assignment  on  account  of  an  unwarranted  run 
on  the  bank,   caused   by   malicious   reports.      Mr. 


Fishell,  to  assure  the  depositors  that  as  long  as 
he  had  a  dollar  they  woulil  be  paid  iloUar  for 
dollar,  deeded  his  entire  property  to  be  held  in 
trust  by  the  assignee,  the  Hon.  Jefferson  (  )rr, 
now  judge  of  the  twelfth  Judicial  District,  to  jxiy 
the  depositors  in  full  should  the  assets  of  the 
bank  fail  to  do  so. 

After  the  assets  of  the  bank  had  been  in  the 
hands  of  the  assignee  some  four  years,  it  was 
found  that  owing  to  the  depreciation  of  securities, 
all  the  assets,  and  also  all  the  property  held  in 
trust,  would  be  consumed  to  pay  the  creditors, 
leaving  Mr.  Fishell  nothing  but  his  untarnished 
name  and  his  acknowledged  business  ability. 
Facing  the  situation  like  a  man,  he  took  a  posi- 
tion with  the  New  York  Life  Insurance  Company 
as  general  agent,  at  a  salary  of  five  thousand 
dollars  per  annum.  In  the  meantime  the  affairs 
of  the  Bank  of  Pike  County  were  being  settleil, 
and  after  consuming  all  of  the  property  left  in 
trust  by  Mr.  Fishell,  there  was  still  a  shortage  of 
several  thousand  dollars,  which  he  paid  out  of  his 
.salary.  Thus,  all  depositors  of  the  Pike  County 
Bank  were  paid  in  full,  with  interest.  The  fol- 
lowing comments  upon  his  manly  action  are 
copied  from  the  public  press: 

Quincy  (111.)  Whig,  of  January,  1888:  '  We 
take  pleasure  in  reproducing  herewith  a  letter 
from  the  Hon.  Albert  F"ishell,  published  in  the 
Pike  County  papers  of  this  week.  The  letter  is 
addressed  to  the  assignee  of  the  Bank  of  Pike 
County,  which  was  compelled  to  ch)se  its  doors 
in  18S3.     Mr.    Fishell    was    cashier    of   the  bank. 


644 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


The  affairs  of  the  institution  were  yraduaily 
settled  up,  ami  it  was  hoped  that  the  property  in 
the  hands  of  tlie  assignee  would  be  more  than 
sufficient  to  e\entiially  meet  liabilities  and  pre- 
vent loss  to  creditors.  There  remained,  however, 
a  deficiency;  but  Mr.  Fishell  determined  that 
(Irillar  for  dollar  should  be  paid.  In  the  letter 
\\c  (juote,  he  directs  its  attorney  to  meet  every 
obligation  for  the  full  amount,  and  becomes  per- 
sonally responsible  therefor.  This  is  a  most 
honorable  and  praiseworthy  ]Moceeding  on  the 
part  of  Mr.  Fishell,  and  his  friends  in  Quincy, 
where  he  is  favorably  known,  will  rejoice  in  the 
honor  and  courage  which  inspire  him  in  his 
business  methods  and  purposes.  We  commend 
the  sentiments  which  he  utters  in  his  letter  which 
follows: 

PiTTSKlELD,  111.,  January  i8,  iSiSlS. 
Hon.  Jefferson  Orr,  Assignee  Pike  County  Bank  : 

My  Dear  Sir — When  on  the  third  day  of  December, 
1883,  the  Bank  of  Pike  County,  of  which  I  was  cashier,  by 
an  unwarranted  attack  was  forced  to  close  its  doors,  I  was 
determined  that  as  long  as  I  had  any  property  the  depositors 
should  be  paid  one  hundred  cents  on  the  dollar.  1  placed  in 
your  hands  in  trust,  valuable  properties,  supposed  then  to  be 
sufficient  to  pay  whatever  deficiency  might  arise,  after 
applying  the  bank  assets  to  the  payment  of  its  debts.  You 
remember  that  the  creditors  and  their  attorneys  met  at  your 
residence  after  the  inspection,  and  that  it  was  the  judgment 
of  all  present,  that  at  a  fair  cash  valuation,  after  the  deposi- 
tors had  received  dollar  for  dollar,  there  would  still  be  a 
large  surplus  remaining.  I  am  not  surprised  now,  that 
after  the  matter  has  been  closed  out,  there  is  still  a 
deficiency,  saying  nothing  of  a  surplus.  In  view  of  the 
financial  depression  and  the  scarcity  of  money  between  1883 
and  1886,  and  the  utter  impossibility  of  realizing  upon  any 
property  at  half  its  value,  the  result  is  not  surprismg.  But, 
sir.  had  it  not  been  for  your  patient  and  wise  course  as 
assignee,  and  the  valuable  counsel  you  rendered  the  claim- 
ants, litigation  would  have  ensued  and  endless  lawsuits,  the 
result  of  ill-considered  advice.  For  this,  not  only  myself,  but 
the  creditors  of  the  bank,  must  remain  under  lasting  obliga- 
tions to  you. 

Notwithstanding  my  heavy  and  unexpected  losses,  I  still 
cherish  the  same  desire  that  depositors  shall  receive  dollar 
for  dollar.  Agreeable  to  this  I  desire  you  to  pay  them  a 
hundred  cents  on  the  dollar,  and  if  you  will  advise  me  of  the 
amount  re(|uired,  it  shall  be  forthcoming  at  once. 

If  kind   Providence  will   favor  me  with  good  health,  I  may 
be  ablo  to  forget  the  losses  thus  sustained.    . 
F'aithfully  yours. 

Al.iiiiR'r  FisiiKi.i,. 

^Missouri  Republican.  I-'cbruaiy  /,  iSS8.\ 
PiTTSFlELD,   III.,  January  31,   (Special). — The   Bank  of 
Pike  County,  which  succumbed  to  hard  times  and  an  unex- 
pected  run,  made   final  settlement   to-day,  paying   the  de- 


positors in  full.  The  liabilities  were  forty-nine  thousand 
dollars.  Mr.  Fishell,  who  was  c.isliier,  and  a  stockholder 
in  the  bank,  sacrificed  his  individual  property  to  pay  them. 

Tin:  fi)ll(iwing  letter  e.xplains  the  niannei-  in 
which  Mr.  Fishell's  actions  were  ap])reciateil  by 
his  friends: 

3026  Chesini't  Strkk.t.  St.  Loiis, 

February  13.   1888. 
.)/;•.  Albert  Fishell,  I'itlsjield.  III.: 

Dear  Friend  and  Brother — I  wish  I  could  grasp  your 
strong,  true  hand  with  a  firm  and  fraternal  grip,  and  tell  you 
in  so  many  warm  words  welling  from  a  brother's  heart,  wliat 
thus  from  the  distance  1  can  only  put  down  black  on  white, 
in  cold  ink!  "May  the  Eternal  be  with  thee,  thou  man  of 
integrity."  In  the  world  of  insecurity  and  shifting,  time- 
serving, selfishness,  it  does  a  person  good  to  meet,  one 
among  a  thousand,  a  man  of  solid  principles  and  untarnished 
honor !  Yes,  you  enable  the  world  to  behold  the  incarnation 
of  probity,  and  the  age  of  •'  combines  and  trusts"  is  for  once 
put  to  shame  by  your  noble  example  of  rectitude  and  self- 
respect.  May  your  dear  wife  and  your  darling  children  glory 
in  the  good  name  and  fame  of  their  honored  husband  and 
father,  and  enjoy  at  his  side  and  under  his  guidance  and 
protection,  many,  many  years  of  unbroken  happiness,  peace 
and  wealth.  In  this  wish  and  congratulation  of  mine,  joins 
also  my  dear  wife,  and  with  the  glad  anticipation  of  seeing 
you  soon  in  our  midst,  1  am  as  ever, 

Yours, 
(Signed)  S.  H.  SONNENSCHElN. 

During  Mr.  Fishell's  connection  with  the  New- 
York  Life  Insurance  Company  he  was  forced  to 
remain  most  of  his  tiinc  in  Chicago,  where  he 
became  largely  interested  in  real  estate  transac- 
tions, and  in  connection  with  some  capitalists, 
he  consummated  some  of  the  largest  deals 
recorded  in  Chicago  realt}-.  At  the  cxjiiration  ol 
his  contract  with  the  New  York  Life  Insurance 
Company  (1889)  he  became  manager  of  the  West- 
ern Department  of  the  United  States  Credit 
System  Company,  which  comprises  eight  States, 
and  through  Mr.  Fishell's  able  management,  has 
advanced  from  a  very  small  beginning  until  it  has 
become  one  of  the  strongest  and  largest  guaran- 
tee companies  in  this  couiitr}-.  In  April,  1 890, 
Mr.  Fishell  removed  his  family  to  Chicago,  and, 
notwithstanding  he  had  sacrificed  all  his  propert>- 
interests  to  the  creditors  of  the  Pike  County  liank, 
he  was  enabled  to  take  the  members  of  his  house- 
hold to  their  own  handsome  residence  at  3448 
Wabash  avenue. 

Besides  his  interests  in  the  United  States  Credit 
System  Compan)-,  he  has  large  interests  in 
Chicago  real  estate,  the  Atlas  National  Bank,  and 
other  enterprises. 


BIOGRAI'lllCAI.   DICTIO.XARV  AXD  PORTRAIT  CAr.I.ERY. 


645 


While  a  resident  of  Pittsfield.  Mr.  Fishell  was 
very  prominent  in  educational  and  literary 
matters.  The  I'ittsfield  I'liblic  Library  was 
founded  largely  throutjh  his  e.xcrtions,  ami  for 
several  years  he  was  president  of  the  Library,  and 
also  of  the  Hoard  of  Education.  He  was  also 
County  Commissioner,  City  Treasurer,  and  Treas- 
urer of  the  School  Hoard  at  different  times.  In 
politics  he  has  always  been  a  Democrat,  and  has 
at  various  times  represented  his  district  in  the  sev- 
eral political  conventions  throughout  the  State. 

Religiously  Mr.  I-'isheil  is  a  believer  in  Judaism, 
but  in  religion,  as  in  politics,  he  is  a  radical  re- 
former; he  is  now  a  member  of  Sinai  Congrega- 
tion. 

Mr.  I-"islieli  was  maile  a  Master  ALason  in  1870, 
in  Pittsfield  Lodge,  No.  95.  He  is  also  a  member 
of   Union   Chapter,    No.    10;    a  member    of  Odd 


Fellows  Lodge  of  Pittsfield,  and  charter  member 
of  the  Pittsfield  Lodge  of  United  Workmen.  He 
is  also  a  member  of  the  H'nai  Hrith. 

On  October  8,  1870,  Mr.  Fishell  was  married  to 
Miss  Annie  Sicher,  of  .St.  Louis.  Mrs.  Fishell  is 
a  member  of  a  highly  respected  family  of  St. 
Louis,  and  her  m.any  womanly  qualities  have 
already  made  her  as  popular  in  Chicago  as  she 
was  in  her  old  home  in  Pittsfield.  They  have 
five  children.  KIkins  Wasiiington,  the  oldest,  is 
now  in  the  manufacturing  business  in  Chicago- 
the  other  .sons  and  daughters  arc  Daniel  Webster, 
Leo  K.,  Regina  S.,  and  Josephine  D. 

Mr.  Fishell's  record  throughout  his  entire  ca- 
reer is  thoroughly  American,  and  his  religious 
and  political  ideas  are  most  liberal ;  he  believes 
implicitly  in  the  great  principles  of  American 
liberty,  free  thought  and  free  speech. 


HON.    IIIRAM    BARBER, 


CHICAGO.   ILL. 


HIRAM  H.VRHLR  was  born  in  Oueensbury, 
Warren  county.  New  York,  March  24, 
1835.  The  country  around  his  birth-place  is  full 
of  historical  interest,  having  been  the  scene  of 
many  bloody  battles  during  the  colonial  .struggle 
for  independence.  This  country  abounds  in 
beautiful  scenery,  vividly  described  in  Fenimore 
Cooper's  tale  of  "  The  Last  of  the  Mohicans." 

His  father  of  our  subject  was  Hiram  Barber, 
who  started  in  life  as  a  merchant,  but  being  am- 
bitious, read  law  and  became  judge  of  the  Oyer 
and  Terminer  Court,  and  also  associate  judge  of 
the  Circuit  Court  of  Warren  county,  New  York. 
He  served  in  this  capacity  fifteen  years,  and  was 
distinguished  for  judicial  perception  and  integrity. 

His  wife,  before  her  marriage,  was  Miss  Salome 
Seeley,  a  lady  of  admirable  qualities.  In  1842, 
Judge  Harber  moved  to  Dodge  county,  Wisconsin, 
but  his  family  did  not  follow  till  1846. 

After  leaving  the  district  schools  at  the  age  of 
seventeen,  Hiram  studied  three  years  at  the  Wis- 
consin University  at  Madison. 

To  Mr.  Harber  is  undoubtedly  due  the  honor 
of  being  one  of  the  first,  if  not  the  first,  to  suggest 
the  need  of  a  law  prohibiting  the  sale  of  intoxi- 
cating liquors  to  minors,   and  also  prohibit  them 


from  playing  pool  in  bar-rooms  and  public  places. 
At  the  commencement  exercises  of  the  Wiscon- 
sin University  in  December,  1854,  when  but  nine- 
teen years  of  age,  he  delivered  an  oration  in 
which  he  outlined  the  needs  for  such  a  law.  The 
suggestion  was  treated  by  the  Madison  papers  of 
that  date  as  original,  and  as  worthy  of  the  con- 
sideration of  practical  philanthropists  and  legis- 
lators. To-day  nearly  every  large  city  has  an 
organization  whose  sole  purpose  is  to  see  that  this 
law,  which  is  now  found  on  the  statutes  of  nearly, 
if  not  all  of  the  States  of  the  Union,  is  properly 
enforced.  His  only  clas.s-mate  during  1852  was 
William  F.  Vilas,  now  United  States  Senator  from 
Wisconsin. 

Upon  leaving  this  university  he  attended  a 
course  of  lectures  in  the  law  school  at  Albany, 
New  York,  and  in  the  spring  of  1856  was  ad- 
mitted to  the  bar,  when  just  of  age. 

Returning  to  Wisconsin  he  settled  at  Juneau, 
and  formed  a  law  partnership  with  Mr.  Charles 
Hillinghurst,  congressman  from  the  Third  Con- 
gressional  District  of  Wisconsin.  He  afterwards 
went  to  Watertown,  where  he  was  associated  with 
Colonel  Charles  R.  Gill,  formerly  attorney-general 
of  Wisconsin.     In    i866  he  removed   to  Chicago 


646 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  A.\D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


and  formed  a  partnership  witli  the  late  Edmund 
Jussen,  under  the  firm  name  of  Jussen  and  Wax- 
ber.  Upon  Mr.  Jussen's  appointment  as  Colleetor 
of  Internal  Revenue  in  1869,  Mr.  Barber  became 
associated  with  Mr.  F"rancis  Lackner,  under  tlie 
style  of  Barber  and  Lackner. 

This  partnership  lasted  until  187S.  when  Mr. 
Barber  was  elected  to  Congress  from  the  Third 
District,  on  the  Republican  ticket.  He  first  took 
his  seat  at  the  extra  session  convened  by  Presi- 
dent Hayes  in  March,  1879.  While  in  Congress 
he  secured  the  passage  of  a  bill  appropriating 
fifteen  thousand  dollars  for  building  a  harbor 
at  Waukegan,  Illinois. 

His  sterling  honesty  was  shown  by  the  fact 
that  he  continually  opposed  the  free  listing  of 
articles  of  trade  by  the  Democrats  working  in  the 
interests  of  private  parties.  He  had  to  contend 
against  a  strong  pressure  brought  to  bear  by  the 
newspapers  and  lobbyists,  but  it  is  to  be  mentioned 
that  he  was  then,  as  he  is  to-da\-,  an  advocate  of 
the  revision  of  the  tariff  as  a  whole,  but  opposed 
to  its  manipulation  for  the  ad\'antage  of  indi- 
viduals. 

Upon  leaving  Congress  he  was  Receiver  of  the 
Land  Office  at  Mitchell,  Dakota,  four  years.  Re- 
turning to  Chicago  he  formed  a  partnership  with 
Mr.  Theodore  Brentano.  Since  Mr.  Brentano's 
elevation  to  the  Superior  Court  bench  of  Cook 
county,  Mr.  Barber  has  practiced  alone. 

Among  the  recent  trials  of  public  interest  in 
which  lie  has  been  engaged,  is  that  of  John  Culver 


vs.  the  Ciiicago  Herald,  in  a  suit  for  slander,  the 
damages  being  placed  at  twenty-five  thousand 
dollars.  As  a  lawyer,  he  is  distingui.shed  for 
clearness  and  comprehensiveness  of  statement  and 
logic  in  argument,  preferring  to  solve  a  legal  prob- 
lem by  argumentative  reasoning,  rather  than  by  a 
mass  of  mere  authorities,  though  he  is  exceed- 
ingly patient  and  diligent  in  research.  lie  is 
quiet  in  his  demeanor  and  an  indefatigable  worker. 
He  has  a  large  German  clientage,  being  a  fluent 
speaker  in  that  language,  and  his  practice  em- 
braces all  branches  of  jurisprudence.  He  has  at- 
tained eminence  and  success  b\-  his  o\\\\  nati\e 
ability  and  indomitable  energy. 

He  is  a  member  of  the  Chicago  Consistory. 
Washington  Chapter,  and  a  Knight  Temj^lar. 

He  married  in  1S57  Miss  Louisa  MclM\an, 
youngest  daughter  of  General  James  McLwan, 
of  Chester,  Wisconsin,  and  has  two  sons  and  two 
daughters. 

He  is  of  a  genial  temperament,  affable  and 
courteous,  and  a  man  respected  b\-  all  who  know 
him    for  his  unsullied  record  antl  lionest  lile. 

Domestic  in  his  tastes,  he  is  hap])iest  by  his 
fireside,  though  a  welcome  guest  among  all  his 
friends,  being  a  most  interesting  and  well-reatl 
conversationalist,  and  thoroughly  informed  upon 
all  the  topics  of  the  day. 

In  fine,  he  is  one  of  the  oldest  members  of  the 
Chicago  bar,  commanding  the  respect  of  his  pro- 
fessional confreres  and  the  confidence  and  trust 
of  all  wiin  come  in  contact  with  him. 


FREDERICK    WACKER, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


FRlCDFwRICK    WACKER  was  born  in  Unter-  breweries    of     Germany     and     .\iistria,    excelling 

jesingen,      near     Tiibingen,      W'iirtembcrg.  exerxwhcrr   \i\   his   ability    antl    faithfulness,   and 

(iermany,    September    30,     1830.       His   father,    a  tinally   became,  while    yet    a   Noutli   of    not    quite 

physician,  desired  he  should  enter  the  medical  pro-  twent_\--iine    years,    head    brewer  in    one     of    the 

fession,   but   his  inclinations    were  so  strongly  in  largest    breweries   of  .\ugsburg,    where!)}-  a   good 

favor  of    the    brewing   business,  that    he    was  ap-  salary  and  a  successful    future   became   assureil  to 

prcnticed    to    the   "  Little    Inn   of    Weilheim,"    a  him. 


brewery  with  a  restaurant  attached,  made  famous 
by  the  students  of  Tiibingen.  After  completing 
his  apprenticeship,  he,  as  journeyman  brewer, 
entered  upon  the  customar)-  travels  that  were 
required    by    law,    and    worked    in    several    great 


The  libert\-lii\ing  youth  became  dissatisfied, 
however,  with  the  jjolitical  conditions  then  exist- 
ing in  Germany,  and  determined  to  immigrate  to 
the  United  States,  which  he  did  in  185 1.  After 
a  lone  .uul  tedious  \-ovage  in  a  sailing   vessel,    he 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


647 


landed  in  New  York.  lie  then  journeyed  to 
Newark,  New  Jersey,  where  he  remained  a  short 
time,  locating  finally  in  Klmira.  New  York.  Ik- 
earned  his  first  money  in  the  United  States  by 
cutting  wood  on  a  farm,  but  he  soon  secured  a 
position  in  Elmira,  better  suited  to  his  acquire- 
ments. There,  in  1S52,  he  married  Marie 
W'eisschuh,  who  died  shortly  after. 

The  monotonous  and  quiet  life  in  Elmira  was 
unsuited  to  his  active  disposition,  and  hearing  of 
the  energy,  progressive  spirit  and  phenomenal 
growth  of  the  west,  he  was  induced  in  1854  to 
remove  to  Chicago. 

Mr.  Wacker  was  one  of  the  originators  of  the 
only  then  prominent  German  singing  societies, 
under  the  direction  of  Carl  Schuert,  and  of  the  old 
••  Sharpshooters'  Association,"  years  before  it  was 
deemed  desirable  to  incorporate  the  organization. 
Upon  sand-hills  covered  with  bushy  undergrowth, 
to  the  north  of  the  cemetery,  now  no  longer  in 
exi.stence,  they  frequently  held  festivals  upon  the 
verj-  spot  now  occupied  by  Lincoln  Park.  "  Ger- 
mania  "  and  "  Mithra  "  lodges,  and  other  societies 
in  later  years,  likewise  counted  him  among  their 
members.  He  was  also  one  of  the  oldest  mem- 
bers of  the  Board  of  Trade. 

On  the  30th  of  September,  1855,  he  married 
Catherina  Hummel,  who,  on  the  29th  of  August, 
1856,  presented  him  with  their  only  child,  Charles 
H.  Their  happy  union  continued  for  twenty-nine 
years.  Nothing  was  prized  more  highly  by  him 
than  the  peaceful,  simple  life  of  the  family  circle. 
His  whole  being  was  devoted  to  his  family,  and 
he  spared  no  pains  to  completely  guard  their 
future  against  any  reverses.  To  his  son  he  gave 
ever>'  opportunity  to  gain  a  thorough  education 
in  good  schools,  as  well  as  by  travels  in  America. 
Europe  and  Africa,  of  which  advantages  young 
Wacker  made  most  excellent  use.  Mr.  Wacker 
was  at  all  times  ready  to  contribute  his  mite 
toward  enterprises  calculated  to  promote  the 
public  good,  and  many  needy  persons  have  ex- 
perienced his  kindness  and  generosity.  The  do- 
nations made  to  Uhlich's  Orphan  Asylum. 
German  Hospital,  Old  People's  and  Alcxian 
Brothers'  Hospitals,  amounting  to  twenty-five 
thousand  dollars,  speak  for  themselves. 

His  activity  from  1854  until  his  death  in  1884. 
was  remarkable. 

During  his  first  years  in  Chicago  he  was  engaged 


in  various  occupations,  such  as  inn-keeper,  farmer, 
and  general  produce  merchant,  but  his  predilec- 
tion for  the  brewing  business  induced  him  soon  to 
accept  a  position  in  Lill  and  Diversey's  ale 
brewery.  He  was  engaged  as  foreman  by  the 
predecessor  of  Mr.  Rodemeyer,  and  later  by 
Louis  Rodemeyer  himself.  In  1857  he  bought 
Blattner's  share  in  Blattner  and  Seidenschwanz's 
brewery  (on  Hillsdale  street)  between  Rush  and 
Pine  streets,  and  in  the  spring  of  1S5S  they 
removed  to  Franklin  street,  near  Asylum  place, 
now  Webster  avenue. 

Here  Mr.  Wacker's  business  ability  was  severely 
tested,  for  with  no  financial  means  at  his  com- 
mand, embarrased  by  the  greatest  stringency  of 
the  money  market  the  United  States  has  ever 
known,  he  nevertheless  succeeded  in  raising  the 
business  to  an  eminent  height.  After  having  pur- 
chased the  interest  of  C.  Seidenschwanz,  he  had 
the  misfortune,  in  1867,  to  see  this  thriving 
and  prosperous  business,  reared  by  years  of  hard 
labor,  devoured  by  flames. 

His  health  had  now  become  very  much  im- 
paired by  overwork,  and  he  finally  yielded  to  the 
advise  of  his  physicians  and  the  entreaties  of  his 
family,  and  determined  not  to  rebuild,  but  to 
make  a  trip  to  Germany,  to  seek  relief  and  much- 
needed  rest.  In  the  following  year  (1869)  he 
made  a  second  trip  to  Europe,  and  returned  some- 
what improved.  But  his  disease,  a  chronic 
ailment  of  the  stomach,  to  which  he  finally  suc- 
cumbed, would  not  fully  yield  to  the  most  skill- 
ful treatment  to  be  found  in  this  country  or 
Europe.  But  he  could  not  remain  idle  very  long. 
With  Mr.  L.  J.  Kadish  he  erected  a  small  malt 
house  at  the  foot  of  Elm  street ;  but  soon  the 
increasing  demands  of  the  business  necessitated 
the  purchase  of  the  building  at  the  corner  of 
Clybourn  place  and  South  Park  avenue,  where  the 
business  was  conducted  on  a  much  enlarged  scale. 
Mr.  Jacob  Rehm  purchased  the  interest  of  Mr. 
Kadish,  the  firm  becoming  V.  Wacker  and  Com- 
pany, and  so  continuing  until  the  business  was 
incorporated  under  the  name  of  the  North- 
western Malting  Company.  The  business  in- 
creased yearly,  and  in  1875,  when  Mr.  Wacker, 
physically  worn  out,  was  compelled  to  retire  from 
the  business,  it  had,  under  his  management, 
become  one  of  the  largest  malt  houses  in  Chicago. 
The  greater  part  of   1875   was  spent    in  traveling 


648 


BIOGRAnriCAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


in  this  country,  and  all  of  tlie  succeeding  years 
until  the  fall  of  1879,  were  spent  traveling  in 
Europe  by  Mr.  Wacker  with  his  family,  in  search 
of  health.  His  condition  im])roved  later  through 
the  skill  of  Ober-Medicenalrath  Dr.  Von  Giirtner, 
of  Stuttgart,  and  the  wonderful  properties  of  the 
Karlsbad  waters,  and  the  unremitting  care  of  his 
devoted  wile. 

After  returning  to  Chicago,  Mr.  Wacker  soon 
fountl  that  he  could  not  rest  content  unless  ac- 
ti\eh-  engaged,  and  this  feeling  of  unrest  led  to 
the  purchase  of  t!ie  old  Burton  Malt  House,  at 
the  corner  of  Jefferson  and  Indiana  streets,  in 
the  following  spring.  He  made  a  fourth  trip  to 
Karlsbad  in  the  fall  of  1880,  but  returned  in  time 
to  superintend  the  affairs  of  Messrs.  F.  Wacker 
and  Son.  The  business  of  this  firm  increased 
rapidly,  and  a  large  elevator  was  built  in  1881. 
In  the  following  year  Mr.  Jacob  Birk  was  admitted 
to  the  business,  and  the  Wacker  and  Birk 
Brewing  and    Malting  Company    was    organized. 


with  Mr.  F.  Wacker  as  president.  The  extra- 
ordinary success  of  this  ciimpan\-  under  his 
management  is  well  known.  However,  Mr. 
Wacker  was  not  long  permitted  to  enjoy  his 
last  success — his  last  illness  confining  him  to  liis 
bed  in  1884. 

By  his  courage  and  will-power  he  hail  cim- 
quered  great  misfortunes,  had  borne  with  forti- 
tude the  most  excruciating  jKiin,  but  when  in  tin 
month  of  April,  1884,  he  lost  his  beloved  wife, 
who  had  for  many  years  been  his  constant  com- 
panion through  adversity  and  prosperity,  his  cup 
of  sorrow  and  of  bitterness  was,  indeed,  filled  to 
o\-erflowing.  From  day  to  day  he  became 
weaker,  until  he  finally  passed  away  on  July  8, 
1884,  deeply  mourned  by  his  son,  relatives  and 
friends. 

Thus  terminated  the  life  of  a  man  who,  by 
scrupulous  honesty,  indomitable  energy  and 
general  ability,  gained  the  esteem  of  all  who 
knew  him.     He  was  trulv  a  self-made  man. 


CHARLES    H.   WACKER, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


THE  selection  of  Charles  H.  Wacker  from  the 
twelve  hundred  thousand  inhabitants  of 
the  city  of  Chicago  as  one  of  the  forty-five  citi- 
zens who  constitute  the  Board  of  Directors  of  the 
World's  Columbian  Exposition,  the  greatest  and 
mcst  cherished  enterprise  of  this  marvelous 
metropolis,  is  in  itself  a  sufficient  testimonial  to 
his  integrity,  business  ability  and  worth.  That 
he  should  have  achieved  such  honor  and  distinc- 
tion among  his  fellow-men  at  the  early  age  of 
thirty-five  years  demonstrates  what  may  be  ac- 
complished by  well-directed  ambition,  when  sup- 
ported by  intelligent  industry,  perseverance  and 
the  cultivation  of  a  frank  and  open  bearing  in  all 
business  and  social  relations. 

The  credit  for  Mr.  Wacker's  success  is  due  not 
alone  to  his  efforts,  but  also  to  the  sterling  cjuali- 
ties  of  his  parents,  Frederick  and  Catherina 
Wacker,  iice  Hummel,  who  fully  realized  that 
the  position  in  life  of  their  only  chikl  must  be  de- 
termined by  the  thoroughness  of  his  early  train- 
ing and  equipment,  l^orn  on  August  29,  1856, 
he  was  from  infancy  taught  to  be   self-reliant,  in- 


dustrious and  courteous  to  his  associates.  His 
rudimentary  education  was  received  in  the  pid^lic 
schools  of  this  city,  the  North  Division  High 
School  and  the  Lake  Forest  Academy.  His  first 
acquaintance  with  practical  life  was  in  the  office 
of  the  commission  firm  of  Carl  C.  Moeller  &  Com- 
pany, and  although  he  began  at  the  beginning, 
within  a  few  years  he  had  advanced  from  office 
boy  to  a  position  of  trust  and  confidence.  In 
1876  his  father  sent  him  on  a  three  years"  tour 
around  the  world.  First  of  all,  as  a  loyal  Amer- 
ican boy,  he  saw  this  broad  republic  of  ours  in  all 
her  grandeur  of  scenery,  visited  the  International 
Exposition  at  Philadelphia,  sailed  to  the  old 
country  in  order  to  acquire  that  polish  of  manners 
that  refinement  of  intellect  and  that  broad-gavige 
spirit,  which  travel  and  study  in  Europe,  wlun 
rightly  enjoyed,  never  fail  to  impart  to  the  jilastic 
mind  of  a  young  man. 

Across  the  water  he  attended  a  commercial 
college,  the  noted  Conservatory  of  Music  in 
Stuttgart,  and  a  course  of  lectures  in  the  Uni- 
versity of  Geneva,   .Switzerland,   and   while   llu-re 


I 


1 


nrOGRAFHICAI.  DICTIONARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


651 


became  a  mcinbor  of  a  resident  I'Vencii  family  in 
order  to  pursue,  in  a  more  practical  manner,  his 
study  of  the  French  language.  After  visiting  the 
ensuing  World's  Fair  of  Paris  in  1878,  lie  made  tlie 
tour  of  the  other  countries  of  Europe — Germany, 
Holland,  Helgium,  Switzerland,  England,  Austria 
and  Italy.  In  the  latter  country  his  natural 
artistic  instincts  received  proper  direction,  and 
gained  a  stronger  impetus  by  a  careful  survey  antl 
comparison  of  the  excellent  features  in  works  of 
art.  The  winter  of  1878  he  spent  in  Egypt,  and 
viewed  the  pyramids,  the  sphinx  and  other 
vestiges  of  early  Pharaohic  power. 

After  his  return  home  he  at  once  plunged  into 
business,  and  re-entered  the  office  of  Carl  C. 
Moeller.  where  he  remained  until  1880.  In  that 
year  he  joined  his  father  in  establishing  the  malt- 
ing firm  of  F.  Wacker  &  Son,  which  continued 
until  1882,  when  the  Wacker  &  Birk  Brewing 
Company  was  organized,  with  his  father  as  presi- 
dent. InM884  he  met  with  his  first  severe  blow 
in  the  loss,  by  death,  in  rapid  succession,  of  both 
his  mother  and  his  father. 

Shortly  after  the  death  of  his  father  Mr. 
Wacker  was  elected  president  and  treasurer  of  the 
Wacker  &  Birk  Brewing  Company,  and  in  that 
capacity  managed  the  affairs  of  the  vast  concern 
so  well  and  wisely,  and  brought  it  to  such  an  un- 
expected degree  of  prosperity,  that  in  1889  the  at- 
tention of  British  capitalists  was  directed  to  the 
plant,  and  the  same  was  sold  to  an  English  com- 
pany, but  in  such  manner  as  to  leave  the  former 
office  and  managing  staff  in  control.  Since  the 
purchase,  the  brewery  has  extended  its  sphere  of 
action  and  increased  in  value — a  fact  principally 
due  to  the  energy  and  ability  of  Mr.  Wacker. 

Outside  of  the  present  brewing  enterprise  Mr. 
Wacker  is  interested  in  many  other  fields  of  busi- 
ness. He  is  a  director  f)f  the  Corn  Exchange 
Bank,  a  member  of  the  executive  committee  of 
the  Chicago  Breweries,  limited,  a  director  of  the 
Wright  and  Hill's  Linseed  Oil  Works;  president 
of  the  Chicago  Heights  Land  Association;  direct- 
or of  the  Chicago  Title  and  Trust  Company; 
director  in  the  Western  Stone  Company:  treas- 
urer of  the  new  German  (Opera  House  Comjiany ; 
a  large  stockholder  in  the  Auditorium  enterprise, 
ami  a  director  in  the  London  and  Chicago  Con- 
tract Corporation.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Chi- 
cago  Board    of    Trade,  of    the  .Stuck    Exchange, 


and  holds  ap[)ointments  on  three  of  the  import- 
ant committees  of  the  Board  of  Directors  of  the 
World's  Columbian  Exposition,  to  wit:  On  Ways 
and  Means,  on  Music  and  Ceremonies,  Foreign 
Affairs,  and  on  Electrical  I-lxhibits.  He  was 
president  of  the  State  Liquor  Dealers'  Protective 
Association  for  four  consecutive  terms. 

Thus  it  will  be  seen  that  Mr.  Wacker,  especial- 
ly for  a  young  man  not  yet  in  the  zenith  of  life, 
and  w  itli  so  many  older  and  more  experienced 
men  abundantly  present  in  a  city  of  so  vast  a 
population  as  Chicago,  is  continuously  engaged 
in  the  management  of  a  number  of  large  and  im- 
portant local  ventures  of  different  descriptions  re- 
(juiring  the  display  of  great  versatility  of  busi- 
ness talent.  But,  nevertheless,  he  has  found  am- 
ple time  to  cultivate  and  enjoy  the  pleasures  of 
social  and  domestic  life.  He  wedded,  on  May 
10,  1887,  Miss  Tillie  Glade,  the  daughter  of  H. 
O.  Glade,  one  of  Chicago's  old  and  respected  citi- 
zens, anil  their  union  has  been  blessed  by  three 
children,  two  of  whom,  boys,  Frederick  and 
Charles  H.,  survive.  Mr.  Wacker  is  perhaps  even 
more  prominently  known  in  social  than  he  is  in 
business  circles,  wluM'e  his  sunny  disposition  and 
kindly  sympath\-  has  made  him  a  universal  fa- 
vorite. He  is  a  well-known  and  appreciated 
member  of  the  Union  League,  the  Iroquois,  Sun- 
set, Bankers',  Goodfellowship,  Athletic,  and  the 
L^nion  clubs  ;  director  of  the  German  Old  Peo- 
ple's Home,  and  a  member  of  the  Orpheus,  Senne- 
felder,  Suabian,  and  other  German  singing  socie- 
ties. And  in  musical  circles  he  is  esteemed  not 
alone  as  an  amateur  of  some  proficiency,  but  as  a 
connoisseur,  and  is  one  of  the  public  spirited 
Chicagoans  who  executet!  the  guaranty  that 
induced  the  great  orchestra  leader,  Theodore 
Thomas,  to  remove  his  permanent  residence  from 
New  \ork  to  this  cit}-.  In  ail  matters  pertaining 
to  art  he  is  well  versed,  and  besides  enriching  his 
home  with  numerous  rare  works  of  art  collected 
by  him  from  both  hemispheres,  has  manifested 
tleep  interest  in  the  Art  Institute  uf  this  city.  It 
is  particularl)-  in  German-American  circles  of  this 
city,  however,  that  Mr.  Wacker  is  most  thor- 
oughly appreciated.  He  is  vice-president  of  the 
Germania  Mx-nnerchor,  the  leading  German- 
American  social  organization  in  Chicago,  and 
is  a  prominent  meinber  of  the  Chicago  Turn- 
(iemeinde,  the  foremost  athletic  club  of  the  citj-. 


652 


BIOGRAPHICAL   DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Following  the  practice  and  teachings  of  iiis  pa- 
rents, Mr.  Wacker  has  not  only  jealously  guarded 
and  fulfilled  the  numerous  charitable  bequests 
made  by  his  father,  but  has  added  thereto  with  a 
broad-minded  liberality,  without  regard  to  national 
or  sectarian  bounds. 

Politically,  Mr.  Wacker  is  a  faithful  follower  of 
Jeffersonian  doctrine,  and  an  ardent  admirer  of 
Gro\'er  Cleveland ;  and  his  generous  donations  in 
recent  campaigns  afford  ample  evidence  of  his 
party  affiliations.  An  incident  showing  how 
highh-  he  is  esteemed  by  his  party  and  b\-  the 
community  at  large  occurred  in  1888,  when  he 
was  named  by  acclamation  in  the  Democratic 
State  Convention  for  the  office  of  State  Treas- 
urer, the  second  highest  gift  in  the  power  of  the 
people    of  this    State   to   bestow.     At   that   time 


Mr.  Wacker  w^as  but  thirty-two,  and  it  is  claimed 
that  he  was  the  youngest  man  ever  nominated  in 
this  State  for  that  high  office.  Mr.  Wacker,  how- 
ever, declined  the  honor  proffered  him,  as  he  has 
likewise  refused  several  other  city  and  county 
nominations,  owing  to  the  fact  that  his  extensive 
and  varied  business  interests  preclude  the  idea 
of  political  services.  ' 

In  conclusion,  it  may  be  said  Mr.  Wacker,  while 
yet  a  very  young  man,  occupies  an  enviable  posi- 
tion in  the  business  and  social  life  of  the  West, 
and  his  many  natural  gifts  and  acquirements  will 
undoubtedly  win  for  him  other  and  higher  posi- 
tions of  honor  and  trust ;  and  in  a  gala.xy  of  men 
of  local  note  he  must  be  assigned  a  place  of  high 
prominence,  as  a  man  of  extraordinary  worth  to 
our  "-rowin"  and  eneriretic  commonwealth. 


JOSEPH    WATRY,   M.D. 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


JOSEPH  WATRV  is  the  son  of  J.  P.  Watry 
and  Susan  (Wolf)  Watry,  of  Ozaukee  county, 
Wisconsin,  who  were  married  in  1842,  in  Bel- 
gium. His  paternal  ancestors  were  Belgians  for 
several  generations.  His  father  immigrated  to 
the  United  States  in  1844,  and  was  one  of  the 
first  settlers  in  Ozaukee  county.  His  maternal 
ancestry  were  from  the  Grand  Duchy  of  Luxum- 
burg.  Up  to  the  time  of  his  death,  wliicli  oc- 
curred a  few  years  ago,  J.  P.  Watry  had  clone  a 
great  deal  of  the  pioneer  work  in  developing 
Ozaukee  county,  Wisconsin,  and  at  his  death  had 
a  handsome  competence,  the  reward  for  his  unre- 
mitting toil. 

Our  subject  has  two  brothers  and  three  sisters 
living.  Mr.  N.  Watr)-,  a  brother,  owns  ami  con- 
ducts an  e.xtensi\e  optical  institute  on  Randolph 
street,  Chicago — it  is  one  of  the  largest  of  its  kind 
in  the  Northwest ;  another  brother  is  a  successful 
dealer  in  agricultural  implements  in  Wisconsin. 
The  sisters  are  all  married  and  doing  well.  Joseph 
was  born  October  18,  i860,  his  early  education 
was  obtained  in  the  common  schools  of  Wiscon- 
sin. He  next  attended  St.  John's  Universitv, 
Stearns  county,  Minnesota,  where  he  spent  three 
years.  By  earnest,  close  application  to  stud\-  he 
grailuated  with   high  honor  from   the  literary  tle- 


partmcnt  of  this  College,  but  he  did  not  rest  con- 
tent with  these  honors — his  mark  was  high,  an 
ambition  to  master  the  languages  prompted  him 
to  go  abroad  to  pursue  his  studies.  Three  years 
were  spent  in  Belgium  and  France  studying  the 
languages,  and  preparing  to  enter  the  medical 
profession.  Few  nati\e  Americans  spend  as  much 
time  and  patient  study  to  prepare  for  a  profes- 
sional education  as  did  he.  In  1880,  he  matricu- 
lated at  Hahnemann  Medical  College,  Chicago, 
and  at  the  conclusion  of  a  three  years"  course 
was  graduated,  receiving  the  degree  of  M.D. 
The  first  year  of  his  professional  career  was  spent 
in  general  practice,  in  which  he  was  very  success- 
ful, but  his  inclination  was  to  excel  as  an  oculist 
antl  aurist.  After  spending  six  months  in  New 
York  city,  at  the  various  eye  and  ear  institutions, 
he  went  abroad  to  continue  his  studies  in  the 
hospitals  of  Vienna  and  Berlin.  His  investiga- 
tions were  more  particularly  confined  to  the 
pathology  of  the  eye  and  ear,  nose  and  throat. 
Returning  to  Chicago,  he  has  built  up  a  large  and 
lucrative  practice. 

That  his  attainments  ha\-e,  in  some  degree, 
been  recognized,  is  shown  by  the  honors  that 
ha\e  been  conferreil  upon  him.  Dr.  Watr\-  is 
clinical    professor  of  otologs'  and  ophthalmolngy 


BIOGRArmCAI.  IVCTIOXAKY  AXD  PORTRAIT  CALLERY. 


655 


in  the  Hahnemann  Medical  College.  lie  is  at- 
temiing  oculist  and  aurist  to  the  Hahnemann 
Medical  Hospital,  and,  in  association  with  Dr. 
Vilas,  lias  charge  of  the  eye  and  ear  clinic.  He 
is  a  member  of  the  Honneopathic  Medical  Socie- 
ty of  Chicago,  a  member  of  the  National  Insti- 
tute of  Homoeopathy,  and  of  tiic  State  Homcieo- 
pathic  Medical  Societw  He  is  consulting  oculist 
at  theOjitical  Institute,  No.  99  E.  Randolph  street. 
"Dr.  \\'atr\-  is  a  man  of  few  words  antl  ([uiet 
ilemeanor;  he  proceeds  cautiously  and  under- 
stanilingly:  he  is  particularly  practical,  thorough, 
and  a  \cry  successful  clinical  teacher,  anil  has 
brought    with    him   the  thoroujjh    methods  of  the 


old  school  on  the  continent.  He  usuallj'  sa)'s 
what  he  means,  and  is  a  great  .^avorite  with  all 
earnest  students.  As  an  operator  he  is  dextrous, 
skillful,  confident  and  successful,  and  ]Kirticularly 
well  informed  in  all  the  modern  methods." 

The  above  is  from  an  eminent  practitioner,  a 
distinguished  writer  ami  teacher  in  Hahnemann 
Medical  College. 

In  addition  to  his  accomplishments  as  a  prac- 
titioner, Dr.  W'.itry  s[)eaks.  with  fluency,  German, 
French  and  luiglish,  and  has  a  fair  knowledge  of 
Latin  and  Greek,  h'or  man)-  years  he  has  been  a 
frequent  c<intributor  to  the  Transactions  of  the 
Hahnemann  Clinical  Societ^•. 


LOOM  IS    P.    HASKELL. 


CIIICAC.O,   ILL. 


THE  subject  of  this  biography  is  a  nati\c  of 
Hangor,  Maine.  He  was  born  Ajiril  J3. 
1826,  the  son  of  Benjamin  and  Mary  (huller) 
Haskell,  natives  of  Gloucester,  Massachusetts, 
and  both  of  English  ancestry.  His  maternal 
grandfather  was  a  prominent  clergyman.  His 
father  died  when  our  subject  was  but  five  years 
old.  leaving  the  mother  with  a  family  of  five  chil- 
dren to  care  for.  Our  subject  had  four  sisters, 
only  one  of  whom,  Mrs.  E.  D.  W'arren,  is  now 
living.  The  eldest  sister  was  the  wife  of  M.  1'. 
Hanson,  a  noted  physician,  formerly  of  Bangor, 
Maine,  but  more  recently  of  Milwaukee,  W'iscon. 
sin.  When  Loomis  was  twelve  years  old,  his 
mother,  having  married,  mo\ed  to  Salem,  Massa- 
chusetts, and  there  he  spent  three  years  in  school. 
During  the  next  five  years  he  worked  in  a  print- 
ing-office, in  Bo.ston,  Massachusetts,  at  the  end 
of  which  time,  being  then  nineteen  years  of  age, 
he  began  the  study  of  dentistry  with  Dr.  M.  1'. 
Hanson.  In  1856,  in  company  with  Dr.  Han- 
son, he  removed  to  Milwaukee,  W'isconsin,  and 
engageil  in  the  practice  of  dentistry  until  1857, 
when  he  took  up  his  residence  in  Chicago,  and 
during  the  next  eleven  years  was  associated  in 
his  profession  with  Dr.  W.  W.  Ailport,  a  gentle- 
man who  stands  at  the  head  of  the  dental  jjro- 
fession  in  the  United  States.  During  all  the 
years  since  then  Dr.  Haskell  has  continueil  in  ac- 
tive jjractice,  and  enjoys  a  wide  reputation  as  one 


thoroughl}-  skilled  in  his  profession — his  specialty 
bt.'ing  in  the  line  of  mechanical  di  iitistry.  .\1- 
though  depri\-ed  of  the  atU'antages  of  schooling 
in  early  life.  Dr.  Haskell  has,  by  his  life-long  stu- 
dious habits,  educateil  himself,  and  few  men  are 
better  informed  than  he.  In  his  profession  he  is 
par  excellence,  and  prtxlucts  of  his  pen  have  fre- 
quently appeared  in  the  dental  journals.  As  a 
writer,  Dr.  Haskell  is  known  for  his  conciseness 
and  clearness  of  statement,  never  writing  except 
for  a  purpose  on  subjects  worthy  of  notice,  and 
then  expressing  his  thoughts  in  simple  language, 
and  always  writing  to  the  point.  He  is  the  au- 
thor of  a  small  but  valuable  work  entitled,  "  The 
Student's  Manual,"  which  has  been  republished 
in  both  l'"r,'ince  and  (iermany  in  the  languages  of 
those  countries.  During  the  first  four  years  of 
the  Chicago  Dental  College,  Dr.  Haskell  held  the 
chair  of  prosthetic  dentistry,  and  for  three  years 
past  has  been  a  professor  in  the  same  branch  of 
study  in  the  dental  department  of  the  North- 
western University.  In  1888  Dr.  Haskell  estab- 
lished the  Haskell  Post  Graduate  School  of  Pro.s- 
thetic  Dentistry, — the  first  Post  Graduate  School 
of  Dentistry.  Students  are  constantly  in  attend- 
ance from  every  State  in  the  Union,  Canada, 
Mexico,  German)-,  Holland,  New  Zealand  and 
Australia.  He  is  a  man  of  quiet  demeanor,  with 
keen  foresight  antl  gooil  judgment,  and  with.il  a 
warm-hearted  and  genial  companion. 


656 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Dr.  Haskell  is  a  member  of  the  Congregational 
Church.  In  politics  he  has  always  been  identi- 
fied with  the  Republican  party,  and  in  early  life 
took  an  a!ctive  part  in  political  afTairs.  He  was  a 
delegate  to  the  first  Free  Soil  convention,  held  at 
Worcester,  Massachusetts. 

Dr.  Haskell  was  married   in  1848  to  Miss  Sarah 


E.  W'ason,  of  Chelsea,  Massachusetts.  They 
have  had  si.x  children,  daughters,  four  of  whom 
are  living,  viz.,  Annie  Nutt,  the  wife  of  W.  T. 
Rarr,  of  Hinsdale,  Illinois;  Isabelle,  the  wife  of 
J.  B.  Parsons,  living  at  Dwight,  Illinois;  Lizzie 
N.,  the  wife  of  Rev.  W.  J.  Clark,  Clinton,  Wis., 
and  Ella  P.,  unmarried,  and  resides  at  home. 


HENRY   CORWITH, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


SOON  after  a  settlement  had  been  made  by  a 
few  white  men  on  the  Bean  River,  at  a  point 
six  miles  abo\e  its  junction  with  the  Mississippi, 
there  arrived  from  New  York  a  young  man,  twenty 
years  of  age,  full  of  life,  energy  and  genius,  who 
was  destined  to  become  one  of  the  most  prom- 
inent factors  in  the  development  of  western  com- 
merce and  one  of  the  pioneer  financiers  of  the 
West. 

In  1833  Henry  Corwith  arrived  in  Galena  to 
take  charge  of  a  general  merchandising  establish- 
ment in  the  new  town  which  was  the  first  settle- 
ment in  the  State  of  Illinois,  in  which  any  indus- 
try of  consequence  other  than  agriculture  was 
developed,  and  which  became  the  most  prosperous 
and  probably  the  most  populous  town  in  the  State. 

Henry  Corwith  was  born  at  Bridgehampton, 
L.  I.,  June  13,  1813.  His  parents  were  Gurdon 
Corwith,  who  was  of  Welsh  descent,  and  Susan 
(White)  Corwith,  who  was  of  an  old  New  York 
family.  Henry  spent  his  boyhood  on  his  father's 
farm  antl  received  a  good  common-school  educa- 
tion. When  about  nineteen  years  of  age  he  w  ent 
into  the  employ  of  Mr.  Rogers,  a  New  York  gen- 
eral merchant.  His  business  habits  and  ability 
must  have  been  strongly  impressed  on  his  em- 
ployer, who  selected  him  to  take  charge  of  the 
establishment  he  had  decided  to  start  in  the  West. 
Young  Corwith  accepted  the  position  ;  and  com- 
menced his  work  with  characteristic  energy,  and 
after  a  slow  journey  by  the  tedious  methods  in 
vogue  in  those  early  days,  he  arrived  at  his  desti- 
nation and  commenced  business  without  delay. 
The  first  year  he  worked  on  a  salary,  the  second 
year  his  employer  divided  with  him  the  profits, 
and  the  third  year  he  became  a  full  partner  in  the 
business.      His  business  foresight  soon  discovered 


that  large  profits  could  be  realized  by  purchasing 
the  products  of  the  Galena  lead  mines  and  shipping 
them  to  New  York.  The  first  shipments  were 
made  by  way  of  the  Mississippi  River  and  New 
Orleans  to  New  York,  but  later  shipments  were 
made  largely  by  Chicago.  This  trade  was  con- 
tinued successfully  for  many  years,  and  the  house 
of  Rogers  &  Corwith  handled  and  sent  to  the 
market  three-fourths  of  the  lead  of  the  Gal-na 
mines. 

"  New  York  Exchange  "  was  then  in  great  de- 
mand in  the  West,  and  the  proceeds  of  sales  were 
allowed  to  accumulate  in  New  York,  to  be  drawn 
against  by  the  western  traders.  This  soon  led  the 
firm  into  a  regular  banking  business,  which  was 
established  in  1842.  The  lead  and  banking  busi- 
ness increasing  each  year,  the  firm  gave  up  mer- 
chandising in  1847,  and  devoted  their  whole  at- 
tention to  the  two  former  interests.  In  1853,  in 
company  with  his  brother,  Nathan,  Mr.  Corwith 
established  the  Hank  of  Galena,  which  became  one 
of  the  best  financial  institutions  of  the  West,  and 
which  even  during  the  disastrous  panic  of  1857 
did  not  suspend  specie  payment.  The  bank  con- 
tinued to  operate  under  the  State  laws  until  1865, 
when  it  was  reorganized  under  the  National  bank- 
ing laws ;  but  when  its  first  charter  as  a  National 
bank  expired  Mr.  Corwith  severed  his  connection 
with  it.  The  bank  is  still  doing  business  as  the 
Galena  National  Bank. 

Mr. Corwith  became  the  owner  of  some  \aluable 
tracts  of  pine  lands  in  southern  Wisconsin,  and 
was  well  known  among  the  lumbermen  of  that 
district,  who  relied  upon  him  largely  for  the  means 
to  operate  and  develop  the  lumber  industry  of 
the  district.  While  living  at  Galena  he  made 
lar-re  investments    in    Chicago   and    in  St.   Louis. 


^^^(dr^^^:»^j^      ^V^^  ^>^>--"^.^^^§— 


BIOGRAPHICAI.  DICTIOXAKV  .IXP  I'ORTRMT  CM.I.ERY. 


659 


The  destruction  of  many  of  his  buildini^s  by  the- 
Chica<jo  fire  brought  him  to  this  city  in  1873. 
From  that  date  he  did  not  enga<^e  actively  in  busi- 
ness, but  confined  himself  to  the  management  of 
his  own  large  private  interests.  He  died  in  Chi- 
cago in  1888.  His  wife  (Miss  Isabella  Soulard, 
before  her  marriage)  is  still  a  resident  of  Chicago, 
as  are  also  his  three  sons  and  four  daughters. 

Mr. Corwith  was  a'man  of  great  business  ability 
and  foresight,  who  saw  the  vast  resources  and  pos- 
sibilities of  the  West,  where  he  was  for  fifty  years 
a  ])n)niincnt   figure,  and  who  in  his  own   business 


\cnturcs,  and  in  the  assistance  and  the  ad\ice 
which  lie  ga\c  to  others,  hcli)ed  more  than  any 
other  man  of  his  lime  to  open  up  and  to  encourage 
western  trade  and  commerce. 

He  was  a  genial  gentleman  of  the  old  school, 
wise  in  counsel,  faithful  in  friendship  and  gen- 
erous in  help,  honorable  in  all  his  dealings,  unas- 
suming in  manner,  liberal  and  kind  in  his  estimate 
of  others.  He  has  passeil  awa)-  after  a  busy  and 
useful  life,  leaving  not  only  a  large  fortune,  but  an 
honored  name  and  a  spotless  reputation,  as  an  in- 
heritance to  his  children.  ' 


JAMES   J.    HOCH, 


CIllCAf.O,    ILL 


J 


AME.S    J.    HOCH    was    born    in    Waukesha      admitteil   to   practice    Januarv    4.  1S7S   am!    since 
countv,  Wisconsin,    August    11,  1854,  and   is      that  time  has   been   activel\-  engaged   in   practice 


the  son  of  William  Hoch.  who  was  a  prosperous 
farmer  in  that  county,  lleattcniled  the  public 
school  in  Milwaukee,  and  in  1S68  studied  in  St. 
Francis  College,  near  that  city.  In  1870  he  en- 
tered St.  Vincent's  College,  in  Westmoreland 
county,  Pennsylvania,  and  graduated  therefrom 
in  1873.  Having  determined  to  enter  the  legal 
profession,  he  removed  to  Chicago,  immediately 
after  graduating,  and  entereil  the  office  of  James 
Ennis,    and    began    the    studv  of    l.iw.      lie    was 


with  good  success. 

In  politics  Mr.  IIocli  is  a  Republican,  although 
he  takes  no  active  i)art  in  political  .iflairs,  being 
too  closel_\-  allied  to  his  business,  and  fmding  his 
professional  work  his  chief  pleasure. 

Mr.  Hoch  married  in  1882,  and  has  quite  an 
interesting  family.  He  is  of  German  extracti<in, 
and  exceptionally  ])o|)ular  in  Chicago  and  vicinity. 
r)wing  to  his  amiability  and  close  attention  to 
business. 


COL.  H.  A.  wheeli<:r, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


HARRIS  ANSEL  WHEELER,  the  only 
son  of  Jolin  Douglas  and  Sarah  (Jones) 
Wheeler,  was  born  at  Orrington,  Maine,  July  30. 
1850.  He  attended  the  public  schools  until  in 
his  seventeenth  year,  when  he  entered  the  em- 
ployment of  F.  M.  Sabine,  of  Hangor,  Maine,  in 
the  wholesale  and  retail  dry  goods  business,  as 
book-keeper.  In  1869,  he  went  to  Detroit,  Michi- 
gan, and  was  employed  by  Allan  Shelden  and 
Company,  wholesale  dry  goods,  until  1871,  when 
he  returned  to  Maine,  having  especially  in  view  a 
desire  to  obtain  an  ap[)ointment  in  the  United 
States  army,  and  feeling  that  it  coulil  be  accom- 
plished more  readily  from  his  native  Slate.     He 


received  an  ajipointnient  as  second  lieutenant, 
March  4,  1S72.  During  the  int(r\al  after  his  re- 
turn from  Detroit  he  was  employed  as  a  clerk  in 
the  I'irst  National  Hank  of  H.mgor.  He  resigned 
from  the  army,  Januai\'  1,  1874,  antl  returned  to 
his  former  position  in  the  h.mk  at  Hangor,  where 
he  remained  until  Januar_\'  of  1878,  at  which  time 
he  assunieil  the  fuiancial  management  of  the 
Michigan  Military  Academy,  at  Orchard  Lake, 
Michigan,  representing  the  interests  of  Governor 
John  J.  Hagley,  of  Detroit.  In  1880,  when  Gov- 
ernor Hagley  retired  from  his  connection  with  the 
school,  Mr.  Wheeler  went  to  Chicago,  and  became 
private  secretary'   to    .\'.    K.    F.iirbank,  a  position 


66o 


nlOGRAPUICAL  DfCTIOXARY  AXn  PORTRAIT  (.ALLERY. 


lie  now  holds.  UurinLj  the  period  of  his  service 
with  Mr.  Fairbaiik,  lie  fouml  op]iortunity  to  inter- 
est himself  in  outside  business,  and  did  so  b)- 
associating  himself  with  several  manufacturintj 
concerns,  and  is,  at  the  present  time,  president  of 
the  Northwestern  Expanded  Metal  Company, 
which  has  a  large  factory  at  Twenty-sixth  street 
and  Stewart  avenue,  also  of  the  Abbott  Machine 
Company,  factory  on  .South  Canal  street,  and 
manufactures,  besides,  the  well-known  Wheeler 
railroad  reclining  coach  and  car  seats,  factory  on 
Clinton  street,  and  also  at  Dayton,  Ohio. 

In  July,  iSSi,  he  was  appointed  aid-de-camp 
on  the  staff  of  ( iovernor  Cullom,  of  Illinois,  with 
the  rank  of  Colonel,  subsequently  aid-de-camp, 
with  the  same  rank,  on  the  staff  of  Governor 
Hamilton,  who  succeeded  Governor  Cullom,  and 
on  July  I,  1884,  was  elected  Colonel  of  the  Sec- 
ond Regiment  Infantry,  Illinois  National  Guard, 
which  position  he  hekl  until  February  i,  1890, 
declining  a  re-election. 

Of  his  Masonic  connections:  he  was  made  a 
Mastei-   Mason   at    Bangor,  in    \"f,~(\  antl  took  the 


degrees  of  the  Chajoter  ami  Commandery  of 
Kniglits  Tem])lar  during  that  and  the  following 
\-ear.  In  1S80,  he  dimitted  from  St.  John's  Com- 
mandery, Bangor,  to  Detroit  Commandery,  No.  i, 
of  Michigan,  and  in  1881  to  Apollo  Commandery, 
No.  I,  of  Chicago,  of  which  he  was  elected  Caj)- 
tain  General  in  1884,  GeneralLssimo  in  1885,  and 
Eminent  Commander  in  1886  and  1887,  and  was 
made  a  Thirty-second  degree  Mason  in  Oriental 
Consistory,  S.  P.  R.  S.,  Chicago,  in  July,  1882. 

Mr.  Wheeler  was  reared  in  the  Protestant  relig- 
ion, his  parents  being  members  of  the  Congrega- 
tional Church — which  church  he  has  always  re- 
garded as  more  especiall}-  his  home.  He  has 
always  been  a  Republican,  and  has  entered,  more 
or  less,  actively  into  various  political  campaigns. 

He  was  married  June  3,  1884,  to  Miss  Anna  M. 
Ayer,  of  Chicago  (formerly  of  Bangor,  Maine), 
only  daughter  of  Captain  John  antl  E\-dia  B. 
Ayer,  her  father  was  killeil  in  the  battle  of 
Fredericksburg  when  she  was  but  an  infant. 
Their  only  child,  a  son,  Malcolm  Eocke  Wheeler, 
was  born  Jul\-  2,  1885. 


LUDWIG    WOLFF, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


AMONG  those  citizens  of  Chicago  who  have 
become  prominent  through  their  own  ex- 
ertions, Eudwig  Wolff  ma\-  justly  be  classed. 
He  is  a  self-matle  man  in  the  best  sense  of  that 
often  misused  term. 

Micklenburg-Schwerin  has  produced  manv  men 
who  ha\-e,  either  at  honie  or  abroad,  reached 
a  position  of  prominence.  Tiiere  Eutlwig,  the 
eldest  child  of  John  and  Christina  (Sievert)  WollT, 
was  born  March  11,  1836.  There  also  his  early 
boyhood  da)-s  were  spent  in  the  iniblic  schools. 

At  the  age  of  fourteiMi  he  became  a|)prentice(l 
to  a  coppersmith,  with  whom  he  remained  four 
years,  during  which  time  he  attended  the 
mechanical  night  school  in  the  evenings. 

In  1S54  the  family  immigrated  to  the  I'nited 
.Slates.  They  embarked  at  Hamburg  and  sailed 
to  Hull,  England,  and  thence  to  New  \'ork.  Dur- 
ing this  voyage  Asiatic  cholera  attacked  the  pas- 
sengers, and  four  hundred  of  tiiem   died. 

While  still  in  t|uaraiUine,  at  .Stalen     Island,    his 


mother  and  two  of  her  sons  were  stricki-n  with 
the  disease  and  died.  John  Wolff  and  his  olhei- 
children,  with  heavy  hearts,  wended  their  way  to 
Chicago,  wlure  he  and  another  of  his  sons  ilied  a 
few  tlays  later.  Eudwig  f.iced  these  terrible  calami- 
ties with  great  fnititude.  lie  was  now  the 
head  of  the  family,  witli  himself  ,md  four 
younge-r  children  to  feed  .uid  clothe.  Although  a 
men:  lail  of  eighteen  he  ne\er  lost  he.u't,  but 
m.mfuUy  went  to  work,  obtaining  employment  at 
his  tratle  at  a  compensation  of  nine  shillings  |)t'r 
day,  with  which  sum  he  supported  himself  .mil 
his  brothers  and  sisters.  lie  afterwards  found 
homes  for  the  children,  in  w  hich  tlu'_\'  remained 
mitil  the}-  were  grown,  lie  then  spent  a  )-ear 
as  journe)-man  at  his  trade.  The  first  winter 
that  he  spent  in  the  United  States,  business  in 
his  line  was  so  ilull  that  he  accepted  a  position 
on  tlie  farm  of  Mr.  James  ,\ndeison,  in  Macoupin 
count)-,  Illinois,  where  he  remaind  three  months, 
at  a  salary  of  two  dollars   per   month    and    ho:u-d. 


^4^^t^  ^     //^ 


lilOGRAnUCAl.   niCTIOXARV  AMI  rORTKAIT  CAI.LEKY. 


663 


In  tlic  sprint;  <if  1S53I1C  rclurncii  to  ChicaLjo, 
•  incl  workcil  at  his  trade  for  three  months,  at  the 
ciul  (if  which  time  he  formed  a  copartnership  with 
Terrencc  Ma^^uirc  and  commenced  a  general 
plumbing  and  coppersmith  business.  Their  place 
of  business  was  in  the  rear  of  No.  75  Lake  street, 
where  they  remained  eleven  years.  The  first  few 
years  of  the  copartnership  were  only  moderately 
successful,  but  during  the  ci\il  war  there  was 
increased  activity  in  the  distilling  and  brewing 
lines  of  trade,  which  gave  them  considerable  work 
making  copper  vessels,  from  which  they  rcalizcil 
a  handsome  profit. 

In  1866  they  removed  to  109  and  ill  West 
Lake  street,  where  the\-  hail  purchased  the  prop- 
ert\',  and  erected  .1  four-story  building,  ninct\'  leet 
deep.  Here  Mr.  Wolff  purchased  his  partner's 
interest,  and  began  the  manufacture  of  brass  antl 
co]3per  plumbers'  supplies  ;  to  this  he  gradually 
.idded  marble  supplies,  and  later  started  a  foundry, 
which  he  gradually  enlarged  until  he  could  manu- 
facture a  full  line  of  all  the  materials  used  b)' 
])lumbers.  This  was  the  beginning  of  the  L.Wolff 
Manufacturing  Company,  one  of  the  most  exten- 
sive manufacturing  plants  of  Chicago.  The  plant 
at  West  Lake  and  JefTerson  streets  covers  almost 
an  entire  block,  while  that,  including  the  iron 
foundry    and    boiler,  enameling    and   galvanizing 


shops  on  Carroll  and  Hoyne  avenues,  covers 
250x475    feet   of  ground. 

Mr.  Wolff  is  sole  ow-ner  of  the  stock  of  this  cor- 
poration, whose  annual  sales  amount  to  more 
than  a  million  dollars.  He  is  president  of  the 
company;  his  eUlest  son,  John  h" .,  is  \ice- 
president,  and  the  second  son.  Christian  J.,  is 
manager  of  the  Carroll  avenue  works. 

Mr.  Wolff  is  a  Mason  of  prominence,  and  of 
more  than  thirty  years'  standing.  He  was  in- 
itiated in  the  William  H.  Warren  Lodge,  No.  209, 
A.  F.  and  A.  M.,  about  i860.  He  is  a  charter  mem- 
ber of  \'ork  Chapter,  R.A.  M.,  ami  a  life  member, 
of  Apollo  Commandery,  No.  I.  He  is  also  a 
member  of  the  Oriental  Consistor)-,  and  M\'stic 
.Shrine  of  tin-  Medina    Temple. 

1  ie  is  a  director  of  the  Illinois  Masonic  (  )r])hans' 
Home,  in  which  he  takes  the  deepest  interest, 
contributing  liberall}-  to  its  support.  He  is  also  a 
generous  supporter  of  other  worthy  charities. 

In  social  circles  he  is  well  and  favorabl)-  known, 
and  he  is  an  esteemeil  member  of  the  Acacia  and 
Menoken  clubs. 

Ludwig  Wolff  owes  his  [)resent  high  position 
to  his  own  e.vertions:  and  what  can  give  a  man  a 
prouder  satisfaction  than  to  review  his  life,  and 
feel  that  what  he  possesses  he  acijuired  by  his  own 
work  .' 


WILLIAM    M.   STEARNS,    M.D. 


CHICAC.O,    ILL. 


AMONG  the  younger  specialists  practicing 
medicine  and  surgery  in  Chicago,  but  few 
have  risen  to  the  i)osition  occupied  by  him  whose 
name  heads  this  sketch.  His  practice  is  limited  to 
the  ear,  nose  and  throat.  He  was  born  June  20, 
1856,  in  the  little  town  of  Dale,  New  York.  His 
parents,  who  were  unpretentious  people,  were 
G.  W.  Stearns  and  H.  N.  Stearns,  tive  Chaffee. 
The  father  was  a  native  of  the  State  of  New  York, 
though  liis  earlier  ancestors  were  from  Vermont. 
The  mother  was  a  iiative  of  the  grand  old  com- 
monwealth of  Massachusetts.  His  paternal  grand- 
fatiier  and  great-grandfather  were  soldiers  in  the 
war  of  1812,  and  his  grandmother  receives  a  pen- 
sion from  the  United  States  in  recognition  of  the 
services  rendered  by  her  husband  in  that  struggle. 


William  recei\'eil  his  earl\-  education  in  the 
common  and  high  schools  of  Will  county,  Illinnis, 
where  his  parents  settled  at  an  early  daw  He 
taught  school  three  years  to  secure  means  to  en- 
able him  to  accjuire  a  medical  education,  and  im- 
pro\e(_l  his  spare  time  in  reailing  aiul  ^tiuly.  and 
when  twenty-one  years  of  age  he  matriculated  at 
the  Chicago  Homieopathic  Medical  College  and 
was  graduated  in  1880,  being  one  of  the  first 
graduates  after  the  founding  of  that  institution. 
Following  his  graduation,  he  was  appointed  house 
physician  in  the  State  penitentiary,  at  Joliet, 
Illinois,  and  .servetl  three  years.  In  1883  he  went 
to  Furope,  and  spent  one  year  in  Merlin  and  one 
j'ear  in  Vienna,  stud_\ing  his  chosen  specialties. 
On  returning  to  Ciiicago  in  1885  he  was  appointed 


BlOCRAPHICir.  DICTIOXARV  AXn  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


clinical  assistant  on  the  eye  and  ear  in  his  alma 
mater,  and  in  1890  he  was  elected  by  the  same 
institution  adjunct  professor  of  rhinology  and 
laryngoloijy.  Dr.  Stearns  is  not  only  popular 
with  the  homcEopathic  physicians  of  Chicago,  but 
he  is  highly  spoken  of  by  those  who  difTer  from 
him  on  principles  of  theory  and  practice.  He  is 
a  member  of  the  State  Homccopathic  Medical 
Society  and  American  Institute  of  1  lonKLoijathy, 
and  has  been  secretary  of  the  College  Alumni 
Association  for  six  years. 

Although  but  thirty-six  years  of  age  he  has 
had  all  the  higher  degrees  of  Masonry  conferred 
upon  him,  except  the  thirty-third,  a  distinction 
which  comparatively  few  of  the  Craft  achieve.  He 
was  made  a  Master  Mason  in  Mt.  Joliet  Lodge, 
at  Joliet,  Illinois,  in  1881  ;  was  exalted  to  the 
Royal  Arch  degree  in  Joliet  Chapter,  R.  A.  I\I., 
in  1882,  and  in  the  same  year  was  created  a 
Knight  Templar  in  Joliet   Commandery.      More 


recently  he  has  transferred  his  membership  from 
the  Joliet  Commanderj'  to  the  famous  Apollo 
Commandery  of  Chicago.  In  1887  the  thirty- 
second  degree  of  Scottish  Rite,  as  well  as  the  de- 
grees of  the  Order  of  the  Mystic  Shrine,  were 
conferred  upon  him.  He  has  been  thoroughly 
devoted  to  his  profession;  a  man  of  exemplar)^ 
character,  genial  and  generous,  his  practice  has 
grown  to  large  proportions. 

In  politics  he  casts  his  ballot  for  the  man 
who  he  believes  will  best  subserve  the  interests 
of  the  people,  regardless  of  party.  He  is  like- 
wise liberal  in  his  religious  belief.  He  attends 
the  Union  Church  of  Kenwood. 

In  1887  Dr.  Stearns  married  Miss  Fannie  Foote, 
daughter  of  William  S.  Foote,  Escp,  a  prominent 
dentist  of  Belvidere,  Illinois.  Mrs.  Stearns  is 
devoted  to  her  domestic  life,  hut  funis  time  as 
well  for  art  and  literary  studies.  She  excels  as 
an  amateur  painter. 


LAZARUS    SILVERMAN, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


Ly\ZARUS  SILVERMAN,  the  subject  of  this 
J  sketch,  is  an  old  resident  of  Chicago,  a 
successful  and  honorable  business  man,  thor- 
oughly identified  with  the  prosperit}'  antl  growth 
of  that  city  and  this  country. 

lie  was  born  in  the  village  of  (^berschwarzag, 
in  Mavaria,  Germany,  the  2Sth  day  of  l'V-briiar\-, 
iS^o,  receiving  there  an  ordinary  school  edu- 
cation till  he  was  of  the  age  of  nineteen,  when 
he  emigrated  to  America,  making  his  first  settle- 
ment and  business  \enture  in  Snniter  county,  in 
the  State  of  Alabama,  where  he  remaint'd  three 
and  one-half  N'ears,  engaged  in  the  nu-rcantile 
husiuess.  In  April,  1S53,  properly  appreciating 
the  i)rospects  and  future  growth  of  Chicago,  he 
settled  in  that  city,  where  he  has  resitled  and  done 
business  ever  since. 

lie  began  in  1854  the  business  of  note-broker 
and  banking,  .sagaciou.sly  dividing  his  accumulation 
and  means  equally  between  real-estate  investments 
in  and  near  Chicago,  and  his  banking  business, 
continuing  such  course  and  system  of  business 
from  that  date  to  the  present  time,  and  thereby 
has  successfully  accumulated  a  large  fortune,   and 


is  at  present  considered  one  of  the  mo.st  prosperous 
and  successful  business  men  of  Chicago. 

.\s  early  as  1857,  so  firmly  had  his  business 
become  established  and  so  carefully  was  it  con- 
ducteil  upon  strict  and  legitimate  business  prin- 
ciples that  it  was  a  sound  financial  institution,  and 
during  an  absence  of  about  three  months  in  that 
\-ear  in  F-ui-ojii',  upon  his  return  to  Chicago  and 
his  business,  he  found  the  same  prosperous  in 
e\er\-  particular,  notwithstanding  the  se\'ere 
financial  catastrophe  of  1857,  which  is  a  part  of 
the  history  of  this  countr_\-. 

This  country,  ,ilthonij,h  his  only  1)\-  adoption, 
has  become  his  country  in  the  broadest,  most 
patriotic  and  imselfish  sense.  He  is  thoroughly 
and  completely  an  American,  and  this  spirit  was 
manifest  in  him  at  the  first  breaking  out  of  the 
war  of  the  rebellion.  Having  confidence  in  the 
[Krpetuit\-  of  its  institutions,  at  the  outbreak  of 
the  war,  when  the  country  was  financially  em- 
barra.ssed,  he  readily  and  quickly  advanced  large 
sums  of  money  for  the  equipment  of  cavalry  regi- 
ments, purchasing  .saddles,  bridles  and  outfits  for 
the    officers,    and    in    other    and    numerous    ways 


i»<**<N»tt 


prouR.ir/ffc.u.  p/rr/o.v.i/iV   i.\/>  poktrait  cali.i.rv. 


667 


assisted  and  rendered  aid  to  aiul  used  his  voice  in 
favor  of  the  federal  cause. 

Me  has  been  fre([uently  connected  with  hu\i;e 
financial  operations,  and  his  judgment  and  advice 
is  readily  listened  to  by  financiers  and  statesmen  in 
tlifferent  parts  of  the  country;  and  those  who  nia\- 
recall  the  condition  of  the  gold  market  of  tlu- 
L'nited  States,  and  the  bonds  of  the  government, 
in  1873,  and  especially  those  who  arc  familiar  with 
the  press  of  the  large  cities  of  the  country  at  that 
time,  will  readily  remember  the  scheme  or  plan 
and  advice  of  Mr.  Silverman  in  reference  to  the 
resumption  of  specie  payment  and  the  issue  of 
Government  bonds.  When  in  Washington,  in 
1873,  'i<^  li^d  =1  conference  with  General  Logan, 
Ifon.  John  Sherman  and  other  prominent  poli- 
ticians and  statesmen,  and  imparted  t(j  them 
valuable  suggestions  which  were  embraceti  in  the 
])lan  subsequently  put  into  operation  for  the 
resumption  of  specie  payinent. 

In  1S71.  when  the  great  fire  of  Chicago  produced 
such  disastrous  and  appalling  efTects,  causing  an 
enormous  loss  to  Mr.  Silverman,  and  the  destruction 
of  many  and  valuable  buildings  and  other  property 
belonging  to  him,  he  was  instrumental  in  assisting 
and    helping    many    poor   and    deserving  people. 


lining  his  own  home  on  C'.iluniet  avenue  near 
Twenty-second  street,  witii  the  ilestitute  ami 
homeless,  and  erecting  for  others  temporar)' 
structures  for  their  protection  and  comfort ;  also 
jjurchasing  at  that  time  large  amounts  of  flour 
.uul  other  food  products,  gratuitously  distributing 
the  same  among  the  needy  and  homeless. 

Mr.  Silverman  has  been  a  thorough  antl  com- 
pletely successful  business  man,  establishing  a 
bank  many  years  ago,  which  has  become  known 
not  only  throughout  the  large  commercial  centers 
of  tile  United  States,  hut  in  I'.uropc,  .ind  "Silver- 
man's l^ank  "  is  a  financial  institution  of  Chicago 
of  which  e\-cry  citizen  may  well  be  proud,  antl  is 
a  just  and  proper  monument,  made  by  himself,  to 
his  energy,  perseverance  and  honest  dealing. 

He  was  married  in  Louisville,  Kentucky,  April 
I  J,  1859.  to  Miss  Hannah  Sachs,  daughter  of 
lienjamin  Sachs,  merchant  of  that  place,  and  they 
have  had  born  to  them  four  children,  of  whom 
only  one  is  living,  namely,  Shalah,  a  daughter, 
born  in  1877. 

Notwithstanding  an  active  and  unab.sorbingly 
busy  life,  in  the  cpiiet  and  peace  of  a  i)leasant 
domestic  circle,  Mr.  Silverman  is  the  loving  hus- 
band and  father,  and  always  the  kind  friend. 


BENJAMIN    REYNOLDS    DE   YOUNG, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


MAJOR  H.  R.  DE  YOUNG,  who  is  one  of 
the  substantial  citizens  of  Chicago,  belongs 
to  the  vast  army  of  intelligent,  persevering  and 
courageous  people,  who  have  come  from  the  East 
to  build  up  new  industrial  empires  on  the  broad 
plains  of  the  West.  He  is  naturally  public  spir- 
ited, and  all  movements  of  a  public  character, 
tending  to  promote  the  welfare  of  the  city  of  his 
adoption,  have  universally  received  his  counte- 
nance and  assistance.  He -is  self-made,  and  his 
record  is  one  of  which  any  man  might  well  be 
proud. 

Mr.  He  \'oung  was  born  in  New  \'ork  city, 
August  18,  1843,  and  is  the  son  of  lienjamin  and 
Emilie  (W^arwick)  De  Young. 

When  about  a  year  old  the  family  moved  to 
Philadelphia,  where  Mr.  Ue  Young  received  a 
common-school   education,  and  when  old  enough. 


learned  the  printing  business,  at  which  he  worked 
until  the  war  broke  out.  Though  only  eighteen 
years  old,  he  became  inspired  with  the  patriotic 
spirit,  and  enlisted  in  the  One  Hundred  and 
Fourteenth  Pennsylvania  Volunteers.  He  proved 
himself  a  good  soldier,  and  was  soon  promoted  to 
a  captaincy.  At  the  battle  of  Chancellorsville. 
he  went  into  the  fight  with  se\en  hundretl  and 
fifty  men  and  came  out  with  one  hundred  ,iiid 
fift\-;  and  at  Gettysburg  he  led  four  hundred  men 
into  the  fray,  but  only  eighty-one  came  out  with 
iiim.  He  ])articipated  in  many  other  battles,  re- 
maining in  the  service  until  the  clo.se  of  the  war. 
In  1865  Mr.  De  Young  came  to  Chicago,  and  re- 
maineil  until  1870,  when  he  was  appointed  quar- 
termaster in  the  United  States  army,  and  assumed 
the  important  duties  of  that  ofiice  at  Pembina. 
Dakota,  where  he  remained  one  year.      He  then 


668 


RIOCRAPIIICAL  DJCTIO.X.IRV  AXn  PORTRAIT  (iALLERV. 


returned  to  Chicago,  and  for  a  number  of  years 
was  connected  with  various  insurance  companies — 
life,  fire  and  iiccident.  In  1879  he  entered  the 
real-estate  business,  in  which  he  is  still  engaged, 
representing  large  eastern  capital,  and  enjoying 
the  confidence  and  respect  of  the  entire  business 
community.  He  is  a  prominent  member  of  the 
Real-Estate  Board,  and  one  whose  judgment  is  re- 
garded as  authorit}-  im  \-alues  in  this  great  city. 
In  1877  Mr.  De  \'oung  was  instrumental  in  the 
organization  of  what  is  known  as  the  Sixth 
Regiment  of  National  (iuards,  raised  the  first 
company  of  the  regiment  that  participated 
in  the  memorable  riots  of  1877;  was  elected 
its  captain,  and  afterwanls  elected  major  of  the 
regiment. 

During  the  first  organization  of  the  World's 
Columbian  Exposition.  Mr.  De  \'oung  was  se- 
lected as  a  member  of  the  Finance  Committee, 
and   for  a   time   rendered    in\aluable   services   on 


the  sub-finance  committee  in  classifying,  equal- 
izing and  increasing  subscriptions  to  the  fund. 

In  politics  Mr.  De  Young  has  always  been 
identified  with  the  Republican  party.  In  1866 
he  was  elected  assessor  of  the  Soutli  Town,  and 
gave  general  satisfaction,  so  much  so  that  he  was 
elected  to  this  office  for  four  consecutive  terms. 
Mr.  De  Young  is  connected  with  all  the  army 
associations  of  the  city.  He  is  a  member  of  the 
Union  League,  of  the  Indiana  Club,  a  social  or- 
ganization, and  of  the  Chicago  Hussars. 

In  1872  Mr.  De  Young  was  married  to  Miss 
Elizabeth  Farron,  of  Philadelphia,  and  they  have 
one  interesting  daughter,  fifteen  years  old. 

Mr.  De  Young  is  affable  in  manner,  and  can  be 
approached  by  the  workiiigman  as  readily  as  bj- 
the  millionaire.  He  is  genial  and  generous,  and 
by  strict  integrity  in  business  methods  has  placed 
the  firm  of  B.  R.  De  Young  and  Company  in  the 
foremost  ranks  of  the  real-estate  firms  of  Chicago. 


GEORGE   THOMAS   SMITH, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


GEORGE  THOMAS  SMITH  was  born  at 
Providence,  Rhode  Island,  on  May  10,  1849, 
the  eldest  of  a  family  of  two  sons  and  three 
daughters,  two  of  whom  died  in  childhood.  Fred. 
W.,  the  youngest  son,  was  for  ten  years  a  mem- 
ber of  the  firm  of  H.  G.  Gaylord  and  Company, 
of  the  Chicago  Board  of  Trade.  Our  subject's 
parents  are  Thomas  P.  and  Dorothy  (Ingalls) 
Smith.  His  maternal  grandfather.  Judge  Lem- 
uel Ingalls,  was  a  member  of  the  Connecticut 
legislature  for  forty  sessions.  When  George  was 
eight  years  old  his  father  settled  in  Lockport, 
Illinois,  with  his  family,  and  in  1865  removed  to 
Chicago,  where,  for  twenty  years,  he  was  well 
known  on  the  Board  of  Trade  as  a  member  of 
the  old  highly  respected  firm  of  Trego  and  Smith. 
Young  Smith  received  his  early  education  in  the 
public  schools  of  Lockport,  and  afterwards  at 
Eastman's  Business  College,  Poughkeepsie,  New 
York.  The  ability  and  application  of  the  young 
student  was  such  that  he  was  able  in  1865,  at  the 
age  of  sixteen,  to  become  book-keeper  and  gen- 
eral clerk  in  the  ofifice  of  Messrs.  Spruance,  Pres- 
ton and  Company,  a  prominent  firm  at  that  time. 


He  remained  with  the  firm  eight  years,  and  ])art 
of  that  time  did  their  trading  on  the  Board. 
When  twenty-four  years  of  age.  Mr.  Smith  went 
into  the  brokerage  business  on  his  own  account, 
and  after  two  years  formed  a  partnership  with 
Mr.  Henry  G.  Gaylord,  under  the  firm  name  of 
Smith  and  Gaylord.  The  partnership  lasted  two 
years,  and  since  that  time  he  has  conducted  his 
business  in  his  own  name  with  marked  ability 
and  acknowledged  success.  As  showing  the  esti- 
mation in  which  Mr.  Smith  is  held,  it  is  proper  to 
state  that,  in  1878  and  1879,  ^''^  ^^'^s  appointed  a 
member  of  the  Arbitration  Committee  of  the 
Board  of  Trade,  and  in  1880  and  1881  he  was 
placed  on  the  Committee  of  Appeals;  was  made 
second  vice-president -in  1884,  and  the  following 
year  first  vice-president.  In  1886,  and  again  in 
1 89 1,  strong  efforts  were  made  to  induce  him  to 
accept  the  presidency  of  the  Board,  but  he  de- 
clined the  honor  because  his  other  large  business 
interests  not  only  claimed  his  attention,  but 
necessitated  his  frequent  absence  from  the  city. 
Mr.  Smith  is  not  only  a  prominent  member  of 
the   Board   of  Tnulc,  but   is  a  director  in  the  Dia- 


CL 


I 


HiouiiAriiicAL  nicrioxARV  A.\n  ronrKAir  cali.eky. 


671 


moiid  Matcli  Company;  a  director  of  the  Na- 
tional Railway  Company,  which  controls  five 
lines  of  street  railway  in  St.  Louis.  He  has  also 
large  real-estate  interests,  and  is  connected  with 
some  of  the  largest  financial  houses  of  Chicago. 
Hut  while  he  is  a  thorough  business  man,  Mr. 
Smith  has  found  time  for  extensive  travels,  and 
in  this  way  given  a  wide  range  to  his  large  fund 
of  useful  knowledge.  lie  has  visited  not  only 
every  part  of  this  continent,  and  China,  J<\pan 
and  the  Indies,  but  he  has  also  traveled  up  the 
Nile  and  through  Palestine,  and  completed  the 
circuit  of  the  globe  by  visiting  the  principal 
countries  of  Europe.  In  this  long  journey  he 
was  accompanied  by  his  charming  and  accom- 
plished wife. 

Mr.  Smith  married  Miss  Frances  Gaylord, 
daughter  of  Mr.  (ieorge  Gaylord,  a  merchant  and 
prominent  citizen  of  Lockport,  Illinois,  in  Jan- 
uary, 1875.  Two  cliildren  have  been  born  to 
them:  Stephen  G.,  who  was  born  September  12, 
1878,  and  died  January  24,  1879,  '^"'^  .A.nnie  Dor- 
othy, born  May  14,  1883,  and  who  died  at  Nas- 
sau, N.  P.  (one  of  the  Bahama  Islands),  February 
8,  1889. 

Mr.  .Smith  is  a  Republican,  but  takes  no  part 
in  politics  other  than   to  perform  his  duties  as  a 


good  citi/.en.  lie  is  a  man  of  liber.d  and  pro- 
gressive ideas. 

In  religious  matters,  lie  was  rearetl  in  the  faith 
of  the  Universalist  Church.  He  attends  tlic 
I'eo[)le's  Church,  under  charge  of  Ur.  11.  W. 
Thomas,  and  wiiile  steadfast  in  his  own  princi- 
jilcs,  he  is  tolerant  and  charitable  to  all.  lie  is  a 
man  of  domestic  tastes,  who  loves  his  home  and 
enjoys  the  sunshine  of  its  happy  surroundings  ; 
although  a  member  of  the  Chicago  and  Washing- 
ton Park  clubs,  the  happiest  hours  of  liis  life  arc 
s])ent  in  his  home  on  Grand  boulevard,  in  the 
companionship  of  his  amiable  wife,  whom  it  is  iiis 
constant  endeavor  to  surround  with  every  com- 
fort and  lu.xury. 

One  of  the  great  pleasures  of  Mr.  Smith's  lite 
is  to  steal  a  few  days  frequently  from  the  cares 
and  an.xieties  of  business  and  visit  the  old  farm 
in  Connecticut,  where  his  ancestors  settled  in 
1720,  now  occupied  by  his  grandmother,  wlio  still 
lives  in  the  enjoyment  of  a  peaceful  old  age. 

Although  a  young  man,  Mr.  Smith  is  very 
prominent  among  the  business  men  of  Chicago. 
His  kindly  natvire  and  genial  disposition ,  have 
won  for  him  many  friends,  among  whom  his  ex- 
tensive travel,  wide  knowledge,  and  fine  conversa- 
tional powers  render  him  a  welcome  guest. 


ALLAN    PINKERTON, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


LIKE  many  o{  Chicago's  most  notable  men, 
-•  Allan  Pinkerton  was  of  humble  birth.  He 
was  a  native  of  Glasgow,  Scotland,  born  August 
25,  1819,  in  Muirhead  street,  Ruglen  Loan.  His 
father,  William  Pinkerton,  was  a  police  sergeant, 
and  his  premature  death  was  caused  by  injuries 
received  in  the  line  of  duty,  while  arresting  a 
prisoner.  To  support  the  family,  Allan,  at  the 
age  of  nine  years,  obtained  work  with  a  print- 
maker,  Neil  Murphy,  for  several  years.  Then, 
with  John  McCauley,  he  learned  the  cooper's 
trade.  Early  imbued  with  the  sentiments  of  re- 
form for  the  betterment  of  the  common  people, 
he  became  identified  with  the  "  People's  Charter" 
movement.  The  government  considered  it  revo- 
lutionary-, and  to  crush  it  arrested  and  transported 
some  of  the  leaders.     Young  Pinkerton  concluded 


to  choose  the  country  lie  would  go  to.  So  in 
1842  he  married  Miss  Joan  Carfrae,  and  with  her. 
the  next  day,  sailed  for  the  United  States.  The 
voyage  was  perilous  :  the  vessel  was  wrecked  and 
the  passengers  were  picked  up  by  a  passing  vessel 
and  landed  at  Quebec.  Undaunted  by  their  mi.s- 
fortunes,  the  brave  couple  reached  Chicago  via 
the  lakes.  There  Mr.  George  Anderson,  a  mer- 
chant, kindly  helped  the  .stranger  to  get  work  at 
his  trade,  with  a  Mr.  Lill.  Though  wages  were 
small,  they  sustained  the  ]3air  for  a  while. 

Removing  to  Dundee,  Kane  county,  he  openeil 
a  cooper's  shop  on  his  own  account,  and  met  with 
marked  success.  An  incident,  or  providence,  un- 
expectedly revealed  to  him  and  the  jHiblic  his 
special  fitness  for  the  peculi.ir  \\<.>.-k  which  maile 
him  famous. 


672 


BIOGRAI'IIICAL  DICTIOXARY  A.\D  PORTRAIT  i.ALLERY. 


Wliilc  on  an  island  in  Fox  river  i)rocnrin^-  stock 
for  coo])crai;c,  lu:  discoAcrcd  tlic  retreat  and  head- 
quarters of  a  band  of  counterfeiters,  lie  deter- 
mined to  investigate  their  operations,  and  did  so 
effectually,  securing  the  arrest  and  conviction  of 
John  Craig,  the  leader,  and  his  associates.  This 
led  to  his  appointment  as  deputy  sheriff  for  Kane 
county.  Numerous  bands  of  horse  thieves  and 
counterfeiters  were  captured  by  him,  and  the 
county  essentially  rid  of  them.  William  L. 
Church,  sheriff  of  Cook  county,  learning  of  him, 
.secured  his  acceptance  of  the  position  of  deputy 
sheriff  for  Cook  county.  He  continued  in  the 
same  relation   under  Sheriff  C.  P.  Bradley. 

Mayor  Levi  D.  Boone  (1855),  recognizing  Mr. 
Pinkerton's  extraordinary  fitne.ss  for  the  special 
service,  appointed  him  a  detective  of  the  city 
force  ;  that  was  the  beginning  of   this  department. 

In  1852,  Mr.  Pinkerton,  with  Attorney  Edward 
L.  Rucker,  founded  the  "  Pinkerton  Detective 
Agency."  That  was  the  first  institution  of  the 
kind  in  the  United  States,  and  still  leads  in 
supplementing  the  more  difficult  labors  of  officers 
of  tlie  law.  At  first,  only  four  ox  five  men  were 
employed.  Of  the.se,  George  H.  Bangs  subse- 
c]uently  became  superintendent,  and  remained 
until  Mr.  Pinkerton's  death  in  1884.  Also 
Timothy  Webster,  who,  while  on  duty,  was  exe- 
cuted at  Richmond,  Virginia,  as  a  Union  spy. 

To  meet  the  increasing  demands,  Mr.  Pinker- 
ton, in  i860,  added  a  corps  of  night  watchmen. 
The  first  captains  were  Paul  H.  Dennis  and  James 
Fitzgerald.  With  the  increase  of  his  business, 
his  reputation  reached  the  leading  cities  east, 
west  and  south,  and  the  institution  became 
national. 

Man_\-  cases  of  uni\-ersal  interest  were  turned 
over  to  him.  Among  these  were  the  robbery  of 
the  Adams  Express  Company  at  Montgomery, 
Alabama,  by  its  agent,  Nathan  Maroney.  Mr. 
Pinkerton  traced  the  stolen  money,  some  forty 
thousand  dollars,  to  New  Jersey,  and  the  most  of 
it  was  recovered  in  the  original  packages  from  the 
cellar  of  a  frame  house,  and  the  thieves  arrested. 
A  beautiful  engrossed  testimonial  presented  to 
Mr.  Pinkerton  for  this  success  still  adorns  tlie 
Chicago  office.  Again,  the  east  (.ailed  Mr. 
Pinkerton  when  a  car  on  the  New  Haven  Rail- 
I'oad  was  robbed.  With  dispatch  the  three  thou- 
sand   dollars    were     recovered    and    the  burglars 


jailed.  Later,  the  Adams  Express  Company  was 
robbed  near  Baltimore,  the  safes  were  thrown 
from  the  car  while  in  motion,  one  hundred  thou- 
sand dollars  were  recovered  and  six  thieves 
convicted.  The  Carbondale  Hank,  had  forty 
thousand  dollars  restored  and  the  thieves  ar- 
rested. A  still  larger  robbery  of  the  Adams 
Express  Company  on  the  New  Haven  Railroad 
was  successfully  handled  and  nearly  .seven  hun 
dred  thousand  dollars  recovered  and  six  thieves 
convicted.  The  Merchants'  Union  Express  Com- 
pany on  Hudson  River  Railroad  was  robbed  of 
three  hundred  thousand  dollars.  The  thieves  were 
tracked  to  Canada  and  e.xtradited.  Others  of 
similar  character  were  followed  with  like  success, 
including  capture  of  the  Reno  brothers,  despera- 
does of  Indiana,  who  were  taken  from  jail  by  a 
mob  and  hanged.  The  "  Mollie  Maguires"  of 
Pennsylvania  had  his  attention;  forty  were  hung 
and  over  fifty  sent  to  the  penitentiary. 

The  extension  of  his  business  east,  early  de- 
manded an  office  in  New  York  city.  Frank 
Warner  was  superintendent  for  some  year.s.  Now 
(^1892)  it  is  in  charge  of  the  son,  Robert-  A. 
Pinkerton,  as  general  superintendent  of  the  east- 
ern division,  including  the  offices  at  Boston  and 
Philadelphia.  William  A.  Pinkerton,  the  eldest 
son,  succeeded  his  father  in  the  Chicago  office, 
and  is  the  efficient  and  courteous  superintendent 
in  the  west,  including  the  ofifices  at  St.  Louis, 
Kansas  City,  St.  Paul,  Denver  and  Portland. 

Those  who  knew  Allan  Pinkerton  the  detective, 
only  knew  but  one  side  of  a  great  man.  His 
heart  was  great,  tender  and  sympathetic.  He 
was  a  trusted  and  devoted  ally  of  the  Illinois 
Lovejoys ;  and  general  superintendent  of  the 
"  Underground  Railway  "  from  .slave  territory  to 
the  Canadian  line.  His  old  residence  on  Adams 
street  was  the  place  of  prayer  for  many  burdened 
and  anxious  negroes,  seeking  help  and  deliverance 
for  half-famished  and  helpless  refugees.  When 
President  Lincoln  started  for  Washington  in  1861, 
Mr.  I'inkerton  discovered  a  plot  in  Baltimore  for 
his  assassination.  He  quietly  changed  Mr.  Lin- 
coln's .schedule  and  saw  him  safely  through  the 
mid.st  of  the  conspirators  and  to  Washington. 
When  civil  war  became  a  fact.  President  Lincoln 
.sent  for  Mr.  Pinkerton  and  had  him  organize  the 
secret  service  division  of  the  army  previously  un- 
known in  this  countrv.      He  continued  as  its  head 


fl/oGA'.i/'///c.i/.  /i/crio.y.iKv  .i\n  /'(U^tr.i/t  c,.\ij.i:rv. 


(^11 


to  the  close  of  the  war.  under  tlie  official  novi  dc 
plume  of  E.  J.  Allen.  He  was  intimate  with  antl 
a  confidant  of  the  President,  and  liis  threat  secre- 
taries. Chase  and  Stanton. 

The  world  is  debtor  to  him  for  tile  fifteen  vol- 
umes of  "  Experiences,"  setting  forth  the  cunning 
devices  of  the  criminal  classes,  and  vividly  demon- 
strating that  "  the  way  of  the  transgressor  is 
hard."  His  object  in  his  volumes  was  moral 
enlightenment,  to  prevent  crime.  His  business 
was  conducted  on  liigh  moral  principles.  He 
worked  for  an  agreed  per  diem,  .\lways  refused 
contingents,  or  a  reward.  He  never  would  act  in 
divorce  cases,  or  where  family  matters,  were  in 
contest.  The  old  maxim,  "  Set  a  thief  to  catch  a 
thief,"  he  believed  to  be  both  wrong  and  unwise. 
He  believed  that  pure,  moral  men,  all  else  being 
equal,  would  always  have  power  over  the  de- 
praved.    In  later  years  he  found   much   satisfac- 


tion in  the  "  Larch  ]-"arni,"  in  Irotpiois  comity, 
on  which  lie  has  exjicniled  many  thousands  of 
ilollars. 

Hesides  William  .\.  antl  Robert  .A.,  already 
mentioned,  a  daughter,  Mrs.  William  J.  Chalmers, 
of  Chicago,  still  sur\i\e.  Their  mother  died  in 
January,  1886.  Mr.  Allan  Pinkerton  died  July  1, 
1884,  and  some  fitting  words  of  Luther  Laflin 
Mills.  Esq.,  at  his  funeral,  may  well  close  this 
imperfect  sketch  :  "There  ii\e  hundreds  to-day, 
who  owe  their  freedom  from  slavery  to  this  man. 
The  tears  of  the  slave  pay  free  tribute  now  to  his 
fidelity  to  liberty."  *  *  "Strong,  determined, 
bra\'e,  among  his  loved  ones  he  was  gentle  as  a 
child."  "  The  fireside  was  his  joy  ;  he  despised 
all  fraud  and  false  pretense;  he  fought  for  the 
good  and  against  the  bad."  *  *  "  He  belongs 
to  his  generation  and  the  future.  No  one  State 
can  claim  him." 


CHARLES    E.   GREENFIELD,    I\LD. 


CHICAC.O,   ILL. 


IN  none  of  the  various  avocations  of  life  are 
there  stronger  incentives  to  activity  and  pro- 
gress than  in  the  medical  profession.  On  the 
skill  and  scientific  knowledge  of  the  members  of 
that  profession  depends  not  only  the  alleviation 
of  pain,  but  the  saving  of  human  life.  The  physi- 
cian must  act  promptly.  Moments  are  precious 
when  life  is  at  stake.  Good  judgment,  rapid 
decision,  and  experimental  knowledge  are  neces- 
sary. The  medical  doctor  is  a  student  all  his  life. 
New  treatments,  both  curative  and  preventive,  are 
constantly  being  added  to  or  replacing  the  old. 
Recent  studies  and  experiments  have  revolution- 
ized former  treatment. 

Prominent  among  the  young  members  of  the 
medical  profession  in  Chicago  is  Charles  E. 
Greenfield.  He  was  born  December  5,  1859,  ''^ 
Rrookston,  Indiana.  His  parents  belonged  to 
the  comfortable,  well-to-do  farmer  class.  Young 
(jreenfield  received  his  elementary  education  at 
the  district  school,  and  at  an  early  age  gave  evi- 
dence of  the  ability  which  he  has  since  developed. 
.•\t  the  age  of  sixteen  he  graduated  at  the  public 
school  and  commenced  life  as  a  teacher.  He 
taught  school  in  the  winter  and  attended  the  nor- 


mal college  during  the  summer.  This  he  con- 
tinued for  three  years,  and  then  entered  Wabash 
College,  Indiana,  where  he  continued  his  studies 
for  some  time  and  then  accepted  the  principal- 
ship  of  the  Chalmers  schools,  Indiana.  In  this 
position  he  gave  much  satisfaction,  but  having 
decided  on  medicine  as  his  future  profession, 
young  Greenfield  connected  himself  with  one  of 
the  principal  drug  stores  in  Logansport.  This  he 
did  for  the  purpose  of  becoming  proficient  in 
compounding  medicine  and  gaining  useful  knowl- 
edge relative  to  his  chosen  profession.  Having 
by  careful  and  methodical  reading  and  by  re- 
search laid  the  ground-work  of  medical  knowl- 
edge, he  entered  Rush  Medical  College,  Chicago, 
in  the  fall  of  1883.  During  his  college  course  he 
gained  the  esteem  and  la.sting  friendship  of  his 
])rofessors  by  his  diligent  application  to  study,  by 
his  brilliant  ability,  and  by  the  success  and  ease 
with  which  he  passed  his  examinations.  His 
kindly  disposition,  generous  character  and  high 
honor  won  for  him  an  affectionate  place  in  the 
memor\-  of  his  class  fellows.  He  graduated  in 
honors  in  the  class  of  '86,  and  since  that  time  has 
been    successfullv    engaged    in    this    citv    in  the 


6/4 


liiiHiK.iriiicAi.  nirnuxARV  A.\n  i'oktrait  i.ali.ery. 


practice  of  liis  profession,  llis  tliorouijli  knowl- 
edge of  principles,  and  his  accurate  <ind  reati\- 
a|)plication  of  them.  lia\  e  won  for  him  not  onl\- 
the  confidence  of  the  ])ui)iic,  but  a  \er\-  promi- 
nent position  in  the  profession.  Tiiis  assertion  is 
proved  by  the  fact  that  Dr.  Greenfield  has  held 
tile  po.sition  of  teacher  in  two  of  the  most  promi- 
nent medical  colleges  in  this  city,  and  has  been 
elected  a  member  of  the  faculty  of  the  College  of 
Physicians  and  Surgeons  as  lecturer  on  materia 
medica  and  therapeutics.  He  makes 'a  specialty 
i)f  the  e)-e  and  ear.  and  is  surgeon  for  several 
corporations  and  factories. 


Dr.  (ireenfield  marrietl  a  Chicago  lady.  Miss 
Mdla  Da\ey.  an  accomplished  musician  and  col- 
lege graduate.  They  have  one  son,  Benjamin,  Jr. 
In  the  sunshine  of  home  the  doctor  finds  his 
greatest  hap])iness.  He  is  in  politics  a  Republi- 
can, but  is  tolerant  and  liberal  in  his  ])rinciples. 
He  is  a  member  of  the  Masonic  Order  and  also 
belongs  to  the  Independent  Order  of  Odd-fellows. 

At  the  age  of  thirt_\'-two,  in  robust  health,  with 
fine  physical  de\eloi)ment,  brilliant  ability  and  a 
large  and  lucrative  practice.  Dr.  Cjrecnfield  is 
likely  to  reach  e\-ery  honor  in  the  gift  of  his 
profession. 


AUGUSTUS    TOTTEN    THATCHER, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


THE  subject  of  this  brief  sketch  was  born 
November  22,  1854,  at  Thatcher,  Jo  Daviess 
county,  Illinois,  and  was  the  son  of  George  T. 
Thatcher,  formerly  of  New  London,  Connecticut, 
who  was  born  in  18 16,  being  a  lineal  descendent 
of  the  Rev.  Peter  Thatcher,  of  Queen  Camel, 
England  (1554),  whose  descendents  included  Rev. 
Thomas  Thatcher  (Massachusetts,  1635),  the 
first  pastor  of  old  South  Church,  Boston ;  An- 
thony Thatcher  (Massachusetts,  1635),  who,  with 
Miles  Standish,  was  one  of  the  first  grantees  of 
Yarmouth,  Massachusetts. 

John,  the  great-grandfather  of  our  subject,  was 
an  officer  in  the  Revolution.  Anthony,  his  grand- 
father (1782-1840),  was  a  merchant  in  New  Eon- 
don.  Connecticut,  who  sent  the  first  whaling 
ships  from  that  port.  Others  of  the  name  were 
distinguished  as  ministers,  lawyers  and  mer- 
chants. 

His  mother  is  1  larriette  Anuuuia  Lichtenber- 
ger,  of  l'enns)-lvania-German  ancestr\-,  whose 
names  (Lichtenberger  and  Kimmel)  arc  well 
known  in  professional  and  other  paths.  Her 
father  was  the  first  settler  of  Jo  Daviess  count)', 
Illinois,  and  was  an  officer  in  the  Bl.ack  Hawk 
War. 

A.  T.  Thatcher  was  the  eldest  of  five  brothers. 
He  received  a  Chicago  common-school  education, 
and  at  the  age  of  sixteen  his  father  removed  to  a 
farm  near  Lake  Geneva  (occasioned  by  reverses 
due  to  the  Chicago  fire),  where  the  subject  of  this 


sketch  worked  from  his  sixteenth  to  his  nine- 
teenth year,  when  he  became  a  clerk  in  the  office 
of  a  Chicago  coal  firm,  in  which  employment  he 
remained  until  1878,  when  he  became  a  partner 
in  the  concern.  Since  1887  (until  the  time  of  his 
death,  1892)   he  continued  alone. 

Although  as  regards  age  Mr.  TlKitcher  was 
one  of  the  youngest  of  the  prominent  coal  men 
in  the  Northwest,  he  had,  nevertheless,  an 
almost  twenty  years'  experience  to  his  credit,  and 
the  fact  that  he  occupied  the  high  position  he  did 
in  commercial  and  financial  circles,  was  entirely 
due  to  his  own  energy,  pluck  and  perse\'erance. 
He  was  trul\-  a  self-made  man. 

Entering  .1  coal  office  after  leaving  the  farm. 
Mr.  Thatcher  persistently  studied  everything  in 
connection  w  ith  the  interests  of  the  coal  trade. 
He  made  himself  thoroughly  familiar  with  the 
subject:  hence  the  success  that  justly  came  to 
him.  Remarkabl\-  talentetl,  young  Thatcher 
quickly  grasped  all  the  phases  of  the  business. 
His  whole  energy  enteretl  into  it.  What  wonder 
that  he  soon  became  a  partner  where  he  had 
begun  in  a  subordin;ite  jiosition ;  what  wonder 
that  his  sterling  qualities  became  known  through- 
out the  commercial  world,  and  that  his  fair  deal- 
ings, his  ca]iacit\-  for  work,  his  innate  courtesy 
to  all  men.  placed  him  in  the  foremost  ranks  of 
American  coal  men. 

A  man  who  thoroughly  aiipieciated  and  under- 
stood the  word   "  honor,"  who  took  for  his  motto. 


'luMvUuftAJjjileJt^A 


n/ocRAi'H/c.ir.  /)/cr/(}.\.i/:)-  .i.\n  roRTHAir  cillery. 


677 


•'  !)(_)  imlo  olliLis  as  you  woiiKl  li.ui-  ulluis  do 
unto  you,"  IMr.  Thatcher  had  tlic  wcll-mciitcd 
satisfaction,  aside  from  tlie  fortune  w  hich  he  hail 
accumulated,  of  being  a  universal  favorite  with  all 
those  who  came  into  personal  contact  witli  him. 

Mr.  Thatcher  was  married  in  1880  to  Miss 
I.ueila  Harnes,  of  IIar\ard,  Illinois,  whose  ]iarents 
came  to  that  point  lioni  l)\indec.  New  \'(>rk.  in 
1855.  Two  chiklren  iia\e  blessed  this  union: 
Constance,  aged  ten  \ears,  and  I-.vcrctt  .\nthon\-. 
aged  seven  years. 

Mr.  Thatcher's  large  coal  business  claimed  most 
of  his  attention,  but  he  found  time  to  act  as  presi- 
dent of  the  State  Loan  and  Building  Association 
of  Chicago. 


lie  was  secretary'  and  treasurer  of  the  Anthra- 
cite Coal  .\ssociation  of  Chicago,  and  also  a  di- 
rector in  the  Coal  E.xchange  of  Chicago,  and  in 
other  organizations  of  a  commercial  character. 

Mr.  Thatcher  was  president  of  a  shooting  club, 
and  occasionally  took  delight  in  field  sports. 

In  politics  he  was  a  staunch  Republican.  So- 
ciall}-  Mr.  Thatcher  was  much  esteemed.  lie  was 
a  member  of  the  Union  League,  the  Athletic 
.\ssociation,  Illinois,  La  Salle  and  Sunset  clubs, 
though  not  a  club  man  in  the  ordinary  interpre- 
tation of  the  w  ord,  for  when  the  cares  of  the  busy 
day  were  over,  Mr.  Thatcher  spent  the  happiest 
moments  of  his  life  in  the  company  of  his  family 
and  friends  in  his  home  on  Jackson  boulevard. 


PETER    G.   GARDNER, 


CmCAf.O,    ILL. 


IJLTER  C.  c;.\Kl)\Lk  was  born  in  Muskin- 
gum county.  Ohio,  on  tlu-  uth  day  of  Sep- 
tember, 1842.  the  scJn  of  Adam  and  Catharij**? 
Gai'-rtner.  who  immigrated  to  the  United  States 
from  Germany.  (The  family  name  was  originall\- 
Gaertner,  but  has  been  Americanized  to  Gardner.) 
Of  his  parents  Mr.  Gardner  has  but  slight  recol- 
lections, his  mother  having  died  in  1845,  while  he 
was  yet  a  mere  child.  In  1846  his  father  lost  his 
life  while  serving  his  country  in  the  war  with 
Mexico.  Being  thus  left  an  orphan,  he  was  bound 
out  to  Mr.  James  M.  Gibbons,  a  native  of  Pennsyl- 
vania, of  Quaker  ancestry,  with  whom  he  remained 
until  he  was  about  fifteen  years  old.  His  environ- 
ments were  not  all  that  could  have  been  desireil. 
Hard  work  and  fancied  ill-treatment  fill  to  his  lot, 
and  it  was  not,  therefore,  surprising  that  he  left 
his  foster-])arents  and  went  forth  into  the  world  to 
fight  life's  stern  battles.  He  secureil  employment 
on  a  farm  at  §10  (ler  month,  continuing  in  that 
capacity  until  the  opening  of  the  civil  war.  Being 
then  but  eighteen  years  of  age,  he  responded  to 
the  call  of  dut}-,  enlisting  as  a  private  in  Company 
A,  Fifteenth  Regiment  Ohio  Volunteers,  infantrv , 
where  he  remained  continuously  until  the  close  of 
the  war.  His  service  covered  the  first  three  months, 
the  first  three  years,  and  second  three  years  as  a 
veteran,  serving  in  all  of  the  comjjany's  grades, 
and  was  its  commander  during  the  last  year. 


After  receiving  his  discharge  he  settled  at 
L\ons,  Iowa,  in  the  spring  of  1866.  Mr.  Gardner 
engaged  in  the  fire  insurance  business  at  Chicago 
in  the  spring  of  1869,  continuing  in  the  same 
until  the  present  time  (1892).  He  has  been  emi- 
nently successful. 

His  military  recoril  was  marked  throughout 
for  great  courage  and  bravery  on  the  field  of 
battle.  No  man  who  served  in  the  war  deserves 
greater  credit  than  he.  His  regiment  served  three 
months  in  West  Virginia,  entering  that  state 
under  General  McClellan.  It  was  engaged  in  the 
battles  of  Phillippi  and  Carrick's  Ford.  Upon 
the  expiration  of  the  three  months'  term,  the 
regiment  returned  to  Mansfield,  Ohio,  reorgan- 
ized anil  went  to  Kentucky  early  in  October. 
1861,  being  assigned  to  McCook's  division  in 
Buell's  army.  On  January  1,  1864,  Mr.  Gardner 
enlisted  for  another  three  years  in  the  same  com- 
pany and  regimiiil,  and  was  finally  mustered  out 
of  the  service  No\end)ir  25,  iS'>5,at  San  Antonio, 
Texas,  receiving  his  discharge  at  Columbus,  (^hio, 
December  25  following.  His  service  was  largelj- 
in  the  army  of  the  Cimiberlaiui  in  W'ellich's 
Brigade,  Wood's  Uivi.sion,  Fourth  Army  Corps. 
Mr.  Gardner  was  engaged  in  all  the  battles  of 
that  army,  beginning  with  the  famous  battle  of 
Shiloh,  April  7,  1862,  and  ending  with  the  battle 
of  Nashville,  December   16,  1864.      He  was  never 


678 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


cUirint;  the  war  sick  or  severely  wounded  or  taken 
prisoner. 

Mr.  Gardner  has  nev'er  sought  public  office, 
though  he  keeps  well-posted  on  political  affairs 
and  is  a  public-spirited  citizen,  ever  ready  to  pro- 
mote public  interests.  He  served  as  president  of 
the  Board  of  Trustees  in  the  town  of  La  Grange, 
Cook  county,  Illinois,  and  was  president  of  the 
Board  of  Education  of  the  Township  High 
School.      His  political  views  are  Republican. 

In  Masonry  he  is  deser\edly  popular,  first  being 
made  a  member  of  the  fraternity  in  L}-ons,  Iowa, 
in  May,  1868.  He  became  a  member  of  St.  Ber- 
nard Commandery,  K.  T.,  Chicago,  in  1872,  and 
of  Oriental  Consistory.  S.  P.  R.  S..  thirty-second 
degree,  in  1880.  Ever  since  his  installation  in  the 
Craft  he  has  taken  great  interest  in  everything 
that  pertains  to  the  upholding  of  the  institution 
of  Masonry.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Grand  Army 
of  the  Republic,  Illinois  Commandery  of  the 
Loyal  Legion,  Royal  Arcanum,  Royal  League, 
A.'O.  U.  W.  and  P.  O.  S.  of  A.  In  religion  he  is 
a  firm  believer  in  God. 

Mr.   Gardner  has  been  twice   married  ;  first,   in 


June,  1869,  to  Miss  Maroa  E.  Conklin,  of  Darien, 
Wisconsin,  and  again  in  October,  1873,  to  Miss 
Luella  W.  Humphrey,  a  native  of  Portland,  Maine. 
In  stature  he  is  tall,  with  an  exceedingly  pleas- 
ant expression,  and  distinguished  appearance. 
He  has  a  host  of  friends,  and  is  highly  esteemed 
by  all  who  know  him. 

In  every  position  in  his  eventful  life  which  he 
has  been  called  to  fill.  Mr.  Gardner  has  been 
highlj-  successful.  As  a  business  man  he  is  up- 
right, reliable,  and  honorable.  In  all  places  and 
under  all  circumstances,  he  is  loyal  to  truth,  honor 
and  right,  justly  regarding  his  .self-respect  and 
the  deserved  esteem  of  his  fellow  men  as  infi- 
nitely more  \aluable  than  wealth,  fame,  or  posi- 
tion. In  those  finer  traits  of  character  which 
attract  and  endear  man  to  man  in  ties  of  friend- 
ship, which  triumph  over  misfortune,  and  shine 
brightest  in  the  hour  of  adversity,  in  these 
qualities  he  is  royally  endowed.  Few  men  have 
more  devoted  friends  than  he,  and  none  excels 
him  in  unselfish  devotion  and  unswerving  fidelity 
to  the  worthy  recipients  of  his  confidence  and 
friendship. 


GEORGE    W.   WARX^ELLE, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


GEORGE  \V.  WARVELLE  was  born  on  May 
3,  1852,  in  Kenosha,  Wisconsin,  to  William 
and  Eliza  Warvelle.  He  is  of  English  descent  on 
the  paternal  and  Irish  on  the  maternal  side.  He 
is  one  of  the  prominent  younger  members  of  the 
Chicago  bar.  He  received  his  early  education  in 
his  nati\e  cit_\-,  first  taking  a  thorough  academic 
course. 

He  began  life  as  a  dr\--goods  clerk,  and  after- 
wards spent  several'  years  on  the  stage,  and  was 
for  a  time,  prior  to  the  great  fire  of  1871,  a  mem- 
ber of  a  stock  company  at  McVicker's  theater. 
He  commenced  the  study  of  law  in  1872,  and  was 
admittetl  to  the  bar  in  November,  1876.  He 
practiced  his  profession  at  Kenosha,  Wisconsin, 
until  1887,  but  foreseeing  the  many  and  superior 
advantages  afforded  in  a  great  city,  he  removed  to 
Chicago  and  has  diligently  appjjlied  himself  to  his 
profession,  and  in  an  incredibly  short  time  he  has 
acquired  a  large  and  \aried  ]iractice.     He  has  been 


engaged  in  some  of  the  most  important  litigations 
of  the  courts,  and  has  come  to  be  known  as  a  safe 
counselor  and  an  able  advocate.  He  is  one  of  the 
most  prominent  and  fa\orably  known  Masons  of 
tlie  country,  belonging  to  all  the  bodies  of  the 
York  anil  Scottish  rites,  and  has  taken  all  the 
degrees,  including  the  sublime  and  last — the 
thirt\--third.  He  has  held  the  position  of  presid- 
ing officer  in  lodge,  chapter  and  council,  and  is  at 
present  (1892)  First  Lieutenant  Commander  of 
Oriental  Consistory,  S.  P.  R.  S.,  thirty-second  de- 
gree, Chicago,  and  Most  Illustrious  Grand  Master 
of  Illinois,  R.  A.  M.  Mr.  Warvelle  was  one  of  the 
founders  of  that  worthy  institution,  the  Illinois 
Masonic  Orphan  Home  of  Chicago,  and  is  one  ot 
its  present  trustees. 

He  is  president  of  the  Acacia  Club  of  Chicago: 
is  connected  with  the  staff  of  several  law  journals, 
and  is  the  author  of  some  notable  works  on  law, 
among  them.  "  Warvelle  on  Abstracts,"  "  Warvelle 


cvu\^   "^^  rvAjJ^ 


b^^nrvTYo^^^  t.UU^ 


BIOGRArniCAI.  niCTIOXAKV  A.\D  /'OA'TRA/T  CALl.llKV. 


68 1 


on  X'cndors,"  which  liaxc  become  staiulanl   works 
in  tlie  profession. 

Mr.  Warvellc  attends  the  Episcopalian  Church. 
He  was  married  on  tlie  31st  of  December,  1878, 
to  Miss  Lydia  Han_<^s,  of  Kenoslia.  Tliey  ha\e 
two  bri'dit  little  "iris. 


His  arguments  to  the  court  are  sound,  dij^nified, 
and  logical,  while  his  oratorj-  to  the  jurj-  is  forceful 
and  eloquent.  His  life  has  been  that  of  an  up- 
right man  and  Mason.  Each  new  acquaintance  is 
one  added  to  the  list  of  those  who  delight  to 
honoi'  him,  ;uul  their  number  is  lesjion. 


NEWTON    C   WHEELER, 


CmCACO,    ILI. 


MR.  XEWTOX  CALVIN  WHEELER  is 
an  able  lawyer  and  ;i  successful  business 
man.  He  is  learned  in  the  law ,  and  well-\erscd 
in  literary  lore.  He  has  a  clear,  well-balanced 
mind,  an  accurate  sense  of  right  and  justice,  and 
good  judgment,  and  is  a  counselor  and  adviser 
whose  opinions  are  \aluable.  There  is  in  his  make- 
up \ery  little  of  sentiment  or  romance,  but  in 
whatever  he  says  or  does,  he  is  exceedingly  prac- 
tical and  utilitarian.  As  a  speaker,  he  is  clear, 
logical  and  forceful,  and,  without  wasting  words, 
he  carries  his  hearers  direct  to  the  point,  with  his 
ready  command  of   well-chosen,  classical  English. 

He  is  the  son  of  Dr.  Calvin  and  Sarah  J. 
(Hoyt)  Wheeler,  and  was  born  at  Bristol,  in 
Kendall  county,  Illinois,  on  August  21,  1849. 
His  father  was  a  native  of  New  Hampshire,  and 
his  mother  came  originally  from  Connecticut. 
They  afterwards  lived  in  the  State  of  New  \o\V. 
where  they  were  married,  and  removed  thence,  in 
1834,  to  Kendall  county,  Illinois,  where  Dr. 
Wheeler  was  a  prominent  and  able  physiciaji,  and 
an  influential  and  honored  citizen  until  his  decease 
in  1X76.  His  widow  still  (1892)  resides  on  the  old 
homestead  at  Hristol. 

Newton  attended  the  public  schools  of  his 
native  village,  and  at  the  age  of  sixteen  years  be- 
gan his  studies  preparatory  to  entering  college,  at 
Clark's  Seminary,  Aurora,  Illinois,  and  subse- 
quently finished  his  preparatory  course  at  Heloit 
College,  whither  he  went  in  the  fall  of  1867. 
During  the  fall  and  winter  terms  of  1868-69,  ''^" 
engaged  in  teaching  near  his  home,  with  excellent 
results,  developing  unusual  talent  as  a  teacher. 
Contrary  to  his  purpose,  which  had  been  to  re- 
turn to  lieloit  College,  he  yielded  to  the  solicita- 
tions of  friends,  and  in  the  fall  of  1869  joined 
the  freshman   class  of  the  Universit}-  of  Chicago. 


After  the  great  fire  of  October  8  and  9,  1 871, 
he  discontinued  his  college  studies  for  a  time, 
and  accepted  a  position  as  tutor  in  Washington 
University,  at  St.  Louis,  Mi.ssouri.  He  filled 
that  position  with  marked  success  until  the 
summer  of  1872,  and  declined  an  urgent  request 
to  continue  his  services  there  at  an  advanced 
salar)-,  in  order  to  complete  his  college  course. 
He  returned  to  college  in  the  fall  of  1872,  but 
onl\-  for  a  short  time.  Winnetka  Academy,  then 
a  branch  of  the  University  of  Chicago,  was  with- 
out a  principal,  and  at  the  urgent  request  of  the 
president  of  the  University,  Mr.  Wheeler  was 
prevailed  upon  to  take  charge  of.  that  school. 
He,  however,  declined  a  permanent  appointment, 
and  returning  to  college,  was  graduated  in  the 
classical  course  with  the  class  of  1873.  This  class 
was  noted  in  the  annals  of  the  University  for 
scholarship  and  oratorical  ability ;  the  late  la- 
mented Dr.  Edward  Olson  and  George  C.  Ingham 
being  among  Mr.  Wheeler's  classmates.  .\s  a 
writer  and  .speaker  he  was  among  the  first  in  his 
class,  his  graduating  oration  receixing  the  highest 
encomiums  of  the  local  press. 

In  college  he  was  a  commanding  spirit,  .m 
earnest  student  .ind  an  excellent  scholar.  He 
was  at  the  same  time  a  leader  in  college  sport 
and  a  whole-souled,  generous  companion,  meriting 
and  obtaining  the  highest  regard  of  both  teachers 
anil  college-mates.  He  was  an  enthusiastic  mem- 
ber of  the  Tsi  Upsilon  fraternity,  and  in  his 
senior  year  was  elected  president  of  his  clas.s. 

Mr.  Wheeler  spent  the  year  following  his  grad- 
u.ition  from  college  at  the  Union  College  of  Law, 
Chicago.  He  subsequently  was  a  student  and 
clerk  in  the  law  oflfice  of  Mes.srs.  Lyman  and 
Jackson,  and  upon  examination  before  the  Su- 
preme Court  at  Ottawa,  in   September,    1875,  was 


682 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AXI)  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


admitted  to  the  bar  of  Illinois.  He  was  soon 
afterwards  called  home  by  the  serious  illness  of 
his  father,  whose  decease  occurred  in  May,  1876, 
and  during  the  remainder  of  that  year  was  en- 
gaged in  settling  his  father's  estate.  He  then 
spent  a  year  traveling,  making  business  trips 
through  the  central  and  southern  states,  and  upon 
returning  to  Chicago  was  engaged  for  six  months 
as  assistant  to  Mr.  Huntington  W.  Jackson,  re- 
ceiver of  the  Third  National  Bank  of  Chicago,  in 
settling  the  affairs  of  that  institution.  In  the  fall 
of  1878,  Mr.  Wheeler  opened  an  ofifice  and  began 
the  practice  of  his  profession.  In  May,  1881,  he 
associated  himself  with  Colonel  Daniel  W.  Munn, 
under  the  present  firm  name  of  Munn  and 
Wheeler.  Their  practice  extends  into  all  branches 
of  the  law,  and  they  are  ranked  among  the  lead- 
ing law  firms  of  Chicago. 

As  a  business  manager,  Mr.  Wheeler  is  con- 
servative, careful  and  judicious.  His  investments 
have  been  made  after  careful  investigation,  and 
have   yielded  him  most  satisfactory  profits.     He 


is  a  man  of  genial  nature,  social,  jo\ial  and  com- 
panionable, and  strongly  attached  to  his  friends, 
and  counts  it  a  pleasure  to  do  for  them.  A 
marked  characteristic  is  his  uniform  sincerity. 
There  is  nothing  of  h\'pocris}-  in  his  nature,  antl 
cant  he  abhors. 

He  has  been  one  of  the  active  promoters  of 
the  Woodlawn  Park  Club,  and  for  several  years 
has  been  its  president.  He  is  also  an  officer,  and 
for  a  number  of  years  was  president  of  the  board 
of  trustees  of  Woodlawn  Park  Presbyterian 
Church.  In  politics,  he  has  always  been  a  staunch 
Republican.  He  is  a  man  of  commanding  pres- 
ence, being  tall,  and  of  well-proportioned  phys- 
ique, with  an  honest,  open  face,  and  clean,  clear- 
cut  features. 

Mr.  Wheeler  was  married  on  No\'ember  12, 
18S1,  to  Miss  Lizzie  M.  Stiles,  daughter  of  the  late 
Richard  Stiles,  of  Chicago.  Mrs.  Wheeler  is  a 
lady  of  fine  womanly  qualities,  who  presides  with 
dignity  and  grace  over  their  home  at  Wood- 
lawn, one  of  Chicago's  choicest  suburbs. 


MILTON    ROBINSON    FRESHWATERS, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


SUCCESS  in  any  profession  is  more  the  re- 
sult of  energy,  perseverance  and  natural  apti- 
tude than  of  connection,  influence  or  social 
standing.  The  majority  of  the  most  prominent 
and  able  lawyers  of  the  Chicago  bar  arc  what  ma\- 
be  termed  self-made  men. 

Amongst  the  number  who  have  won  success  in 
the  legal  professiejn  b)'  native  energy,  determina- 
tion and  energy,  is  the  subject  of  this  sketch.  He 
was  born  August  9,  1844,  at  Wellsburg,  Brooks 
county,  Virginia.  He  is  the  son  of  George  W. 
and  Margaret  A.  (May)  Freshwaters.  The  h'resh- 
waters  family  are  of  Holland  descent,  and  lia\e 
been  residents  of  the  above-named  ciiunt\-  for 
over  one  hundred  and  fifty  years.  On  his  moth- 
er's side  our  subject  is  a  desci'udant  of  the  O'Con- 
nell  family,  of  Ireland,  of  which  the  celebrated 
Daniel  O'Connell  was  a  nuinbei-.  George  W. 
Freshwaters  was  at  one  time  a  large  farmer  and 
stock  raiser,  but  is  now  ;i  retired  capitalist.  Mil- 
ton R.  received  his  early  educatimi  in  the  district 
schools.      He  afterwards  entered  lloijidalc  .Scm 


inary,  Ohio,  and  at  a  later  period  Alleghenj'  Col- 
lege at  Meadville,  Pennsylvania.  After  remain- 
ing there  three  years  he  entered  Bethany  College, 
Brooks  county,  Virginia,  at  that  time  under  the 
supervision  of  Bishop  Alexander  Campbell,  the 
founder  of  the  religious  sect  known  as  Campbell- 
ites  or  Christians.  In  1866,  at  the  age  of  t\vent\-- 
two,  he  was  graduated  from  this  college,  and 
almost  immediately  afterwards  commenced  his 
business  career,  being  elected  superintendent  of 
the  public  schools  nf  his  nati\c  count)-,  ami  made 
principal  of  the  High  ScIkmiI  at  Wellsburg.  He 
scr\c(l  two  years  in  this  capacit}',  and  was  impor- 
tuned to  ser\c  another  term,  t)ut,  ha\ing  in  the 
meantime  comnienccd  the  study  of  law  in  the 
ofifice  of  J anu's  11.  IV  luUcton,  l-ls(|.,  \\c  dcclinetl 
the  offer,  in  oidcr  to  continue  his  legal  studies 
uninterrupteilly.  llaxing  at  length  completeil 
his  studies,  he,  in  1869,  passed  a  highlj'  creditable 
examination  and  was  admitted  to  the  bar  of  \'ir- 
ginia.  lie  was  .ilniost  immediately  admitted  to 
parttuiship    with    Mr.    Nathaniel     Richai'dsim,     a 


lilOGRAPHICAI.   niCTIOXARV  AXD  POUriiAir  GALLERY. 


685 


prominent  la\v\-or  of  X'irginia.  In  the  fall  of  1869 
lie  was  elected  States  Attorney,  being  the  only 
Democrat  elected  on  the  whole  ticket,  the  dis- 
trict being  strongly  Republican.  Occupying  this 
office  until  the  spring  of  187J,  he  declined  a  re- 
nomination,  and  removed  to  Chicagt),  establishing 
himself  in  the  Ouinlan  Building,  where  he  occu- 
pies to-day  the  identical  office  he  then  entered. 
Upon  locating  here,  Mr.  Fresluvaters  decided  to 
eschew  politics,  desiring  to  devote  his  whole  time 
to  the  practice  of  his  profession,  but  in  1888  he 
was,  without  hiscon.sent,  nominated  on  the  Demo- 
cratic ticket  to  represent  the  Third  Congressional 
District  of  Illinois,  and,  nothwithstanding  the  dis- 
trict was  strongly  Republican,  he  succeeded  in 
reducing  the  Republican  majority  of  over  five 
thousand  to  about  si.v  hundred.  In  1891  he  was 
nominated  on  the  Citizens'  Ticket  for  the  office 
of  City  Attorney,  but  was  not  elected.  .Although 
as  a  State's  Attorney,   Mr.  Freshwaters  had   had 


considerable  experience  of  criminal  practice,  he 
deciiled,  upon  settling  in  Chicago,  to  forego  that 
branch  of  the  profession,  and  to  devote  his  time 
and  energ)-  to  chancery,  probate  and  general 
office  practice,  which  he  has  done  with  most  grati- 
fying results. 

.\  Freemason,  he  is  a  member  of  Hesperian 
Lodge,  and  of  the  Oriental  Consistory,  thirty- 
second  degree,  and  also  of  the  Mj-stic  Shrine  of 
Medinah  Temple,  the  O.  G.'s  and  of  the  Knights 
of  Rome,  and  of  the  Red  Cross  of  Constantine. 
In  all  these  lodges  he  is  a  prominent  and  much- 
esteemed  brother.  He  is  courteous  in  manner,  of 
pleasing  address,  genial  and  affable,  energetic  and 
decisive  in  character,  and  possesses  a  well-earned 
reputation  for  strict  attention  to  business,  a  thor- 
ough knowledge  of  the  law,  and  integrity  of  the 
highest  character.  A  successful  business  man,  a 
prominent  lawyer  and  a  representati\e  citizen,  he 
is  esteemed  and  respected  by  all  who  know  him. 


ISAAC    N.   CAMP, 


CHICAGO,   ILL 


I.s.\.\C  N. C.AMI'  was  born  in  Elmore,  Lamoille 
county,  X'ermont,  on  December  19,  1831.  He 
is  the  son  of  Abel  and  Charlotte  (Taplin)  Camp, 
both  of  whom  were  natives  of  the  Green  Moun- 
tain State.  His  father  was  a  farmer,  one  of  the 
leading  men  and  postmaster  in  the  town  in  which 
he  lived.  He  also  had  charge  of  a  large  tract  of 
land  left  to  the  University  of  \'ermont  by  Guy 
Catlin,  and  among  his  privileges  in  connection 
therewith  was  that  of  a  scholarship  at  the  above 
named  university,  placed  at  his  disposal  b}-  Mr. 
Catlin,  to  use  in  whatever  way*  he  thought  fit. 
Mr.  Camp  died  December  22,  1890,  aged  ninety- 
years.  His  father,  grandfather  and  great-grand- 
father also  lived  to  extreme  old  age,  (^ur  subject 
pre])ared  for  college  at  Bakersfield  Academy, 
Vermont,  paying  for  his  board  by  teaching  music. 
At  the  age  of  twenty  he  entered  the  L'niver- 
sity  of  Vermont,  and,  to  his  credit  be  it  said, 
earned  in  his  spare  time  the  money  required  to 
meet  his  current  expenses.  .After  four  years  of 
hard  study  he  was  graduated  with  the  class  of 
1856.  At  the  conclusion  of  his  college  course  he 
was  offered  and   accepted   a   jxisition   as  assistant 


principal  in  the  school  where  he  had  prepared 
for  college — Harre  Acailemy  (transferred  from 
Bakersfield).  He  remained  there,  teaching  math- 
ematics and  music,  until  i860,  when  he  became 
[)rincipal  of  the  high  school  at  Hurlington, 
X'ermont,  a  position  which  he  filled  until  his 
removal  to  Chicago  in  1868  (April  20  (.  Form- 
ing a  partnership  with  Mr.  H.  L.  Story,  under 
the  style  of  Story  and  Camp,  this  partnership 
continued  until  the  spring  of  1884,  when  the 
Estcy  Organ  Company  purchased  Mr.  Story's 
interest  in  the  business,  and  the  firm  became 
Estey  and  Cam]),  under  which  style  it  continues 
to  the  present  time  ( 1 892V  The  business  was 
commenced  with  a  small  capital,  but  by  energy, 
perseverance  and  enterprise  the  firm  became  one 
of  the  most  substantial  and  reputable  in  the  city 
of  Chicago,  and  at  the  time  of  Mr.  .Story's  with- 
drawal their  capital  exceeded  half  a  million  dol- 
lars, and  he  received  as  his  jjortion  two  hundreil 
and  fifty  thousand  dollars.  The  capital  of  the 
firm  to-day  amounts  to  o\cr  one  million  dollars. 

Appointeil    by  the     Congregational   denomin.i- 
tion  (of  which  body  he  is  a  member)  a  director  in 


686 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOKARY  AM)  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


the  Cliicayo  Theological  Seminar)-.  Mr.  Camp  is 
also  a  director  of  the  Chicago  Guarantee  Life 
Socict)'  and  of  the  Royal  .Safety  Deposit  Com- 
panw  In  April,  1891,  he  was  elected  a  director 
of  the  World's  Columbian  Exposition,  and  is  a 
member  of  its  Committee  on  Agriculture  and 
Liberal  Arts. 

Though  a  Republican  in  politics,  he  is  b\-  no 
means  a  politician,  and  rarely  takes  any  acti\e 
part  in  political  matters  more  than  to  perform 
ills  duties  as  a  citizen.  In  religious  belief  he  is 
a  Congregationalist  and  a  member  of  Union  Park 
Congregational  Church,  being  also  the  president 
of  its  board  of  trustees.  He  is  also  a  member 
of  the  Illinois  and  Union  League  clubs.  Mr. 
Camp  was  married  January  i,  1862,  to  Miss  Flora 
M.  Carpenter,  daughter  of  the   Hon.  Carlos   Car- 


penter, of  Barre,  Vermont.  They  ha\e  had  four 
children,  three  of  whom  are  now  living.  The 
daughter  is  Mrs.  M.  A.  Farr;  the  eldest  son, 
Edwin  M.,  is  in  business  with  his  father,  while 
the  youngest,  William  C,  is  now  preparing  for 
college. 

Mr.  Camp  has  tra\'eled  extensi\el\-  with  his 
family,  both    in  Europe  and  in  the  United  States. 

In  personal  appearance  he  is  of  medium  height, 
with  fair  complexion  and  of  robust  build,  and 
has  a  pleasing  presence  and  address,  and  is  social 
and  genial  in  manner.  He  is  a  man  of  generous 
impulses  and  contributes  liberally  to  church, 
charitable  and  benevolent  enterprises.  The  archi- 
tect of  his  own  fortunes,  he  has  built  up  a  large 
and  solid  business,  and  as  a  citizen  of  Chicago 
he  is  both  popular  and  highly  esteemed. 


ALBERT    G.   SPALDING, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


FEW  men  in  this  broad  nation  of  ours  have 
attained  greater  prominence  or  are  better 
know  n,  particularly  among  the  young  men  of  the 
country,  than  is  Albert  G.  Spalding,  the  subject  of 
the  following  sketch. 

There  are  many  exemplifications  of  the  old  say- 
ing, that  many  men  strive  for  greatness  and  never 
attain  it,  while  others  ha\c  it  thrust  upon  them, 
whether  the}'  will  or  no,  l)ut  there  arc  ccrtainh- 
none  more  striking  than  that  furnished  by  the 
career  of  A.  G.  Spalding.  When  a  slender  )-outh 
in  his  teens,  he  conceived  a  great  fanc)-  for  the 
game  of  base  ball,  now  the  national  game  of  our 
country,  and  it  was  through  his  early  love  for  this 
and  other  out-door  sports,  that  the  lines  of  his  life 
were  l.iid  in  channels  down  which  it  has  drifted 
upon  a  care(.'r  made  notai)k'  by  the  attainment  of 
nearly  all  those  things  which  nun  ordinaril)- strive 
for. 

The  parents  of  A.  G.  Spalding,  Janus  L.Spald- 
ing and  Harriet  I.  (Goodwill)  Spalding,  were  resi- 
dents of  Ji\'ron,  Illinois,  where  .\lhi_rt  was  born 
Sei^tendjer  2,  1 850.  He  receiveil  his  eilucation  in 
his  native  town,  and  at  Rockfonl,  Illinois,  where 
his  parents  removed  when  our  subject  was  thir- 
teen years  of  age,  aiul  fniished  his  schooling  in 
Rockford  with  a  course  in  Ihe  Commercial  College 


there.  Even  at  this  time,  when  scarcely  se\x-n- 
teen  years  of  age,  his  skill  as  an  amateiu-  base-ball 
player  had  drawn  toward  him  the  attention  of 
many  of  the  base-ball  enthusiasts  of  his  section, 
and  in  1867  he  was  urged  to  join  the  Forest  City 
club  of  Rockford,  a  semi-professional  organization 
which  had  attained  considerable  reputation  at  that 
time.  Spalding's  forte  was  pitching,  and  almost 
immediately  upon  joining  the  Rockfords  his  repu- 
tation as  a  pitcher  which  had  hitherto  been  of 
rather  a  local  character,  spread  far  and  wide,  until 
he  was  eventuall)-  offered,  in  1871.  an  appoint- 
ment w  ith  the  Boston  club,  which  he  after  some 
hesitation  accepted.  His  family  were  \ery  much 
opposed  to  his  ])laying  ball  professionall)-,  but 
Albert's  enthusiasm  for  the  game  and  a  promise 
of  good  behavior  and  habits  overcame  these  ob- 
jections, and  he  went  to  Boston  in  1S71,  where  he 
remained  five  years. 

His  work  with  the  Boston  club,  which  then  con- 
tained some  of  the  greatest  base-ball  talent  of  the 
country,  at  once  placed  him  in  the  forenuist  rank 
of  professional  pla\-ers.  He  was  immense!}-  pop- 
ular with  his  fellow  plavers,  w  ith  the  club  officials 
and  with  the  public,  and  this  fact,  coupled  w  ith 
his  strictly  temjierate  habits,  his  close  attention  to 
his  ]M-ofessional  iluties  and   the  burning  ambition 


BIOCRArinC.lI.  niCTIOXAKV  AXn  J'OKTR.UT  callei^v. 


6S9 


to  better  liis  o\\  11  coiulition,  anil  at  the  same  time 
benefit  the  <;ame  of  his  boyhood  days,  did  mucli 
to  make  him  a  leader  in  base-bail  affairs. 

lie  had  early  entertained  the  idea  thai  if  llu- 
attempt  were  properly  handled,  base  bail  niii;lu 
be  successfully  introduccil  into  other  countries 
tlian  our  own.  and  throuijh  his  enthusiasm  in  this 
direction,  a  p.u-t\'  comprising  the  i^oston  and  Ath- 
letic base-b.dl  teams  crossed  the  ocean  to  l-'.urope 
in  the  summer  of  1874  for  a  tour  of  Great  Hrit.iin 
and  Ireland,  that  \\<ndd  gi\  e  the  residents  of  tliese 
countries  some  idea  of  the  attractions  ol  tlie 
American  game.  Mr.  Spalding  visited  Englanil  in 
the  winter  of  1874,  and  closed  the  business  ar- 
rangements for  the  trip,  returning  home  in  April. 
and  crossing  again  with  the  teams  in  Jidy.  Their 
exhibition  games  in  the  leading  cities  of  Mngland 
and  Ireland  were  well  attended,  although  few  of 
the  citizens  were  familiar  w  ith  the  simplest  rules 
of  the  game.  The  trip  attracted  a  great  deal  of 
attention  both  in  this  country  and  in  England, 
.ind  the  party  was  royally  entertained  by  the  bet- 
ter class  of  sportsmen  in  each  cit\-  it  \isited.  Tliis 
trip  and  the  responsibility  that  was  tiirow  11  upon 
)-oung  Spalding  as  the  business  assistant  ol  .Man- 
ager Harry  Wriglit,  who  was  placed  in  charge  of 
the  two  clubs  during  the  tour,  had  much  to  do 
with  arousing  within  him  an  ambition  to  raise  his 
jjosition  from  that  of  a  professional  player  to  that 
of  a  manager  of  a  club  team.  His  experience  on 
that  tour  had  given  him  quite  an  insight  into  tlu 
work  of  controling  players,  and  afterward  a  tlcsire 
to  manage  a  professional  team  himself  became  so 
powerful  an  influence  on  his  actions  that  he  soon 
began  to  lay  his  plans  for  a  successful  accomjilish- 
ment  of  his  ambitious  views,  and  only  awaited  a 
favorable  op[)ortunit\-  to  carrv  them  into  execu- 
tion. 

.Sucii  an  opportunity  came  when  it  was  least 
expected.  In  1870  the  Boston  people  made  over- 
tures to  the  veteran  manager,  Harry  Wright, 
through  whose  skill  in  club  management  the  Cin- 
cinnati club  had  achieved  championship  honors  in 
1869  b\- an  unexampled  career  of  success  in  the 
field,  and  in  1871  Mr.  Wright  took  charge  of  the 
Boston  club.  Then  began  tliat  club's  success  in 
winning  the  professional  championshijj  of  the 
country  from  1871  to  1873,  during  which  time  .Mr. 
Spalding  was  the  only  pitcher  of  the  club  and  also 
captain  of   the   nine.     In    1875  the  Chicago  club 


took  similar  measures  to  strengthen  the  club's 
team  at  the  expense  of  the  Boston  club,  just  as 
Boston  had  previously  taken,  at  the  cost  of  the 
Cincinnati  cliib,  and  it  was  through  this  action  of 
the  western  club  that  the  ojjporlunit)-  U-x  gratif)'- 
ing  his  ambition  to  become  the  manager  of  .1  cIuIj 
team  was  afforded,  and  the  result  was  that  in  1876 
Spalding  became  the  manager  and  captain  f)f  the 
Chicago  club  team.  Success  crowned  his  efforts 
in  the  inaugural  j'ear  of  his  engagement,  and  the 
Chicago  club  became  the  professional  champions 
of  the  National  League  in  1S76.  It  is  worth)-  of 
note  that  from  the  i)eiioti  of  his  first  becoming  a 
professional  pla_\-er  to  the  time  ol  his  retirement 
from  active  coniuctioii  witli  the  g.ime  in  i8yl. 
co\-eriiig  a  period  of  iw  eiit_\--si\  years'  time,  he  has 
been  in  the  ser\  ic<.-  of  but  two  [)rofessional  organ- 
izations, first  as  pitcher  of  the  Boston  club,  during 
the  first  four  j'ears  of  its  winning  championship 
honors,  and  also  as  captain  of  the  team,  and  then 
as  manager,  secretary  and  I'm. illy  president  ol  the 
Chicago  club.  This  is  a  record  iiiie(|ualled  in  the 
history  of  aii}'  indi\idual  player  in  the  country, 
and  one  which  can  he  relerred  to  with  excusable 
pride. 

Xot  only  w.is  Mr.  Spakling  the  manager  .iinl 
leading  spirit  of  the  Chicago  team,  but  soon  after 
his  arrival  in  Chicago  in  1876  he  became  engaged 
in  the  work  of  establishing  the  present  great  hou.se 
of  A.  G.  Spalding  &  Bros.,  the  original  firm  con- 
sisting  of  A.  (j.  and  J.  Waller  Spalding,  and  in  1879 
their  brother-in-law.  William  T.  Brown,  became 
identified  with  the  firm.  For  month  after  month 
while  the  young  business  was  being  established, 
the  \-oung  captain  of  the  Chicago  team,  after  a 
hard  contest  on  the  field,  would  go  to  his  ofifice 
and  work  until  midnight.  ,iiul  sometimes  until 
long  after,  and  arise  in  the  morning  in  time  for 
the  transaction  of  matters  pertaining  to  the  team, 
and  perhaps  an  hour  or  two  to  his  business,  and 
and  would  then  t.iki_'  the  field  for  an  afternoon's 
game,  with  more  hours  of  work  .it  his  office  to  fol- 
low. 

Within  .1  year  or  two.  howevei'.  the  new  .Na- 
tional League,  which  Mr.  Spalding,  in  conjunction 
with  William  .;\.  Hurlbert.  hail  been  largel)-  instru- 
mental in  organiziTig,  had  become  well  established, 
and  the  game  itself  had  entered  u[)on  its  subse- 
quent prosperous  career.  The  business  of  the 
house  of  Spakling  had  also  increased,  and  that  so 


690 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  A.XD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


rapidly,  that  at  the  end  of  another  year  Mr.  Spald- 
ing was  compelled  to  give  up  his  connection  with 
the  team  and  its  active  management,  and  devote 
his  entire  time  to  his  mercantile  pursuits,  although 
he  still  retained  the  secretaryship  of  the  club.  He 
continued  as  secretary  until  the  death  of  President 
Jlurlbert,  which  occurred  in  the  spring  of  1883, 
when  Mr.  Spalding  was  made  president,  an  office 
which  he  occupied  up  to  April,  1891.  In  that 
year,  desiring  to  still  further  retire  from  actixe 
work,  he  resigned  the  presidency,  which  he  had 
so  long  held,  and  James  A.  Hart,  the  present  chief 
executive,  succeeded  him. 

Probably  Mr.  Spalding's  greatest  service  to  the 
game  of  base  ball  was  that  he  rendered  it,  when, 
under  his  personal  management  and  at  his  own  ex- 
pense, two  representative  teams  of  American  base 
ball  players  (the  party  comprising  in  all  some 
lhirt\-  people)  made  a  tour  around  the  world, 
traveling  westward  from  Chicago  across  the  Amer- 
ican continent  to  the  Sandwich  Islands,  New  Zea- 
land, Australia,  Ceylon,  Arabia,  Eg\pt,  through 
continental  Europe,  England,  Scotland  and  Ire- 
land and  across  the  Atlantic  to  America. 

The  whole  trip  occupied  a  period  of  six  months, 
being  made  notable  by  a  greater  number  of  big 
receptions  and  banquets,  as  well  as  courtesies  ad- 
vanced by  a  greater  number  of  prominent  people 
•than  was  e\er  previously  enjoyed  b)-  any  similar 
party  of  our  countrymen. 

Knowing  that  our  national  game  \\as  more  en- 
joyable when  understood,  and  that  it  afforded 
more  good  qualities  to  the  athlete  than  an\-  other 
out-door  sport  engaged  in  by  the  residents  of  for- 
eign countries,  he  formulated  the  plan,  magnificent 
in  its  conce]3tion  and  of  immense  pro]iortions,  to 
introduce  base  ball  abroad. 

In  pursuance  of  this  plan  \.\\o  teams  were  organ- 
ized under  the  name  of  the  "  Chicago,  and  All- 
America  Base  Ball  Teams."  The  first  contest  be- 
tween the  two  occurred  at  Chicago,  October  20, 
1 888,  this  being  the  date  of  the  party's  de])arture 
upon  its  memorable  tour.  The  trip  marked  a 
prominent  era  in  the  history  of  manl\-  sports,  as  it 
ser\ed  to  introduce  and  establish  the  game  of  base 
hall  on  five  different  continents,  and  in  fourteen 
different  countries.  American^-  from  Maine  to  San 
h'rancisco  were  ke[)t  ])osteil  upon  tin-  [)rogrcss  of 
tile  party  by  the  four  conx-spoiulents  who  accom- 
panied   the   teams,  ami   who    re[)resented    in    the 


neighborhood    of    thirty    great    American    daily 
papers. 

The  teams  gave  .several  exhibitions  en  route  to 
California,  and  on  November  19th  boarded  the 
steamer  Alameda  at  San  Francisco,  and  started 
for  Au.stralia,  stopping  at  the  Sandwich  Islands 
and  New  Zealand  on  the  way.  They  gave  ex- 
hibitions in  all  the  large  cities  of  Australia,  and 
these  exhibitions  were  witnessed  by  thousands  of 
people  enthusiastic  beyond  all  anticipations  of  the 
party. 

Beyond  Australia  the  experience  of  the  party 
was  certainh-  a  most  interesting  and  unique  one. 
The  teams  played  the  American  game  in  the  pres- 
ence of  the  natives  of  India,  and  before  hundreds  of 
Bedouin  Arabs,  on  the  sands  of  Sahara,  beneath  the 
towering  figure  of  the  Sphinx  and  in  the  shadow  of 
the  Pyramids,  on  ground  trodden  by  Moses,  the 
Pharaohs,  Anthony  and  Cleopatra  :  the  walls  of  the 
old  Colisseum  at  Rome  looked  down  upon  the  as- 
sembled Americans  in  their  base-ball  uniforms, 
and  thousands  of  Romans  attendetl  the  games  in 
the  beautiful  Piazza  de  .Sienna  on  the  estate  of  one 
of  the  most  noted  families  in  Italy,  the  Prince 
Borgheze;  at  Naples  Vesu\ius  looked  down  upon 
the  first  game  played  by  the  party  on  European 
soil  ;  in  historic  Florence  the  American  colon)- 
turned  out  in  force  to  see  a  similar  contest,  and 
thence  the  party  journeyed  on  to  Pisa's  leaning 
tower,  and  tin:  lionie  of  Columbus,  to  Nice  and 
Monte  Carlo,  to  Paris,  and  across  the  channel  to 
Great   Britain. 

A  complete  history  of  this  remarkable  trip  was 
subsequently  compiled  and  made  attractive  b\- 
some  two  hundred  illustrations,  by  Mr.  Harr\-  C. 
Palmer,  who  accompanied  the  party  as  correspond- 
ent of  the  New  York  Herald,  Boston  Herald,  Chi- 
cago Times,  and  other  leading  American  papers, 
and  it  is  needless  to  say  that  it  makes  most  inter- 
esting and  delightful  reading.  To  Mr.  Spalding's 
excellent  management,  foresight,  wealth  and  ex- 
perience the  success  of  the  undertaking  was  mainlj- 
due.  From  beginning  to  end  the  trip  was  one  al- 
most unbroken  o\ation.  Before  leaving  their  own 
shores,  the  part}'  was  royally  entertained  at  all 
points  which  they  xisiled,  and  their  first  encounter 
with  a  foreign  sliore  was  certainly  a  memorable 
one.  This  occurred  a  week  after  the  [larty  de- 
|)arte(l  from  .San  Francisco,  when  the_\'  arrived  at 
Honoluhi  in  tlu'  Sandwich  Islands,  and   were  ten- 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXAKV  AXD  I'ORTKAIT  CAI.I.ICRV. 


691 


dered  a  reception  at  the  royal  palace,  followed  b\- 
a  banquet  jjiven  on  the  grounds  of  the  Queen's 
palace  by  the  late  King  Kaiaukau,  which  is  said 
to  have  eclipsed  anything  of  the  kind  ever  before 
given  on  the  islands.  The  leading  residents  of  all 
the  cities  of  New  Zealand,  and  of  Sidney.  Mel- 
bourne. Hallerat  and  Adelaide  \  ied  with  each 
other  t(^  do  the  party  honor.  The  freedom  of  the 
theaters  at  each  point  was  tendered,  and  the  party 
was  banqueted  and  feted  until  nature  became  ex- 
hausted, and  many  of  the  pleasant  courtesies  ex- 
tended were  declined  for  no  other  reason  than 
that  the  party  \^  ere  simply  too  much  exhausted  to 
accept  of  them.  S<^me  idea  of  these  courtesies  ma\' 
be  better  understof)d  when  it  is  know  11  that  ikiring 
the  party's  twenty-four  days'  stay  in  Australia 
they  were  hon<ired  by  no  less  than  tweiitx-eight 
banquets  and  public  receptions. 

King  Humbert  and  the  Prince  of  Naples,  the 
Kliedi\e  of  ligApt,  President  Carnot  of  France; 
the  Prince  of  Wales,  and  the  leading  athletic  or- 
ganizations, together  with  the  representatives  of 
the  nobility  of  the  different  countries,  were 
present,  in  person,  to  witness  the  contests  of  the 
teams,  and  to  extend  the  cf^irtesics  of  their  class 
and  countries. 

So  much  for  Mr.  S|)alding's  connection  w  ith  the 
National  Game.  He  has  devoted  the  best  years 
of  his  manhood  to  the  task  of  buililing  the 
National  Game  and  its  organizations  up  to  tlieir 
present  standard.  He  interested  himself  in  the 
game  because  he  liked  it.  and  continued  its  inter- 
ests incidentally  to  the  building  up  of  the 
greatest  mercantile  house  in  the  sporting-goods 
line  in  e.vistence  to-day. 

In  1S75.  Mr.  Spalding  was  m.irried  to  .Miss 
Josephine  Keith,  of  Boston.  They  have  one 
child,  a  son  of  fourteen,  Keith  Sjjalding. 

Personally  and  physically,  Mr.  Spalding  is  a 
prince :  being  a  powerfully  built  man  of  over  si.x 
feet,  and  two  hundred  pounds  in  weight.  In 
manner  he  is  cordial  and  straight-forward,  yet 
courtly.  In  business  argument  he  is  concise,  de- 
termined and  unhesitating.  He  is  a  true  friend, 
and  none  is  more  highly  regarded  among  business 
men  in  his  community.  Of  great  mental  capacity, 
of  remarkable  foresight  and  judgment ;  of  affable 
presence  and  address,  and  an  excellent  reader  of 
human  character,  it  is  .safe  to  say  that  had  not 
accident,  and  his  love  for  out-door  sports  laitl  the 


lines  of  his  life  in  their  present  channels,  Mr. 
Spalding  would  have  been  equally  as  prominent 
a  leader  in  any  other  undertaking  that  he  might 
have  identified  himself  with. 

Socially,  Mr.  Spalding  is  both  widely  and  favor- 
ably known.  lie  owns  a  magnificent  residence  at 
Kenwood,  one  of  Chicago's  most  beautiful  and 
choicest  suburbs. 

He  is  a  member  of  a  dozen  different  clubs,  in- 
cluding the  Union  League,  the  Washington  Park 
and  Kenwood  clubs;  as  well  as  a  director  of  the 
Chicago  Athletic  Association,  and  a  member  of 
the  Manhattan  .\thlctic  Club,  of  New  York. 

In  suniTiiing  up  his  biograpln-  it  must  be  ad- 
mitted that  the  story  of  his  life  is  such  as  to  show 
what  a  strong  personal  character,  combined  with 
pluck  anil  business  judgment,  have  accomplished 
for  many  of  our  most  prominent  citizens. 

Mr.  A.  G.  Spalding  owes  his  present  high  po- 
sition among  Chicago  representati\e  men  to  his 
own  exertions.  He  began  his  business  career  in 
that  city  in  1876,  antl  by  honorable  business  deal- 
ing and  close  attention  to  business,  has  jilaced  the 
sporting-goods  house  of  A.  G.  Si)alding^&  Hro., 
with  similar  houses  in  New  York  and  Philadel- 
phia, and  branches  throughout  the  cities  of  this 
country,  at  the  head  of  all  business  houses  of  its 
kind  in  the  world. 

It  is  undoubtedly  a  fact  that  in  taking  the 
American  Hase-Hall  Teams  .iround  the  world,  Mr. 
Spalding  did  vastly  more  to  familiarize  the  resi- 
dents of  foreign  countries  with  the  name  of 
Chicago,  the  citj-  of  the  great  World's  I'air.  than 
did  ever  any  individual  or  corporation  before  him. 

In  later  years  Mr.  Spalding  has  not  confined  his 
business  to  his  mercantile  interests,  but  has 
entered  very  largely  into  real  estate  speculations, 
and  is  admittcilh'  ;i  shrewil  and  successful  ilealer 
in  reah\-. 

At  this  writing  he  is  a  man  in  the  prime  of  life, 
who  may  look  back  upon  a  career  of  which  any 
man  might  justlj-  feel  proud.  Within  the  last 
year  or  two  it  has  been  his  policy  to  graduallj- 
retire  from  active  participation  in  both  commer- 
cial pursuits  and  the  affairs  of  the  game.  Pos- 
sessed of  an  ample  fortune,  accumulated  by  close 
and  self-sacrificing  attention  to  business  duties 
throughout  a  period  of  more  than  twenty  years, 
it  is  his  purpose  now  to  let  others  take  the  reins, 
while  he  '^ratifies  a  long  cherished   desire  to  see 


692 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AjXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


the  world,  a  mere  glimpse  of  which   was  afforded  While   he   remains    in    Chicago,   Chicago    may 

him  on  the  memorable  trip  of   1888- 1889,  and  en-  well  feel  proud  of  his  citizenship,   and   should  he 

joy    the    rest  and    recreation   which    his  years  of  leave  to  take   up    his    residence    in   another  city, 

active  business  life  ha\e   so   full\-  entitled   him  to.  Chicago's  loss  would  be  that  cit\-'s  gain. 


S.   T.   GUNDERSON, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


THE  subject  of  this  sketch  is  prominent 
among  those  men  who  composed  the  Chi- 
cago World's  Fair  Delegation  which  so  succes.s- 
fuUy  overcame  all  obstacles  and  enabled  this  city 
to  hold,  within  its  confines,  the  greatest  World's 
Exhibition  e\-er  known  to  the  world.  He  was 
born  in  Norway  in  1839,  and  lived  there  until  his 
ninth  year,  at  which  age  he  accompanied  his 
parents  to  the  United  States  and  located  in  Chi- 
cago, which  at  that  time  (1848)  was  a  city  of 
twenty  thousand  inhabitants.  The  trip  to  Chi- 
cago from  New  York  at  that  early  date  was  made 
entirely  by  water:  on  the  Hudson  to  Albanj-,  b}- 
Erie  Canal  from  Albany  to  Buffalo,  and  by  the 
lakes  from  Buffalo  to  Chicago.  From  184S  to 
1854  he  attended  the  public  schools  of  Chicago. 

As  his  parents  were  poor,  he  left  school  and 
learned  the  carpenter  and  lathing  trade,  and  con- 
tinued working  in  that  business  until  he  was  eigh- 
teen years  old,  when  he  engaged  in  tiie  business 
for  himself.  During  the  time  he  was  engaged  in 
carpentering,  the  financial  panic  of  1857  caused 
all  improvements  in  Chicago  to  be  abandoned, 
consequently  he  determined  to  better  his  condi- 
tion, ff  possible,  and  for  that  purpose  \isited  Fort 
Lea\'enworth,  Kansas,  in  1858,  but  he  soon  re- 
turned to  Chicago.  In  rSOj  he  purchased  a  lake 
vessel,  the  "  Hercules,"  and  within  the  ne.xt  five 
years  purchased  other  \csscls  until  he  had  six, 
most  of  them  grain  carriers.  Besides  lake  trans- 
l)ortation  he  was  engaged  in  the  luniixr  tiade, 
and  in  1871  became  largely- intereste-d  in  sawmills. 
In  1875  his  mill  plant  was  destroyed  by  fire,  and 
ha\'ing  invested  all  he  had  in  it,  w  ith  small  insur- 
ance, he  was  left  finaneiall)'  iiiined.  Hut  he  ilid 
not  lose  heart,  but  went  to  work  with  a  will  and 
manly  courage  and  soon  retrie\-ed  his  losses.  At 
the  present  time(l892)he  has  large  mill  interests, 
with  office  at  503  Chamber  of  Commerce  Building, 
and  is  head  of  the  firm  of  S.  T.  (iniiderson  &  Son, 


manufacturers  of  moldings,  casings,  etc.,  and  is 
also  associated  in  the  firm  of  John  A.  Gauger  & 
Co.,  who  ship  large  quantities  of  doors  and  sash 
of  their  own  manufacture  throughout  the  United 
States. 

Mr.  Gunderson  has  an  honorable  Masonic  rec- 
ord. He  was  made  a  Mason  in  1868,  in  Kilwin- 
ning Lodge,  No.  31 !  A.  F.  and  A.  M.;  he  has  ad- 
vanced through  the  \arious  degrees,  and  is  now  a 
member  of  Chicago  Commandery,  K.  T.,  No.  19, 
and  Oriental  Consistory,  S.  V.  R.  S.,  of  thethirtj'- 
second  degree,  and  the  Medinah  Temple  of  the 
Mystic  Shrine.  He  was  one  of  the  founders  of 
the  Illinois  Masonic  Orphans'  Home,  of  which 
institution  he  was  trustee  for  three  years. 

He  has  always  been  affiliated  with  the  Re])ubli- 
can  part}'.  In  1874  he  was  chosen  a  member  of 
the  Common  Council  of  Chicago  from  the  Ele\-enth 
Ward,  now  known  as  the  Se\enteenth  \\'ard.  He 
was  appointed  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Educa- 
tion by  Mayor  W'ashburne  in  June,  1891. 

In  religion  he  is  a  follower  of  the  great  reformer 
Martin  Luther,  antl  is  an  .active  member  of  the 
Lutheran  Church.  He  is  a  large  stockholder  in 
and  president  of  the  Mt.  Olive  Cemetery  Associa- 
tion. With  his  characteristic  shrewdness  and 
foresight,  he  inxested  in  re.d  estate  some  years 
ago,  and  the  natural  increase  in  the  \-alue  of  Chi- 
cago realt\-  lai'gely  increaseil  his  already  large 
fortune.  He  is  the  princijjal  owner  of  (iunder- 
son  is:  Gauger's  addition  tt)  Chicago,  and  Gun- 
derson &  Gauger's  addition  to  Oak  I'ark,  besides 
holding  much  impro\ed  ])i-opert\-  in  \arious  parts 
of  Chicago. 

In  1863  he  married  Miss  Emily  C.  Olson.  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Gunderson  are  blessed  with  twt)  sons 
and  a  daughter;  the  eldest  son,  George  O..  is  a 
business  partner  of  his  lather,  and  has  always 
been  considered  a  \oung  man  of  sound  business 
principles;    Sew.iril    M.,   the   younger   .son,  is   also 


BIOuRirniCAI.   niCTlOXARV  AXn  POA-TA-.I/T  o.U.l.liKV. 


695 


conncctcil  with  his  father's  business,  and  displays 
those  quahties  that  impress  one  with  the  fact  that 
he  will  worthily  succeed  his  father  in  mercantile 
life.  Miss  Ida  Mabel  Gunderson.  their  only 
daughter,  is  a  ver>-  highly  educated  and  accom- 
plished young  lady,  a  musician  of  more  than 
usual  brilliancy.  She  is  a  graduate  of  the  Chi- 
cago Musical  College,  from  whicli  she  received  a 
teacher's  diploma,  and  also  a  diploma  from  the 
"raduating  class.  Miss  Gunderson  still  continues 
the  study  of  music,  in  which  she  takes  a  great 
deal  of  pride.  She  is  of  an  artistic  nature,  and 
besides  her  interest  in  musical  matters,  she  finds 
opportunity  to  devote  a  portion  of  her  time  to 
painting,  both  in  water  colors  and  in  oil.  She  has 
not  neglected  the  other  accomplishments  for  those 
of  music  and  painting,  but  is  highly  educated  in  all 
branches.  She  is  a  graduate  of  the  Misses  Grant 
Seminary.  George  Gunderson  was  married  to 
Miss  Julia  A.  Jacobs,  daughter  of  O.  B.  Jacobs, 
the  well-known  lumber  dealer.  June  15.  1887-. 


Mr.  Gunderson  has  always  taken  a  deep  inter- 
est in  travel,  and  has  visited  all  places  of  interest 
in  England,  Norway,  Sweden,  Germany,  Denmark 
and  France.  Returning  from  Europe  via  New 
Orleans,  he  visited  the  Republic  of  Mexico.  He 
has  journeyed  over  the  United  States  from  ocean 
to  ocean  more  than  once,  and  his  numerous  visits 
to  different  parts  of  the  world  have  filled  his 
mind  with  many  broad  ideas. 

Mr.  Gunderson  has  always  been  known  as  a 
public-spirited  citizen  of  Chicago  ;  he  has  always 
taken  a  deep  interest  in  public  affairs,  and  any 
enterprise  that  tends  to  the  welfare  of  the  city  of 
Chicago  always  finds  in  him  a  warm  sympathizer 
and  firm  friend. 

Such  is  his  biography.  He  certainly  deserves 
credit  for  what  he  has  accomplished.  He  began 
life  at  the  very  bottom,  and  has  surmounted  ob- 
stacles that  would  appal  most  men.  He  has  risen 
from  poverty  and  obscurity  to  affluence  and  posi- 
tion entirely  through  his  own  exertions. 


JOHN    W.    BYAM, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


JOHN  W.  H\AM  has  few  peers  at  the  Chicago 
bar;  he  never  rests  with  the  comprehension 
(if  a  mere  abstract  proposition,  but  seeks  the 
origin,  history  and  philosophy  of  the  law.  The 
natural  bent  of  his  mind  is  highly  philosophical 
and  reflective.  His  keen  and  ready  perception, 
his  trained  habits  of  analysis  and  logical  sj-nthesis, 
enable  him  to  eliminate  principles  from  sophistry, 
and  the  real  from  the  hypothetical.  He  is  very 
thorough  in  the  preparation  of  his  cases  for  trial, 
and  the  authorities  he  cites  are  usually  decisions  of 
the  courts  of  high  repute  and  directly  in  point. 
He  has  a  melodious  and  harmonious  compass  of 
voice,  a  distinctness  of  elocution,  an  ardent 
animation  of  manner  that  enchains  the  attention 
of  his  hearer,  and  his  logic  is  irresistible.  He  is  a 
good  companion,  and  a  gentleman  of  great  liber- 
ality and  high  social  standing. 

Our  subject  was  born  September  10,  1857,  in 
the  village  of  Warsaw,  Wyoming  county.  New 
York.  His  father  was  Israel  Byam,  and  his 
mother's  maiden  name  was  Eudo.xia  Smith.  He 
received  his  education  at  Genesee  College,  Lima. 


New  York,  and  studied  I,n\  with  Mr.  (ieorge 
Davis,  then  of  Gencseo.  Livingston  county.  New 
York. 

He  then  entered  the  Albany  Law  School,  and 
was  graduated  therefrom  in  1865,  and  was  ad- 
mitted to  the  New  York  bar  the  same  year.  He 
began  practice  at  Livonia,  New  York,  and  soon 
entered  into  an  extensive  business,  which  ex- 
tended into  the  adjoining  county  of  Ontario. 
Even  then  he  enjoyed  a  wide  reputation  as  a 
vcr}^  learned  and  eloquent  lawyer. 

Mr.  Byam  always  avoided  the  use  of  his  name 
for  political  honors,  but,  yielding  to  the  earnest 
solicitations  of  friends,  he  served  two  terms  as 
school  commissioner  of  Livingston  county.  New 
York.  His  practice  became  so  large  and  his 
labors  so  ardurous,  that  it  became  a  matter  of 
serious  consideration  with  him,  how  he  could  re- 
duce his  labors  without  diminishing  his  income, 
but  this  was  accomplished  by  removing  to  Chi- 
cago in  May,  1882,  where  a  large  number  of  his 
friends  then  resided. 

Mr.  Bvam's  efforts  in    behalf   of    Frank    Mul- 


696 


lilOGRAI'lllC.lL  DICriO.\ARV  AXP  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


kowski,  who  was  iiuiictcil  in  the  fall  of  1885  for 
tlic  murder  of  Mrs.  Agnes  Kledzick,  at  186 
Southport  avenue,  Chicago,  August  22,  of  that 
year,  gained  for  him  great  notoriet}-,  and  widely 
spread  his  fame  as  an  advocate  and  astute  lawyer. 
The  Chicago  Herald,  November  13,  1885, 
has  the  following  just  tribute  to  [Mr.  Byam : 
"  Mulkowski,  now  on  trial  for  his  life  before  a 
jurj'  in  Judge  Shephard's  court,  was  entitled,  of 
course,  to  counsel.  Unable  to  employ  a  lawyer, 
the  court,  as  is  the  custom,  assigned  him  counsel. 
Ordinarily,  the  selection  in  such  cases  is  made 
from  members  of  the  bar  who  are  not  burdened 
with  active  engagements,  and  who  think  that  re- 
putation, with  possibility  of  clientage  springing 
therefrom,  will  be  sufficient  compensation  for  the 
time  expended  by  them  in  conduct  of  the  case. 
Under  such  circumstances,  the  defense  may  be 
earnest,  but  it  is  not  likely  to  be  skillful,  and  in  as 
large  a  bar  as  that  in  Cook  county,  and  in  courts 
where  the  number  and  variety  of  causes  are  so 
great,  that  public  attention  is  only  momentarily 
attached  to  even  an  important  case,  the  calcula- 
tion of  the  neophytes  of  the  law  is  disappointed. 
The  case,  and  their  share  in  it,  are  quickly  for- 
gotten. Mulkowski  is,  however,  e.\traordinariIy 
favored.  If  he  escapes  what  seems  to  most  persons 
a  merited  fate,  he  will  owe  his  deliverance  to  the 
skill,  industry  and  acumen  of  a  la\v\-er,  to  whom  he 
has  not  paid  a  cent,  and  whom,  it  is  improbable, 
he  will  ever  be  able  to  compensate,  even  to  the 
extent  of  a  dollar.  Mr.  Byam,  generally  unknown 
to  the  bar,  has  been  a  revelation  to  the  older  and 
better  known  lawyers.  The  story  of  the  calm, 
dignified,  patient  and  acute  manner  in  which  he 
has  been  managing  a  desperate  defense,  has 
spread  among  the  lawyers,  many  of  whom  have 
visited  the  bar  of  the  court  to  see  for  them- 
selves the  manner  and  the  methods  of  this 
stranger.  Whatever  the  outcome  of  the  case  Mr. 
Byam's  reputation  for  professional  capacity, 
and  that  devotion  to  a  client's  cause,  which  is 
the  greatest  recommendation  to  an  accused  or  a 
litigant,  is  assured.  Mulkowski  may  be  hanged, 
but  Byam  is  made." 

The  News  of  November  14,  1885,  said  of  Mr. 
Byam's  argument  in  this  case :  "  He  spoke  three 
hours  and  a  half,  and  when  he  sat  down  the  gen- 
eral opinion  was,  that  everything  that  could  be 
said    for  Mulkowski  had  been   said.      After  hav- 


ing woven  into  his  argument  e\ery  fact  in  the 
history  of  the  prisoner  and  circumstances  in  con- 
nection with  the  crime,  which  might  contribute  to 
the  advantage  of  the  defendant,  he  denounced  in 
scathing  terms  the  '  sweat-box '  methods  em- 
ployed by  the  police  to  extort  testimony  or  con- 
fessions from  culprits;  he  declared  it  to  be  a  relic 
of  barbarism,  which  should  not  be  tolerated  in  this 
enlightened  age.  He  closed  with  an  effective 
peroration,  taking  ground  against  the  penalty  of 
death  bj'  hanging.  Twice  during  the  speech  Mul- 
kowski bent  down  his  head  on  the  table  before 
him,  and  wept  bitterly.  The  State's  attorney 
congratulated   Mr.  Byam  on  his  address." 

The  Mail  says  of  the  effort  of  Mr.  Byam  :  "  A 
more  eloquent  and  ingenious  plea  had,  probably, 
never  been  made  inside  the  Cook  county  court- 
house, which  is  a  compliment  almo.st  impossible 
to  o\er-rate.  It  takes  a  mighty  smart  man  to 
make  a  sensation  in  Chicago,  and  that  is  just 
what  John  W.  Byam  .seems  to  have  done." 

Ill  the  summer  of  1888,  in  the  celebrated  jury- 
bribing  case,  when  Sumner  C.  Welsh,  who  had 
charge  of  the  accident  department  of  the  Chicago 
City  Railway  Company,  was  brought  before  Judge 
Hawes  for  contempt,  for  attempting  to  bribe 
Juror  Rosenthal,  there  was  a  great  array  of  talent 
on  both  sides  of  the  case  ;  six  weeks  were  spent 
in  taking  the  evidence,  and  arguments  were  made 
by  the  following  gentlemen  :  C.  M.  Hardy  led 
off  for  the  defense,  and  was  followetl  by  John 
L\-le  King  and  Hiram  S.  Parkhurst  for  the  pro- 
secution: then  came  William  J.  Hynes,  in  one  of 
his  eloquent  outbursts  for  the  defen.se  :  Mr.  Byam 
followed  Mr.  Hynes  in  a  masterly  effort,  occupy- 
ing three  days  and  two  hours  in  summing  up  the 
evidence  and  logically  arguing  each  point.  Of 
hiseloquent  peroration  the  Inter  Ocea//iM\ys  :  "  Mr. 
Byam,  after  a  gigantic  effort,  has  concluded  his  ad- 
dress, closing  up  about  4  o'clock  yesterday  after- 
noon with  a  very  neatly  worded  peroration  as  fol- 
lows :  'A  crisis  has  come  upon  the  courts  of  this  city 
and  the  [jeople  demand  that  it  shall  be  resolutely 
met.  The  channels  of  justice  shall  no  longer  be 
befouled,  but  a  strong  hand  shall  cleanse  them. 
The  jurv-briber  and  the  jury-fixer  must  go.  The 
jury  is  from  the  people  and  for  the  people,  and 
they  feel  it  is  their  own  special  tribunal.  To  de- 
file it  is  a  crime  greater  than  that  of  high  treason. 
A  more  dangerous  and  hideous    crime    it   is   not 


lilOCRAPHICAL  niCnoXAKV  .l.\7>  /■(  W/A'.///'  i;.l/./j:Ki'. 


697 


easy  to  imagine.  Is  it  td  be  extirpated,  or  is  tlie 
evil  to  take  deeper  root,  and  spread  its  branches 
nut  until  they  o\ershado\v  and  poison  every  de- 
partment of  judicial  proceedings  in  this  vast  city"' 
The  evil  is  entrenched  behind  a  mountain  of  gold 
and  is  robed  in  the  garments  of  social  distinction. 
Shall  wealth,  shall  position,  shall  character,  shall 
corporate  audacity,  shield  and  exculpate  the 
guilty?  Is  the  law  a  respecter  of  persons?  The 
occasion  demands  unflinching  courage.  If  the 
court  is  satisfied  that  Sumner  C.  Welsh  did  ap- 
proach Juror  Rosenthal,  as  is  alleged,  we  trust 
your  honor  will  visit  upon  him  a  punishment  that 
shall  be  commensurate  with  his  crime;  and  if  your 
honor  is  satisfied,  from  the  evidence,  that  there 
is  probable  cause  to  believe  that  a  conspiracy 
e.xists  on  the  part  of  parties  indicated,  by  a 
motion  heretofore  filed,  to  do  acts  injurious  to 
the  administration  of  public  justice,  we   believe 


\oiir  honor  will,  without  hesitation,  hold  such 
])arties  to  bail  to  ai)pear  before  the  next  grand 
jury  to  answer  for  their  crime.  In  presenting  this 
case  to  the  court,  I  have  not  for  a  moment  lost 
sight  of  its  importance  or  the  significance,  and 
dignity  of  the  occasion.  I  have  appreciated  the 
resiJonsibilit)-  that  rests  upon  >-ou  and  on  myself. 
I  have  endeavored,  in  the  spirit  of  candor  and 
truthfulness,  without  exaggeration  or  coloring,  to 
point  out  the  naked  fact.s — hideous  as  they  arc  — 
that  are  involved  in  these  proceedings,  for  the 
simijle  purpose  of  assisting  the  court,  if  pos- 
sible, in  reaching  such  conclusions  as  the  facts 
both  warrant  and  demand.'" 

Mr.  Hyam  was  married  November  26,  1862,  to 
Miss  Maria  Hcrsford,  a  highly  educated  and  ac- 
complished lady,  the  daughter  of  Hon.  Jedediah 
Hersford,  formerly  member  of  Congress  from 
New  York. 


HENRV   \'.    BEMIS, 


CHICAGO,   ILL 


1r  has  been  t)ften  remarked  by  world-wide  trav- 
elers that  no  cit\-  on  earth  contains  so  many 
large,  elegant  and  commodious  hotels  as  the  city 
of  Chicago,  and  among  the  best  and  foremost 
stands  the  Richelieu.  Its  noted  and  popular 
proprietor,  Henry  V.  Bemis,  is  a  native  of  the 
Empire  State  and  was  born  October  11.  1S32,  at 
Center  Almond,  in  Alleghany  county. 

His  father  was  a  Baptist  clergyman  of  en- 
larged views  and  comprehensive  mind,  aiid  was 
widely  known  as  an  eloquent  and  popular  and 
learned  preacher,  and  a  Christian  gentleman.  He 
died  when  Henry  V.  was  twent\--two  years  okl. 

His  mother  was,  before  marriage.  Miss  Marj- 
.Shepherd.  Our  subject  had  three  brothers, 
Kdwin  Coleman.  George  A.  and  Dwiglit  L..  the 
last  named  being  deceased. 

At  the  age  of  eighteen  our  subject  went  to 
Cleveland,  Ohio,  and  engaged  in  book-keeping 
and  was  known  at  that  early  age  as  an  expert 
accountant,  and  afterwards  engaged  in  the  com- 
mission business.  In  1859,  he  removed  to  Chi- 
cago and  engaged  in  the  brewing  business  in  com- 
pany with  Mr.  C.  E.  Downer:  their  business  was 
very  prosperous  and  was   incorporated    under  the 


laws  of  Illinois  in  1865,  under  the  name  of  the 
Downer  and  Hemis  Brewing  Company,  and  was 
known  by  this  name  many  \ears.  Mr.  Bemis 
continued  to  be  the  largest  owner  in  the  great 
establishment  on  Park  avenue  until  April  14, 
1884,  when  he  sold  out  his  entire  interest  in  this 
property  to  John  H.  Mc.Avoj-  and  others,  thus 
severing  his  connection  with  the  brewing  busi- 
ness. In  1881  he  purchased  an  interest  in  the 
business  of  John  Carden  and  Son,  and  was  made 
president  of  the  Bemis  and  Carden  Malting  Com- 
pany ;  later  he  bought  the  entire  plant:  after 
selling  a  portion  to  his  brother,  D.  L.  Bemis  and 
Charles  Curtis,  the  ])resent  company  known  as 
the  Bemis  and  Curtis  Malting  Company  was  in- 
corporated. 

He  was  also  a  s])ecial  partner  in  the  grain  and 
commission  house  of  .\very,  Hillabrant  and  Co., 
of  Chicago.  .May  10,  1859.  he  became  a  member 
of  the  Chicago  Board  of  Trade.  He  paid  the 
sum  of  fifteen  dollars  for  his  membershi]>,  and  he 
still  holds  the  original  ticket,  which  is  signed  by 
J.  H.  Rumsey,  president,  and  Seth  Catlin,  secre- 
tary. There  are  few  older  members  of  the  Board 
than    Mr.    Bemis,   and    very    few    who   have    had 


698 


BIOUKArHICAl.  DICTIOXARV  A.\D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


larger  legitimate  tlcalings  on  the  lM)ard  of  Trade. 
He  was  at  one  time  a  prominent  turfman  and  lias 
owned  numerous  \aluable  horses.  His  interest 
in  turf  matters  caused  bim  to  loan  money  largely 
to  the  old  Chicago  Jockey  and  Trotting  Club, 
and  when  it  became  involved  he  bought  out  all 
other  interests  and  in  i<S73  the  Chicago  Driving 
Park  Association  was  organized.  In  1884  he 
purchased  the  newsjjaper  called  the  Chicago 
Horseman.  This  company  has  a  paid  up  capital 
of  §50,000.  Mr.  Bemis  was  editor  of  this  paper 
until  1887;  he  then  .sold  a  controlling  interest  to 
I).  J.  Campau.  of  Detroit,  Michigan. 

.Mr.  Bemis  was  married  October  27,  1869,  to 
Miss  R.  A.  Armstrong,  of  Lynchburg,  Virginia. 
She  is  a  social,  agreeable  lady,  intelligent  and  re- 
fined, and  has  a  host  of  warm  and  admiring 
friends. 

Mr.  Bemis  is  a  member  of  the  Iroquois  Club, 
Press  Club,  and  the  Artists'  Club  of  Chicago  ;  in 
politics  he  is  a  Democrat,  and  while  taking  a  laud- 
able interest  in  both  local  and  national  politics, 
he  is  not  a  politician,  and  will  accept   no  ofifice. 

In  religion  he  is  liberal,  a  Protestant,  but  not 
identified  with  any  denomination. 

In  connection  with  this  sketch  it  may  not  be 
out  of  place  to  briefly  describe  the  famous  Hotel 
Richelieu,  now  owned  and  managed  by  Mr. 
Hemis,  and  magnificent  in  all  its  proportions.  It 
is  located  on  Michigan  boulevard  and  the  Lake 
Front  and  was  opened  in    1SS5.     The   front   is    of 


handsome  ]5resseti  brick.  0\-er  the  front  eiitnmce 
is  a  statue  of  the  famous  Armand  Jean  Du 
Plessis  Cardinal  De  Richelieu.  The  statue  is  of 
white  marble,  six  feet  and  six  inches  high,  from 
the  chisel  of  Le  Jeune,  the  French  sculptor,  and  is 
an  exceedingly  fine  piece  of  work.  The  interior  of 
the  hotel  is  magnificent  in  all  its  appointments. 

The  Richelieu  is  celebrated  all  over  this  coun- 
try and  Europe  for  its  fine  paintings  and  its  china 
and  glass  ware,  in  the  collection  of  which  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Bemis  spent  years  of  travel. 

The  wine  cellar  of  Hotel  Richelieu  is  the  most 
noted  in  this  country  or  Europe.  It  contains 
finer  wines  and  a  larger  assortment  than  an)-  other 
establishment. 

Mr.  Bemis  has  been  conspicuous  in  a  number  of 
enterprises  of  great  magnitude :  but  no  enter- 
prise he  has  undertaken  has  shown  his  great 
energy  and  ability  so  much  as  the  construction 
and  operation  of  this  palace  hotel.  Over  six 
hundred  thousand  dollars  has  been  expended  in 
this  magnificent  hotel.  .A.s  an  European  hotel  it 
surpasses  any  other  in  this  country,  and  is  known 
as  the  Delmonico  of  Chicago. 

Mr.  Bemis  is  a  polite  and  suave  gentleman, 
ever  industrious  in  making  his  house  a  comfort- 
able home  for  his  gue.sts,  and  that  they  receive 
proper  care  and  attention  is  his  utmost  aim.  He 
is  very  popular  with  the  traveling  public  ;  and  is 
a  large-hearted,  whole-souled  gentlemen,  always 
to  be  appreciated. 


JOHN    W.    STREETER,   M.D. 


CHICAGO,    ILL 


TOIIN  \V.  STREETI'.R  was  born  at  Austin- 
)  burg,  A.shtabula  count)-.  Ohio,  September  17, 
1S41.  II is  father  was  the  Rev.  SerenoW.  Streeter, 
a  clergyman  of  the  Congregational  Church,  de- 
scended from  an  old  Massachusetts  family,  and 
well  known  in  his  day  as  a  powerful  advocate  of 
the  cause  of  freedon-i,  and  prominently  connected 
with  all  anti-slavery  movements.  His  mother's 
maiden  name  was  Mary  Williams.  She  was  a 
descendant  of  the  renowned  Roger  Williams,  the 
founder  of  the  colony  of  Rhode  Island,  himself  a 
descendant  of  one  of  the  oldest  families  of  W'ales, 
a  man  of  broad  and  enlightenetl  views. 


Hoth  father  and  mother  were  graduates  of 
Oberlin  College,  (^hio.  The  father  was  al.so  a 
student  at  Lane  Theological  Seminary  at  Cincin- 
nati, Ohio,  and  about  1847  removed  from  Ohio  to 
the  western  part  of  New  York  State,  and  became 
the  pastor  of  a  church  at  Henrietta,  five  miles 
from  Rochester,  where  our  subject  commenced 
his  education,  in  the  neigboring  academies.  Some 
ten  )-ears  later  his  father  removed  to  Westerville. 
Ohio,  having  been  offered  a  professor's  chair  in 
Otterbien  University.  He  was  actuated  in  this 
more  particularl)-  by  his  desire  to  give  his  sons 
better  educational    advantages,  his   desire    being 


HIOCIiArmCAI.  niCTIOSMiV  A.\J>  rORTRAir  cai.i.ekv. 


701 


\ 


that    (uir    subject    should    follow    llu-   practice  of 
nu-dicinc. 

l-'roni  1S5.S  to  1862,  John  1,iu,l;1u  school  dnriiiL; 
the  winter  months  and  worked  on  a  farm  in 
Northern  Indiana  in  summer,  thereby  acquirini;  a 
robust  and  healthier  constitution  and  gainini;  a 
practical  knowled<;e  of  ai^riculturc. 

In  1S62  he  visited  his  father,  wlm  \\a-~  then  in 
charge  of  a  large  anil  thri\-inL;'  clnirch  at  L'mon 
City,  Michigan,  ami  in  Jul\-  of  that  \ear,  he  en- 
listed in  the  First  Regiment  of  Michigan,  Light 
Artiller}'.  and  afterwards  known  as  the"  Loomis" 
Battery,  the  first  battery  organized  in  the  State 
of  Michigan  for  services  in  the  War  of  the  Re- 
bellion. This  battery  took  an  active  part  in  the 
\arious  campaigns  throughout  Kentucky,  Tennes- 
see, Alabama,  Georgia,  etc..  and  was  prominent  in 
the  engagements  at  Nashville  and  Franklin,  Ten- 
nessee. Enlisting  as  he  did  as  a  private,  he  early  re- 
ceived promotion.  After  the  battle  of  Chicka- 
mauga,  in  which  he  was  Conspicuous  for  his  fear- 
lessness and  braver)-,  he  was  offered  an  appoint- 
ment on  the  staff  of  Gen.  Corlin,  but  declined. 
lie  was  mustered  out  of  service  with  his  company 
in  August,  1865,  having  been  ])romotedto  the  hon- 
orable position  of  first  lieutenant  for  gallant 
and  meritorious  services,  ha\ing  passed  through 
all  the  numerous  perils  of  the  war,  without  an  ac- 
cident or  injur\-  of  an\-  note. 

At  the  conclusion  of  the  war  he  comnienctd 
the  serious  study  of  his  intended  profession  under 
Dr.  Morse,  of  Union  City,  Michigan,  attending 
the  first  course  of  lectures  at  ^Ann  Arbor  Univer- 
sity, where  he  had  previously  matriculated.  Ik- 
afterwards  studied  under  Dr.  D.  C.  Powers,  of 
Coldwater.  Michigan,  an  old  anil  valued  fiicnd. 
who  had  been  the  surgeon  of  his  battery  during 
the  war,  and  still  later  pursued  a  course  of  reading 
under  Dr.  Goodwin,  an  eminent  ex-naval  surgeon 
of  Toledo.  Ohio. 

Dr.  Streeter  was  graduated  in  i.S6,S  from 
Hahnemann  Medical  College.  Chicago,  and  for 
some  time  he  was  in  charge  of  its  dispensary  and 
devoteil  almost  two  j-ears  to  charity  practice. 
One  of  ithe  founders  of  the  Chicago  Homceo- 
pathic  -Medical  College  (in  i877(.  Dr.  Streeter  was  at 
one  time  Professor  of  the  Diseases  of  Women 
and  Children,  two  years  later  he  was  electeil  Pro- 
fessor of  .Medical  and  Surgical  Diseases  of  Wo- 
men, while  at  present.  1892,  he  occupies  the  Chair 


of  (jynecology  in  the  same  institution,  .md,  as 
such,  he  is  recogni/.ed  as  one  of  the  most  able  and 
]Mominent  gynecologists  in  the  United  States. 

I'nr  a  long  time  he  has  been  connected  with 
Cook  County  Hospital,  as  atteiuling  gynecologist, 
lie  is  also  gynecologist  to  the  Chicago  Homceo- 
pathic  Hospital  and  Central  1  lonneopathic  Free 
Dispensary.  Dr.  .Stricter  was  surgeon  of  the 
l'"irst  Brigade  for  more  than  nine  vears.  He  was 
•It  om;  time  surgeon  of  the  h'irst  Regiment  also. 
.\  member  of  the  .\nierican  Institute  of  Homce- 
opathy  and  of  the  Illinois  State  Homceopathic 
Medical  Society.  Dr.  .Streeter  has  many  engage- 
ments t<i  fulfill.  He  has  a  large  and  lucrative 
practice  amongst  Chicago's  best  and  most  wealthy 
citi/i-ns.  III-  has  one  of  the  largest  private  hos- 
pitals in  the  Western  States,  his  s]jecialty  being 
abdominal  and  pelvic  surgery. 

Taking  a  great  interest  in  the  Iniildiiig  up  anil 
su.staining  of  the  Nation, il  Guard,  he  is  also  very 
])rominentl\-  identified  with  the  X'eteran  Order  of 
the  Royal  Legion  of  Illinois,  which  is  one  of  the 
oldest  commanileries.  He  is  .1  member  of  the 
Calumet,  Washington  Park  and  the  Kennel  clubs 
and  the  new  Athletic  As.sociation.  Dr.  Streeter 
is  fond  of  athletic  sports  of  all  kinds  and  nothing 
delights  him  more  than  to  take  ])art  in  an  excit- 
ing hunt. 

In  politics  he  is  a  Republican  ;  his  opinions  have 
seldom  changed,  for  he  was  a  Republican  in  sym- 
pathy long  before  the  war.  hut  politics  do  not  give 
him  much  concern,  and  he  seldom  takes  any  active 
part  in  party  affairs,  his  time  being  fully  occujiied 
w  it!)  ids  professional  duties. 

In  religious  belief  he  is  a  I'resbj'terian. 

He  was  married  Septendjer  3,  1869,  to  Miss 
.Mary  Clarke,  of  I'nion  City.  Michigan,  a  daugh- 
ter of  Israel  W.  Clarke,  who  was  the  first  to  oper- 
ate a  jobbing  trade  in  dry  goods  in  New  York. 
.Mr.  Clarke  is  now  close  upon  ninety  years  of  age, 
and  has  long  since  retired  from  business,  being 
very  wealthvjand  noted  for  his  philanthro])}"  and 
deep  piety.  His  daughter  tMrs,  Streeter)  is  a 
ladv  of  considerable  literary  taste,  of  more  than 
the  average  ability  as  an  artist,  and  of  many  social 
attainments.  She  is  well  known  in  societj-  circles. 
The  issue  of  this  marriage  is  one  son  ,inil  two 
daughters. 

Dr.  -Streeter  has  three  brothers  and  three  sisters. 
The  eldest  brother,  Mr.  S.   M.  Streeter  resides  at 


702 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


South  Chicago,  WiUiam  H.  is  a  real  estate  dealer 
in  New  York,  Albert  T.  is  a  prominent  lawyer  in 
Lake  Superior  region.  One  of  his  sisters  is  a 
resident  of  Maine,  another  of  California  and  an- 
other of  Michigan. 


Dr.  Streeter  is  a  gentleman  of  finished  educa- 
tion, polished  and  suave  in  manner  and  emi- 
nent in  his  profession.  He  has  an  indomitable 
will  and  rarely  fails  in  carrying  out  whatever  he 
attempts. 


POTTER    PALMER, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


THE  life  histon,-  of  him  whose  name  heads 
this  sketch  is  closely  identified  with  the 
history  of  Chicago,  which  has  been  his  home 
nearly  forty  years.  He  began  his  remarkable 
career  there,  when  what  is  now  the  second  city  in 
the  United  States  was  but  a  village,  and  has 
grown  with  its  growth  until  his  name  and  reputa- 
tion are  as  far  reaching  as  are  those  of  his  city. 
His  life  has  been  one  of  untiring,  activity  and  has 
been  crowned  with  a  degree  of  success  attained 
by  the  comparatively  few.  He  is  of  the  highest 
type  of  a  business  man,  and  none  more  than  he 
deserves  a  fitting  recognition  among  the  men 
whose  hardy  genius  and  splendid  abilities  have 
achieved  results  that  are  the  wonder  and  admira- 
tion of  the  world. 

His  ancestry  is  of  English  origin,  and  his  family 
was  first  represented  in  this  country  in  early 
colonial  times.  His  grand-parents,  who,  in  carl\- 
life,  were  residents  of  New  Bedford,  Vermont,  re- 
moved to  New  York  State  about  the  beginning 
of  the  present  century,  and  settled  on  a  farm  in 
Albany  county,  on  the  western  bank  of  the  Hud- 
son. They  were  members  of  the  Sncict\-  of 
Friends,  as  was  also  our  subject's  fatliLT,  wlm  was 
a  farmer  by  occupation  and  a  man  <if  influence  in 
his  community ;  he  was  the  father  of  seven  chil- 
dren, of  whom  our  subject  was  the  fourth.  I'otter 
passed  his  boyhood  on  his  father's  farm,  and  re- 
ceived a  good  English  education.  But  his  nati\e 
instinct  and  abilities  led  him  to  seek  a  business 
life,  and  to  gratify  this  desire  he,  at  the  age  of 
eighteen,  accepted  a  minor  position  in  a  country 
store  and  bank  at  Durham,  in  Greene  county,  New- 
York.  He  showed  great  aptitude  for  the  busi- 
ness and  rapidly  familiarized  himself  with  and 
mastered  all  its  details,  and  at  I  lie  end  of  three 
years  was  placed  in  charge  of  the  establishment. 
Soon   after    attaining   his    majoiity    he  started   in 


business  on  his  own  account  in  Oneida  county, 
and  met  with  gratifying  success.  He  removed 
thence  to  Lockport  in  Niagara  county,  and  there 
repeated  the  experiences  of  his  former  business 
ventures.  His  desire  was  for  a  wider  field  of 
action  ;  and  with  that  foresight  that  has  been  a 
marked  cliaracteristic  of  his  life,  he  selected  Chi- 
cago as  the  place  destined  to  become  the  metrop- 
olis of  the  then  undeveloped  West.  How  full}- 
have  subsequent  events  justified  the  wisdom  of 
his  choice!  His  enterprise  and  thrift  had  been 
rewarded  with  gratifying  returns  ;  and  being  in 
the  full  vigor  of  young  manhood,  ambitious  to 
develop  his  latent  powers  and  make  for  himself 
a  name,  he  hailed  with  delight  the  day  that 
brought  him  to  the  place  that  was  to  be  the 
scene  of  his  splendid  achievements. 

At  that  time  Lake  street  was  Chicago's  prin- 
cipal business  thoroughfare.  And  there,  upon  his 
arrival,  Mr.  Palmer  opened  a  large  retail  dry- 
goods  store,  investing  his  entire  capital.  Follow- 
ing the  policy  that  has  marked  all  his  transactions, 
of  making  the  most  and  best  of  his  means  and 
opjjortunities,  he  workeil  with  a  will,  and  it  was 
not  long  before  his  store  was  a  center  of  attrac- 
tion, and  the  leading  retail  establishment  in  Chi- 
cago. Enlarging  his  facilities  to  meet  the  de- 
mands of  his  increasing  trade,  he  finally  added  to 
his  business  a  wholesale  department,  which  rapidh- 
grew  to  great  magnitude  under  his  skillful  manage- 
ment. The  last  years  of  his  mercantile  career 
were  during  the  civil  war,  when  public  confidence 
wavered,  and  when  strong  men  were  losing  heart 
and  predicting  ill.  Not  so  with  I'ottcr  Talmerl 
With  a  firm  faith  in  the  ultimate  tiiumph  of  the 
Union  cause,  he  came  to  its  aiil  with  devoted 
loyalty.  While  others  hesitated  he  was  acti\e  : 
when  men  less  loyal  withdrew  or  withheUl  their 
capital  from  trade,  he  showed    the  courage  of  his 


PIOGRArHlCAl.   DICTIOXAI^V  AXD  rORTRAII    i.AJ.J.KRV. 


703 


( 


convictions  by  investing  in  immense  stocks  of 
goods.  While  his  course  thus  pursued  stimulated 
trade  and  inspired  commercial  confidence,  it.  at 
tile  same  time,  increased  his  pecuniary  profits. 

During  the  thirteen  _\-ears  of  his  acti\o  ]iartici- 
jiation  in  his  business,  before  resigning  it  tn  his 
jjartners  and  successors,  the  volume  of  its  tradr 
increased  from  seventy  thousand  to  se\cn  million 
dollars  per  annum  :  and  it  had  no  rival  in  the 
Lnitod  States  outside  of  New  York  city.  Mr. 
Palmer  retired  from  mercantile  life  in  1865,  being 
then  forty  years  of  age,  with  a  large  fortune,  the 
result  of  his  foresight,  ability,  and  business  tact 
and  skill. 

A  new  field  was  now  open  to  him.  Chicago, 
although  justly  noted  for  her  commercial  activity 
and  standing,  had  given  little  attention  to  exter- 
nal appearances  :  the  principal  streets  were  narrow 
and  lined  with  structures  built  without  regard  to 
architectual  effects.  I'eople  had  been  too  much 
occupied  to  give  attention  to  anything  more  than 
the  wants  of  trade,  and  Chicago  was  in  appear- 
ance but  an  overgrown  country  town.  Quick  to 
see  this  lack,  and  in  it  an  opportunity  to  benefit 
the  city  and  at  the  same  time  make  a  profitable 
investment  of  his  capital,  he  moved  with  bold- 
ness and  _\-et  cautiously,  carefully  selecting  his 
properties,  and  in  a  period  of  six  months  pur- 
chased about  three-quarters  of  a  mile  of  frontage 
on  State  street,  at  that  time  the  principal  retail 
thoroughfare  in  the  city.  With  the  exception  of 
t\\  o  blocks  it  was  narrow  and  unadorned  with  any 
other  than  the  commonest  buildings.  Mr.  Talmer. 
to  carry  out  his  plan  of  widening  and  improving 
the  street,  bought  and  moved  back  fnmi  tlic 
street  line  old  buildings  to  a  new  line  whose 
establishment  he  secured,  and  on  vacant  lots 
erected  new  buildings  on  the  new  line.  The  task 
was  a  difficult  one,  for  many  persons  w  ere  obsti- 
nate and  submitted  to  the  new  order  of  things 
only  when  compelled  to  by  legal  measures.  But 
in  four  years  his  purpose  was  accomplished,  and 
those  who  beheld  the  transformation  that  had 
been  wrought  between  Madison  street  and  Twelfth 
street  on  the  south,  a  distance  of  a  mile,  changed 
from  a  narrow,  irregular,  dirty  street  to  a  spacious 
avenue,  have  only  words  of  praise  for  the  man 
through  whose  efforts  it  had  been  accomplished. 
Among  the  dozen  or  more  buildings  which  .Mr. 
I'almer    erected     here     were    the     first     "  Palnicr 


House,"  and  a  marble  front  building  for  mercan- 
tile purposes  built  at  a  cost  of  one  hundred  thou- 
sand dollars.  At  the  time  of  the  great  fire  of 
October  8  and  9,  1871,  Mr.  Palmer  was  one  of  the 
largest  property  owners  in  Chicago,  and  sufTered 
greater  loss  than  any  other  single  person.  No 
less  than  thirty-five  buildings,  which  yielded  him 
an  annual  rental  of  two  hundred  thousand  dollars 
were  swept  away.  This  calamity,  which  had 
wiped  out  in  a  single  night  the  accumulations  of 
his  years  of  toil,  and  left  him  with  an  income 
from  his  vast  property  interests  too  small  b_\- 
many  thousand  dollars  to  pay  his  annual  taxes, 
would  have  cast  down  and  utterly  disheartened  a 
man  ot  less  heroic  courage  ;  as  it  was,  only  his 
iron  will,  and  his  faith  in  the  possibilities  of  the 
cit\-  where  he  had  accumulated  his  fortune,  and 
his  consciousness  of  his  own  powers,  coupled 
w  ith  the  buoyant  hope  and  cheering  words  of  his 
young  and  devoted  wife,  nerxed  him  to  manfullj- 
meet  this  ordeal.  Recovering  from  the  shock 
caused  by  the  realization  of  his  misfortune,  re- 
assured b}'  the  heroic  cheerfulness  and  encourage- 
ment of  his  wife,  he  resolved  that  he  would  re- 
trieve his  losses.  For  liini  to  think  was  to  act: 
and  no  sooner  had  he  made  this  resolve  than  he 
sought  to  inspire  others  with  the  same  purpose — 
of  turning  this  seeming  calamity  into  (what  subse- 
quent events  provetl  it  to  have  been)  a  blessing 
in  disguise. 

An  army  of  men  were  put  to  work  to  clear 
away  the  smouldering  di'bris  of  his  ruineil  build- 
ings. \ears  of  honorable  dealing  had  given  him 
unlimited  credit,  which  now  came  to  his  rescue, 
enabling  him  to  procure,  on  his  own  terms,  ample 
building  material  ;  and  as  by  magic,  upon  the 
sites  of  the  old.  new  structures  arose,  surpass- 
ing in  grandeur  and  beauty  and  utility  anything 
that  Chicago  had  ever  before  witnessed.  The 
s])irit  shown  by  Mr.  Palmer  was  emulated  by 
others  ;  new  cajiital  sought  investment ;  new  in- 
dustries were  started  ;  fresh  enterprises  sprung 
up,  and  before  many  months  had  passed  a  new 
city  arose  from  the  ashes  of  the  old.  inspired 
with  life  and  bustling  with  activity  before  un- 
known. It  is  but  .1  deserved  tribute,  to  say  that 
in  the  rebuilding  of  Chicago,  no  man  did  more 
than  Potter  Palmer.  Vieweil  in  the  light  of  sub- 
sequent events,  and  from  this  time  more  has 
been  accomplished    in    the   twentv-one  vears  that 


704 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


have  elapsed  since  that  fateful  9th  of  October, 
1 87 1,  to  make  Chicago  the  pride  of  this  land — the 
wonder  of  the  world — than  a  century  of  uncon- 
certed  effort  could  have  done. 

To  recount  all  of  Mr.  Palmer's  achievements 
were  impossible  in  a  sketch  of  this  character. 
The  palatial  hotel  that  bears  his  name  has  always 
been  to  him  an  object  of  special  pride,  and  noth- 
ing has  been  spared  to  make  it  worthy  of  the 
world-wide  reputation  which  it  has.  When  the 
"Lake  Shore  Drive"  was  laid  out  in  1873,  he 
quicklj^  divined  its  future,  as  the  leading  fashion- 
able avenue  of  the  city,  and  true  to  his  instincts 
invested  largely  in  property  bordering  upon  it, 
and  erected  thereon  costly  residences  in  varied 
styles  of  architecture.  Here,  too,  at  the  southern 
extremity  of  Lincoln  Park,  and  overlooking  Lake 
Michigan,  he  built  his  own  home,  wherein  is  em- 
bodied the  splendid  triumphs  of  modern  architec- 
tural skill;  and  with  its  broad  lawns  and  well-kept 
gardens,  and  luxurious  furnishings,  it  presents  a 
model  of  completeness. 

Colossal  fortunes  impose  vast  obligations,  and 
no  man  is  more  heartily  alive  to  this  than  Mr. 
Palmer.  His  means  ha\'e  been  used  not  alone  in 
public  enterprises,  which,  while  benefitting  his 
city,  would,  at  the  same  time  increase  his  mil- 
lions, but  also  have  been  given  with  a  generous 
hand  to  charitable  and  benevolent  objects  of 
every  name.  And  in  matters  of  public  concern 
calling   for   help    he    is    nne   "f  tlic   foremost   and 


most  liberal  givers.  He  was  active  in  securing 
the  location  of  the  World's  Columbian  Exposi- 
tion at  Chicago,  and  since  its  inception  has  been 
untiring  in  his  zeal,  and  unsparing  of  his  money 
and  time  in  furthering  its  interests  and  enabling 
it  to  be  in  fact  what  it  is  in  name.  In  all  its 
plans  and  deliberations  he  has  been  an  earnest 
adviser  and  coadjutor,  and  fills  an  important  place 
in  its  local  directorate. 

In  July,  1870,  Mr.  Palmer  married  Miss  Bertha 
Honore,  daughter  of  Mr.  Henry  H.  Honor^,  of 
Chicago.  Mrs.  Palmer  is  a  woman  of  superior 
intelligence,  and  with  her  \ersatile  talents  and 
generous  culture,  and  true  womanly  virtues,  grace- 
fully adorns  the  high  station  in  life  she  has  been 
called  to  fill.  Not  only  does  she  enter  heartily 
into  the  most  ambitious  projects  of  her  husband, 
aiding  with  her  counsels,  but  she  also  has  her 
own  field  of  action.  She  takes  an  active  part 
in  charitable  enterprises,  and  with  her  ample 
means  makes  ample  use  of  her  opportunities  for 
doing  good.  Her  labors  in  behalf  of  the  World's 
Columbian  Exposition  ha\e  been  great,  and  no 
one  has  done  as  much  as  she  to  interest  in  its 
behalf  the  women  of  our  own  and  of  foreign 
lands.  Her  selection  as  president  of  its  Board 
of  Lady  Managers  in  1890  was  a  fitting  recog- 
nition of  her  unselfish  devotion  to  what  is  to 
her  a  purely  patriotic  service. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Palmer  have  two  son^^.  Honore 
.'inil  i 'otter. 


FRANK    B.   TOBEY, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


FRANK.  HASSETl'  TOHEY,  president  ul 
the  Tobey  Furniture  Company,  was  born 
at  Dennis,  Cape  Cod,  Massachusetts,  September 
'5)  1833.  It  is  remarkable  how  many  of  Chicago's 
prominent  business  men  came  from  Cape  Cod.  • 
Besides  the  Tobey  Brothers,  Charles  and  Frank, 
who  built  up  the  immense  business  of  the  Tobey 
F'urniture  Company,  the  Nickersons,  the  Swifts, 
the  Underwoods,  the  Ryders,  the  Lombards,  the 
Crosbys,  the  Matthews,  .-.nil  a  host  of  otliers, 
claim  this  sandy  peninsula  as  their  l)irth- 
place.  The  father  of  Frank  Tobey  owned  and 
occupied    the    farm     that     liad    l)een    in    the   pos- 


session of  the  Tobey  family  for  more  than  two 
hundred  years.  Tradition  sa_\sthat  this  l.uul  ^\as 
deeded  to  Captain  Thomas  Tobey,  about  the  year 
1675,  for  services  rendered  in  organizing  a  com- 
pany and  assisting  Pi\-mouth  Colon\-  in  King 
Phillip's  \\ar. 

F'rank's  mother  was  Rachel  Bassett,  who.se  ances- 
tors came  to  America  in  the  next  ship  following 
the  Mayflower. 

Frank  worked  on  the  farm  summers  and  at- 
tended .school  winters  until  he  was  eighteen.  For 
the  next  five  years  he  licid  a  position  as  clerk  of 
the  \illage  store  and   post-office.      The  proprietor. 


«? 


f. 


BIOGRAI'inCAL  DICTIOXARY  A.\D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


707 


i  lowes  Chapman,  was  a  man  of  superior  iiilclli- 
gence,  ami  was  singularly  upright  in  character 
and  motives.  He  had  great  influence  in  molding 
the  character  of  his  young  assistant,  to  whom  he 
gave  up  largely  the  management  of  the  business. 

At  an  early  age  Frank  took  great  interest  in 
philosopViical  and  political  subjects,  always  reason- 
ing from  the  humanitarian  stand-point.  When 
only  twelve  years  old,  he  took  issue  with  his 
father  on  the  question  of  the  Mexican  war,  claim- 
ing that  its  object  was  the  extension  of  slave  ter- 
ritory and  therefore  unjust.  He  soon  became 
identified  with  the  anti-slavery  movement.  He 
wrote  the  call  and  served  as  secretary  for  the  first 
Republican  convention  ever  held  in  his  native 
town.  At  that  time  the  Republicans  were  rejjre- 
sented  by  a  small  minority,  but  nine  )-ears  later 
every  vote  in  the  town  was  cast  for  Abraham 
Lincoln.  When  barely  twenty-one  he  was  nomi- 
nated as  delegate  to  the  first  Republican  State 
convention,  but  declined  the  honor  because  he 
could  not  afford  the  expense. 

In  1857  he  came  to  Chicago,  where  a  year  before 
his  brother  Charles  had  started  the  furniture 
business  on  State  street,  south  of  Van  Buren,  in 
a  small  store,  twenty  by  si.xty  feet.  The  first 
year  Frank  worked  on  a  salary.  The  next  year 
the  copartnership  of  Chas.  Tobey  and  Brother 
was  formed  and  their  room  doubled  by  the  addi- 
tion of  the  adjoining  store.  At  this  time  the 
young  men  did  all  their  own  work,  and  by  close 
attention  made  the  business  prosperous.  Their 
conser\'ative  methods  enabled  them  to  weather  the 
panic  of  "37  to '60,  when  so  many  older  concerns 
went  down. 

The  large  increase  of  business  in  1859  required 
larger  accommodations,  which  they  found  at  72 
State  street.  They  afterward  removed  to  Lake 
street,  and  in  1866  to  a  new  building  erectetl 
specially  for  them  at  77-79  State  street,  being 
business  pioneers  on  that  thoroughfare.  In  1870 
the  Tobey  Brothers,  in  connection  with  F.  Porter 
Thayer,  organized  the  Thayer  and  Tobey  Furni- 
ture Company.  The  great  fire  of  1871  destroyed 
their  building  and  stock,  and  in  common  with 
most  Chicago  firms,  they  suffered  severe  loss.  With 
characteristic  energy,  they  improvised  a  salesroom 
at  their  west  side  factory,  which  had  escaped,  and 
before  the  fire  had  ceased  its  ravages,  they  had 
taken  an   order  to   furnish   the  Sherman    House, 


now  the  (iault,  which  order  was  completed  in 
seven  days.  In  1873  they  occupied  the  Clark 
Building,  corner  State  and  Adams  streets.  In  1875 
the  Tobe)-  Brothers  bought  out  Mr.  Thayer's  in- 
terest, and  the  name  of  the  company  was  changed 
to  the  Tobey  l""urniturc  Company,  Charles  be- 
ing president,  and  Frank  vice-president  and  mana- 
ger. In  March,  1888,  the  company  occupied  the 
Drake  Building,  corner  Wabash  avenue  and 
Washington  street.  The  same  year  they  started 
a  factory  for  the  manufacture  of  high-class  furni- 
ture for  their  own  trade.  This  feature  of  the 
business  has  grow  n  be\-ond  anticipation,  the  qual- 
ity of  the  goods  produced  being  equal  to  any- 
thing in  the  world. 

In  September,  1888.  Chas.  Tobey  died,  and 
Frank  became  president.  In  1890,  they  doubled 
the  capacity  of  their  warerooms  by  renting  the 
adjoining  building  known  as  "  My  Block." 

Mr.  Tobey  has  thus  seen  the  firm,  beginning  in 
the  little  store  of  1200  square  feet  in  1857,  grow 
to  the  present  proportions  of  the  Tobey  Furni- 
ture Company,  requiring  for  its  business  more  than 
four  acres  of  Hoor  space,  its  trade  extending  to 
every  state  and  territory  in  the  union,  with  occa- 
sional foreign  shipments.  In  fact,  it  is  without 
doubt,  the  largest  and  most  widely  known  retail 
furniture  house  in  the  country,  if  not  in  the 
world.  In  carrying  on  the  business,  Mr.  Tobey 
is  ably  assisted  by  the  present  active  manager. 
Mr.  H.  M.  W'right.  a  man  of  marked  business 
ability  and  energy. 

The  house  demands  the  strictest  integrity  on 
the  part  of  its  employes,  and  absolute  justice  to 
all  patrons.  In  all  its  history  there  has  been  no 
strike.  One  of  the  teamsters,  Mr.  Chris.  Brown, 
who  hauled  goods  for  the  young  firm  in  1857,  is 
still  in  the  employ  of  the  company.  Mr.  J.  W. 
Wight,  one  of  the  directors  of  the  company,  has 
been  associated  with  the  house  since  I859. 

Outside  his  business  Mr.  Tobey  has  taken  live- 
ly interest  in  and  has  contributed  liberally  to 
])hilanthropic  and  charitable  movements.  In  re- 
ligion he  might  be  called  a  disciple  of  Theodore 
Parker,  believing  in  the  deed,  rather  than  the 
creed.  He  helped  organize  the  Society  for  Ethi- 
cal Culture  in  Chicago,  and  has  generously  devoted 
time  and  money  to  its  support. 

His  politics  may  perhaps  be  best  described  by 
quoting    his    own     remark    that,     "  Statemanship 


7o8 


BIOGRArillCAL  DICTIOXARY  A.XD  rORTRAlT  OALUCRY. 


found  its   hi;4hcst  ideal   in   Charles    Sumner,   w  ho  laborer  and  capitalist  together  and  led  to  a  better 

labored      always    for      righteousness     and    abso-  understanding  between  them.    The  distinguishing 

lute  justice."  ([ualities  in  Mr.  Tobey's  character,  and  with  which 

He  has  been  an   acti\e  promoter  of  the    eco-  his  name  is  always  associated,  seem  to  be  integrity, 

nomic  conferences  in  Chicago,  which  brought  the  charitableness  and  a  high  sense  of  justice. 


EDWARD   TURNER   JEFFERY, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


EDWARD  TURNER  JEFFERY  is  a  na- 
tive of  Liverpool,  England,  and  was  born 
on  April  6,  1843.  His  father.  W.  S.  Jeffery,  was 
a  mechanical  engineer  of  prominence  in  England, 
and  at  the  time  of  Edward's  birth  was  chief  en- 
gineer in  the  British  na\y,  and  had  charge  of  the 
first  steam  propeller  introduced  in  the  British 
service.  His  mother  was  born  in  Downpatrick, 
Ireland,  but  her  maternal  ancestors  were  of 
Scotch  descent.  The  family  was  prominently 
connected  with  the  revolution  of  1798,  and  our 
subject's  great-grandfather,  named  Bailey,  was 
captured  and  barely  escaped  hanging.  When 
Edward  was  very  young  his  father  died,  and  two 
years  later  his  mother  remarried  and  immigrated 
to  the  United  States,  settling  at  Wheeling. 
Virginia.  Here  Edward  attended  private  schools 
and  formed  those  habits  that  have  so  greatly  con- 
tribued  to  his  success  in  life.  When  leaving  his 
school  to  remove  to  Chicago  in  September.  1856. 
his  tutor,  in  bidding  him  good-by,  remarked 
that  he  had  shown  greater  application  and  more 
vigorous  energy  than  any  other  scholar  he  ever 
had ;  he  also  presented  him  with  an  algebra, 
geometry,  arithmetic,  elements  of  chemistry  and 
natural  philosophy.  In  October,  1856,  when  a 
lad  of  thirteen,  he  entered  the  employ  of  the  Illi- 
nois Central  Railroad  Company.  He  entered  the 
office  of  Samuel  J.  Hayes,  superintendent  of  ma- 
chinery, where  he  was  employed  two  months;  he 
was  then  put  to  work  in  the  tin  ami  coppersmith 
shops  as  an  apprentice.  He  ser\ed  there  four 
months,  and  was  then  sent  to  Detroit  as  an  ap- 
l)rentice  in  the  Detroit  Locomoti\-e  Works,  where 
he  remained  about  fifteen  months,  and  obtained 
a  very  good  general  knowledge  of  the  workings 
of  engines.  He  was  then  fifteen  years  old,  and 
returned  to  Chicago.  He  next  went  to  work  in 
a  stave  factor)'  on    Clark   street.       His    employ- 


ment necessitated  his  jjresence  in  the  drying  kiln, 
which  was  heated  to  a  temperature  of  about  one 
hundred  and  forty  degrees  Fahrenheit,  and  not 
being  suited  with  the  place  he,  on  July  5,  1858, 
applied  for  a  position  with  the  Illinois  Central 
Railroad  Company,  and  was  put  to  work  in  the 
shops,  but  was  soon  transferred  to  Mr.  Hayes' 
office,  and  was  given  a  position  as  an  apprentice 
at  mechanical  drawing.  This  seemed  in  e\ery 
way  perfectly  suited  to  him.  and  he  became  en- 
thusiastic in  his  work,  and  then  determined  to  fit 
himself  thoroughly  for  the  profession  of  a 
mechanical  draughtsman  and  engineer.  He  com- 
menced a  series  of  systematic  studies  that  occu- 
pied his  time  for  a  period  of  ten  years,  embrac- 
ing all  the  special  as  well  as  general  studies.  So 
ardent  and  ambitious  was  he  that  up  to  the  time 
he  was  eighteen  years  old.  he  was  given  the  pri\i- 
lege  to  study  or  work,  as  his  inclination 
prompted.  He  thus  combined  the  theoretical 
with  the  practical,  and  by  the  time  he  was  nine- 
teen years  old  he  was  on  the  rolls  of  the  company 
as  one  of  the  regular  mechanical  draughtsmen. 
At  twenty  he  was  placed  in  full  charge  of  the 
mechanical  drawing  department.  He  applied 
himself  to  study  during  the  week,  in  the  evenings 
and  on  .Sundays,  and  when  he  was  twenty-five 
years  oltl  tew  men  of  his  age  had  so  liberal  an 
education.  When  placed  in  charge  of  the  me- 
chanical drawing.  Mr.  Jeffery  was  also  made  pri- 
vate secretary  to  the  superintendent  of  machin- 
er\-.  .At  twenty-eiglu  he  was  made  assistant 
superintendent  of  machinery  b\'  Mr.  John  Newell. 
then  president  of  the  road.  Mr.  Newell 
was  thoroughly  acquainted  with  the  capabilities 
of  Mr.  Jeffery,  and  being  himself  a  self-made  rail- 
road man,  he  was  not  slow  to  open  the  way  to 
energetic  and  deserving  employes.  For  the  fol- 
lowing six  years  Assistant  Superintendent  Jeffery 


t 


Cci  dttu 


BioGRAi'iiicM.  n/cricx.iKV  -i.y/)  /•(>/<: r/ci/r  (,.\u.i:ky. 


711 


was  one  of  the  most  active  men  connected  with 
the  road,  lie  shouldered  the  burden  of  respon- 
sibilities and  discharged  the  duties  with  the  hisj;h- 
est  credit  to  himself.  His  long  experience  in 
mechanical  drawing,  combined  with  his  constant 
practical  work  in  the  shops,  enabled  him  to  gain 
such  a  knowledge  of  the  details  of  railroad  man- 
agement that  there  was  little,  if  anything,  about 
railroading  that  he  did  not  learn.  Mr.  Jeffery  is 
one  of  the  best  posted  men  in  r.iilway  nieclianies 
in  the  world.  On  May  4.  1877.  he  was  promoted 
to  the  office  of  general  superintendent  of  the  Illi- 
nois Central  Railroad  system,  in  which  capacity 
he  served  until  December  15,  1885,  when  he  was 
appointed  general  manager  of  the  entire  lim-,  a 
rare  promotion  for  one  of  his  age. 

In  1885  tlie  International  Congress  was  held, 
and  Mr.  Jeffery,  as  the  representative  of  the  Illi- 
nois Central  Railroad  Company,  was  the  .sole 
American  representative  there. 

In  1889  he  resigned  his  position  as  general 
manager  of  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad,  and  was 
immediately  tendered  numerous  positions  of 
prominence  with  leading  railroad  corporations. 
Declining  them  he  yielded  to  the  solicitations  of 
the  executive  committee  of  the  preliminary  or- 
ganization of  the  World's  Columbian  E.xposition 
to  make  a  trip  to  Paris  to  examine  into  the  details 
of  the  Paris  Exposition.  He  spread  the  news  of 
the  projected  exposition  in  the  United  States 
broadcast,  and  the  articles  published  in  the  Paris- 
ian papers  at  his  suggestion  were  translated  and 
published  throughout  Europe  and  Great  Britain. 
He  returned  to  the  United  States  in  the  latter  part 
of  December,  1889,  and,  at  the  solicitation  of  the 
citizens  of  Chicago,  went  to  Washington  anil 
made  an  argument  before  the  special  committee 
of  the  United  States  Senate  in  behalf  of  the  ad- 
vantages of  Chicago  as  the  city  in  which  the 
World's  Columbian  Exposition  should  be  held. 
The  array  of  facts  and  figures  presented  by  hiin 
in  his  argument  showed  him  master  of  the  situa- 
tion, and  his  effort  went  far  toward  securing  for 
his  city  the  location  of  what  promises  to  be  the 
world's  greatest  exposition. 

Mr.  Jefferv'  has  always  been  known  as  an  able 
jniblic  speaker,  and  during  his  connection  with 
the  Illinois  Central  Railroad  he  made  many  argu- 
ments before  State  Legislatures  and  other  execu- 
tive bodies.     In  1888,  upon  the  invitation  of  the 


Common  Council  of  New  Orleans,  he  delivered 
an  address  upon  "  The  best  method  of  increas- 
ing the  commerce  of  New  Orleans."  The  council 
tendered  him  a  vote  of  thanks,  and  ordered  ten 
thousand  copies  of  his  address  printed  and  scat- 
tered broadcast  throughout  the  land. 

Upon  the  permanent  organization  of  the 
World's  Columbian  Exposition  he  was  made  a 
director,  and  became  vice-chairman  of  the  Build- 
ings and  Grounds  Committee,  ex-Mayor  Cregicr 
being  chairman.  At  the  last  election  he  was  re- 
elected to  the  board,  and  was  made  chairman  of 
this  (the  most  important) committee.  He  is  also 
a  member  of  the  Board  of  Reference  and  Control. 
He  is  one  of  the  most  earnest  and  zealous  work- 
ers in  the  directorate,  and  has  been  influential  in 
its  councils  in  shaping  the  course  of  the  gigantic 
enterprise.  Mr.  Jeffery  was  the  controlling  spirit 
and  president  of  the  Grant  Locomotive  Works, 
and  a  tru.stee  of  the  Grant  Land  Company.  But 
in  1 891  he  resigned  from  the  first-named  of  these 
offices,  and  expects  to  be  relieved  of  his  duties  in 
connection  with  the  other. 

In  October,  1891,  he  was  elected  president  of 
the  Denver  &  Rio  Grande  Railroad  Company, 
with  headquarters  at  Denver,  and  entered  at 
once  upon  his  duties,  to  the  great  regret  of  his 
hosts  of  friends,  who  dislike  to  have  him  leave 
Chicago. 

In  April,  1877,  Mr.  Jeffery  married  Miss  Vir- 
ginia Osborne  Clark,  daughter  of  the  Hon.  James 
C.  Clark.  They  have  two  bright,  happy  children, 
viz.:  James  Clark,  an  apt  scholar,  twelve  years 
old,   and   Edna  Turner,   still  younger. 

In  social  circles  Mr.  Jeffery  is  much  esteemed  ; 
he  is  vice-president  of  the  Calumet  club,  and  an 
active  member  of  the  Chicago  and  Iroquois  clubs. 
Politically  he  is  a  Democrat,  and  believes  that  the 
two  great  questions  of  the  day,  outside  of  popular 
education  and  purity  of  the  ballot-box,  are  first, 
the  remonetization  of  silver  under  an  interna- 
tional agreement,  if  it  can  be  brought  about;  and 
secondly,  a  revision  of  the  tariff,  in  conformity  with 
the  views  expressed  by  ex-President  Cleveland. 
Mr.  Jeffrey  has  been  urged  to  accept  nominations 
for  several  political  positions,  among  them  being 
a  tender  of  the  nomination  for  the  State  Senate. 
However,  he  has  never  desired  political  prefer- 
ment, and  has  always  declined.  He  was  promi- 
nently mentioned    as   an   available   candidate  for 


712 


lUOGRArillCAL  DICriO.XAKY  AM)  PORTRAIT  GALLERY 

but  refused    to    l'o   before     th 


the    mayoralty 
people. 

]\Ir.   Jcffrex-'s   eareer  has   been   one    of   unusual 
success,   whieh   may   be  attributed  to  his   intense 


energy,  constant  application,  extensive  reading, 
honesty  of  purpose,  candor  of  expression,  integrity 
in  all  business  relations,  proper  regard  for  the  rights 
of  olliers,  combined  with  great  native  abilitv. 


HON.    EDWARD    S.    LACEY, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


EDWARD  S.  LACEY,  President  of  the 
Bankers'  National  Bank  of  Chicago,  is  a 
native  of  Chili,  Monroe  county.  New  York;  was 
born  on  November  26,  1835,  to  Edward  D.  and 
]\Iartha  C.  Lace}\  When  he  was  se\en  years  old 
his  parents  moved  to  Michigan,  and  in  the  spring 
of  1843,  settled  in  Eaton  county,  where  he  had 
his  home  until   May  i,  1889. 

H.is  father  was  a  man  of  considerable  promi- 
nence and  filled  numerous  ofifices  of  trust.  His 
grandfather,  Samuel  Lacey,  was  an  orderly  ser- 
geant under  La  Fayette,  and  major  of  a  Vermont 
regiment  of  infantry  in  the  war  of  18 12. 

Edward  S.  received  his  education  in  the  public 
schools  and  at  Olivet  College,  and  at  the  age  of 
eighteen  became  a  salesman  in  a  general  store  at 
Kalamazoo,  Michigan,  where  lie  remained  until 
lie  was  twenty-one.  Li  1857  he  returned  to 
Charlotte,  Michigan,  and  in  i860  was  elected 
rc'ister  of  deeds,  which  office  he  held  for  four 
\-ears.  In  1862,  he,  in  ])artncrship  with  Hon. 
Joseph  Musgrave,  formerly  of  Ashland,  Ohio, 
established  a  private  bank,  which  was  succeeded 
in  1 87 1  by  the  First  National  Bank  of  Charlotte, 
of  which  he  was  a  director  and  cashier,  ant!  of 
which  he  subsequently,  upon  the  death  of  Mr. 
Musgrave,  became  president. 

During  his  entire  connection  with  this  b.mk,  lu: 
was  its  acti\e  manager,  l-'rom  the  commence- 
ment of  his  business  career,  .M  r.  Lacey  has  been 
an  exceedingly  busy  man  and  has  been  closely 
identified  with  many  important  niatters.  He  was 
a  director  in  the  Grand  River  X'alley  Railroad 
Company  from  its  organization,  and  for  many 
years  was  its  treasurer.  In  1874  he  was  appointed 
by  Governor  Bagley  a  trustee  of  the  Michigan 
Asylum  for  the  In.sane  and  luld  lh.it  office  six 
years,  when  he  resigned.  In  1876  he  was  a  dele- 
gate to  the  Republican  National  Convention  at 
Cincinnati,  Ohio,  and  from  1882  to  1884  served  as 


chairman  of  the  Republican  State  Committee  of 
Michigan.  As  the  first  mayor  of  the  city  of 
Charlotte,  he  contributed  largely  to  its  system  of 
public  improvements. 

In  1880  Mr.  Lacey  was  elected  to  Congress 
from  the  Third  District  of  Michigan,  and  re- 
elected in  1882:  he  received  the  nom'mation  each 
time  by  acclamation,  ami  in  each  instance  ran 
far  ahead  of  his  ticket  at  the  election.  His  desire 
to  return  to  private  life  led  him  to  decline  a  third 
term  in  Congress,  but  in  1886  he  yielded  to  the 
solicitations  of  friends  and  became  a  candidate 
for  the  United  States  Senate,  but,  while  showing 
strength  and  popularity,  w.is  unsuccessful.  In 
Congress  he  took  a  prominent  part.  He  was  on 
the  Committee  on  Post  Offices  and  Post  Roads, 
and  also  on  that  of  Coinage,  Weights  and  Meas- 
ures, but  gave  his  attention  chiefly  to  questions 
of  finance  and  came  into  prominence  among 
students  of  monetary  matters  through  a  very 
able  speech  which  he  made  on  the  silver  question 
in  the  Forty-eighth  Congress.  Among  his  numer- 
ous addresses  on  financial  questions,  that  on  the 
use  of  silver  as  money,  before  the  American 
Bankers'  Association  at  Chicago  in  1885,  brought 
him  into  special  jirominence  among  the  bankers 
cif  the  country. 

Recognizing  the  peculiar  fitness  toi-  the  i)osi- 
tion  on  account  of  his  man\-  years  of  banking 
experience  antl  faniiliarit\'  with  public  affairs, 
Mr.  Lacey's  friemls,  comprising  prominent  citi- 
zens and  financiers  of  his  own  State,  of  New 
N'ork  and  Chicago,  urged  his  appointment  as 
Comptroller  of  the  Currency  and,  upon  their  sug- 
gestion, the  office  was  tentlered  to  him  and  he 
entereil  vqion  its  duties  May  I.  1889.  His  pre- 
decessors had,  without  exception,  been  men  of 
high  character  and  ability,  and  yet  it  ma\-  be 
said  as  a  matter  of  simple  justice  that  none  of 
them  more  thortiughlv  mastered  the  details  of  the 


ji/tH,K.iJ'///c.i/.  j)icr/o.\.t/n  .i.\/>  roKi'R.iir  u.ii.i.Eny. 


715 


office  tlian  tliti  Mr.  L;iccy.  His  adniiiiislr.itinii 
t.ii\civil.  perhaps,  the  most  critical  pcriotl  within 
tlic  iiisliiry  of  national  bankin;;-  (the  Barini;  fail- 
ure anil  its  wide-spread  and  disastrous  effect  u]5on 
credits  and  securities)  and  to  his  w  ise  judiiinent, 
prudent  action  and  undaunted  courage  in  the 
inanayjement  of  the  banks  of  this  country,  busi- 
ness interests  are  larijely  indebted  for  the  fa\cir- 
able  outcome.  It  is  a  matter  of  note  that,  in  liis 
official  management,  Mr.  I.acey  always  made  a 
personal  supervision  of  e\ery  important  detail  a 
paramount  dutw  In  relation  to  the  national 
banks  of  the  country,  lie  pursueil  a  policy  both 
\ii;orous  and  conservative,  tending  always  toward 
the  protection  of  the  depositors  and  creditors, 
.md  it  is  a  noteworthy  fact  that  his  policy  rccei\ctl 
\ery  general  endorsement. 

He  carefully  -studied  the  details  of  his  office 
and  introduced  many  reforms.  He  aimed  to 
secure  every  possible  safeguard,  exercising  always 
a  sound  discretion  in  construing  such  restrict it)ns 
as,  owing  to  local  conditions,  would  embarrass 
and  annoy  bank  officers  and  their  customers. 
without  corresponding  benefits  to  the  jjublic. 

Mr.  Lacey  is  a  man  of  decided  convictions,  to 
which    he   is   faithfully  and    fearlessly    obedient. 


Ilis  inirepitl  integrit)'  is  universally  recognized. 
While  modest  and  unassuming  in  private  life,  he 
becomes  aggressive  in  an  emergency,  never  fail- 
ing to  have  perfect  commantl  of  his  best  faculties. 
He  is  a  man  of  attractive  personality,  and  b}-  his 
courteous  manner  aiul  manly  bearing  readily 
makes  and  retains  friends.  He  is  in  the  prime  of 
life,  has  .1  \  igorous,  active  mind  and  sound  ])h\'>- 
i(]ue,  antl  dispatclus  business  without  fatigue. 

The  oflkH;  of  fomiJlroUer  of  the  Currency  is 
secoiul  onl_\-  in  imporlanci'  to  that  of  the  .Secre- 
lar\-  of  the  Treasury.  This  office  was  so  ably 
and  satisfactorily  tilled  b\-  Mr.  Lacey,  coujiled 
with  the  enviable  nation. il  reputation  as  a  finan- 
cier previously  acc]uii'e(.l,  that  his  services  were 
eagerly  sought  after  in  moneyed  centers.  Se\'eral 
large  banks  thus  located  made  him  attractive 
offers  to  take  the  presidency.  He  was,  however, 
most  attracted  by  Chicago  and  its  wonderful 
possibilities  :  hence,  on  June  30,  1892,  he  re- 
signed to  acce[)t  the  presidenc)-  of  the  Bankers' 
National  Hank.  His  successful  achievements  and 
conspicuous  abilities  give  the  fullest  assurance 
that  those  who  were  instrumental  in  jilacing  him 
in  control  of  its  affairs  and  interests  made  no 
mistake. 


HON.   WALTER    Q.    GRESHAM, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


W.XLTKR  OUINTIX  GRESHAM,  a  native 
(jf  Lanesville,  in  Harrison  county,  Indiana, 
was  born  on  March  17,  1833,  to  William  and  Sarah 
(  Davis)  (ire.sham.  His  father,  a  farmer  by  occupa- 
tion, and  also  a  cabinet-maker,  was  born  in  Ken- 
tucky, September  17,  1802.  He  was  a  man  of  fine 
(jhysical  proportions,  with  qualities  of  mind  and 
heart  tliat  not  only  made  him  conspicuous  in  his 
community,  but  also  won  for  him  universal  confi- 
dence and  esteem.  He  was  a  colonel  in  the  mil- 
itia. In  1833  he  was  elected  sheriff  of  Harrison 
county,  Indiana,  on  the  Whig  ticket,  with  but 
slight  opposition.  He  was  fatally  shot  in  1834, 
b\'  a  desperado,  w  horn  he  was  altemjiting  to  ar- 
rest. At  tile  tinu-  of  his  marriage  to  .Sarah,  a 
daughter  of  Mr.  John  Da\  is,  in  No\eniber,  1S25. 
she  was  but  eighteen  years  old.  He  look  her  to 
his  farm  in  Indiana,  and  she  still  li\es  on   tlu-   old 


homestead  with  an  unmarrieil  daughter,  a  hale 
and  active  woman,  happy  and  cheerful  in  the  en- 
joyment of  the  loving  regaril  of  her  children  and 
friends.  Our  subject's  grandfather,  George  Gres- 
ham,  was  a  native  of  \'irginia,  and  was  born  near 
Petersburg,  October  9,  1776.  He  went  with  the 
I'enningtons  to  Mercer  county,  Kentucky,  when  a 
young  man,  and  in  1801  married  Marj-  Penning- 
ton. In  1809  he  removeil  to  Harrison  county, 
Iniliana,  with  his  brother-in-law ,  Dennis  Penning- 
ton, and  took  up  a  large  tract  of  land  on  Little 
Indian  Creek,  where  Lanesville  now  stands,  and 
became  a  prosperous  farmer.  Our  subject's  ma- 
ternal grandfather,  also,  was  a  nati\e  of  \'irginia, 
whence  he  removeil  to  Kentucky  .uid  thence  ti> 
Indiana.      He  was  of  Welsh  ancestry. 

Walter    passed    his    boyhood    on    his    mother's 
farm  :   he  had  few  school  privileges  prior  tohissix- 


7i6 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  A.XD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Icenth  \ear.  but  was  possessed  of  a  studious  mind 
and  a  thirst  for  knowledge.  He  liad  lon^  cher- 
ished the  hope  that  he  might  attend  Corydon 
Seminary,  an  educational  institution  near  by. 
Tlirough  the  aid  of  his  elder  brother,  Benjamin, 
who  had  just  returned  from  the  Mexican  War, 
and  Mr.  Samuel  Wright,  who  was  county  auditor, 
and  who  gave  young  Gresham  a  position  in  his 
office  where  he  could  earn  enough  to  pay  his 
board,  his  hope  was  realized  and  he  was  enabled  to 
spend  one  year  at  the  County  Seminary  and  one 
year  at  the  State  University  at  Bloomington. 
Thus  equipped,  he  secured  a  position  in  the  county 
clerk's  ofifice  at  Corydon,  and  devoted  his  leisure 
to  the  study  of  law  under  the  direction  of  Judge 
William  Porter,  who  took  a  deep  interest  in  him. 
In  this  way  he  studied  and  worked  some  three 
years,  and  in  1854  was  admitted  to  the  bar.  and 
became  a  partner  with  Mr.  Thomas  C.  Slaughter, 
who  afterwards  became  Judge  of  the  circuit  court. 
Upon  the  formation  of  the  Republican  party  in 
1855,  he  allied  himself  with  it,  and  entered  heart- 
ily into  the  exciting  political  campaigns  that  fol- 
Iciued.  After  the  nomination  of  John  C.  Fre- 
mont for  the  presidencw  in  1856,  at  the  Phila- 
delphia con\ention,  to  which  his  partner  was  a 
delegate,  young  Gresham  stumped  Harrison 
county  for  the  "  path-finder,"  with  the  result  that 
more  Republican  votes  were  cast  in  that  county 
than  in  all  the  rest  of  the  district  between  New 
Albany  and  Evansville.  As  a  speaker  at  the  bar 
or  on  the  stump,  he  became  noted  for  his  clear, 
forceful  and  exact  statements  that  never  failed  to 
carry  conviction,  while  as  a  lawyer  he  was  studi- 
ous and  pains-taking  and  conscientious. 

In  i860  he  was  elected  to  the  general  assenibh- 
of  Indiana  from  Harrison  county,  overcoming 
the  democratic  majority  of  five  hundred  in  the 
count}-,  by  a  personal  canvass  of  every  school  dis- 
trict in  the  county.  In  the  legislature  he  was 
chairman  of  the  committee  on  military  afl'airs, 
and  as  such  introduced  and  secured  the  passage 
of  the  militia  bill.  He  was  skilled  in  military 
tactics,  and  for  some  time  was  captain  of  a"  com- 
pany at  Corydon  called  the  "  Spencer  Rifles," 
and  upon  the  opening  of  the  civil  war  he  was  ap- 
pointed by  Governor  Morton  lieutenant-colonel 
of  the  Thirty-eighth  Indiana  regiment,  but  before 
it  entered  the  service  he  became  colonel  of  the 
Fifty-third    regiment.      This    was    in    December, 


1861.  His  militarj-  record  is  one  of  which  he 
may  justly  be  proud  ;  his  regiment  was  ordered 
to  St.  Louis,  whence,  after  the  fall  of  Donelson, 
it  was  sent  to  join  General  Grant  at  Savannah, 
Tennessee,  where  it  was  assigned  to  Veatch's 
brigade  in  Hurlbut's  di\ision  ;  with  his  regiment. 
Colonel  Gresham  participated  in  the  siege  of 
Corinth,  and  afterward  was  engaged  in  numerous 
expeditions  south  of  the  Memphis  and  Charleston 
railroad.  He  was  in  the  North  Mississippi  cam- 
paign with  Grant's  army,  and  afterwards  was 
stationed  at  Memphis  till  1863.  Later  he  joined 
General  Grant's  forces  at  Vicksburg.  Colonel 
Gresham's  conduct  had  won  the  admiration  of  his 
superior  officers — particularly  General  Grant,  who 
w  ith  General  Sherman  recommended  his  appoint- 
ment as  brigadier  general,  which  was  made  on 
August  II,  1863,  and  he  was  put  in  command  of 
the  post  of  Natchez  and  later  succeeded  General 
Crocker  in  command  of  the  district  of  Natchez. 
His  judicious  government  of  that  city  attracted 
the  friendship  of  all  parties.  In  the  spring  of 
1864  he  was  put  in  command  of  a  division  in  the 
seventeenth  corps  of  the  Army  of  Tennessee,  to 
participate  in  the  Atlanta  campaign.  His  sol- 
dierly demeanor  strongly  commended  him  to  Gen- 
eral McPherson.  \\  ho  commanded  the  army,  and 
General  Fr.uik  Blair,  who  had  command  of  the 
corps,  and  he  was  active  in  the  numerous  engage- 
ments of  that  campaign  until  July  20.  On  that 
day,  in  the  battle  of  Leggett's  Hill,  he  was  scverly 
wounded  by  a  bullet  which  struck  his  leg  below 
the  knee.  (3n  the  following  day,  under  the  per- 
sonal direction  of  (jcneral  McPherson,  he  was 
carried  to  the  railroad  station,  and  thence  taken 
to  New  Albany,  where  he  was  confined  for  more 
than  a  \ear,  nursed  by  his  faithful  wife.  He  was 
obliged  to  use  crutches  several  years. 

After  the  close  of  the  war  he  resunied  his  pro- 
fession at  New  Albany :  he  w  as  nominated  for 
Congress  in  1866,  and  while  he  won  man\-  Demo- 
cratic friends,  he  (the  district  was  overwhelm- 
ingly Democratic^!  was  defe.ited  at  the  polls  by 
Mr.  M.  C.  Kerr.  During  that  year  he  was  ap- 
pointed financial  agent  of  the  State,  and  so  con- 
tinued until  1869.  When  General  Grant  became 
president,  he  tendered  General  Gresham  the  col- 
lectorship  at  New  Orleans,  which  was  declined. 
He  went  to  Washington  in  the  interest  of  a  friend 
whose  appointment  as  district  attorney  of  Indiana 


KiouKAriiic.il.  i>icrio.\.\KV  ./.\/>  roRTR.iir  cillery. 


717 


]ic  sou<^lu  :  and  when  in  an  interview  witli 
President  (irant,  he  was  informed  by  him  that  he 
liimseif  had  already  been  selected  for  that  office, 
(General  Ciresham  replied  that  under  no  circum- 
stances could  he  accept  it.  In  December,  1869, 
the  president  appointed  him  United  States  dis- 
trict judge  for  Indiana,  an  office  which  he  ac- 
cepted and  honored  until  April,  1882.  At  that 
time,  upon  the  death  of  Postmaster  General 
Howe,  who  was  a  member  of  the  cabinet  of 
President  Garfield  and  his  successor.  President 
Arthur,  Judge  Gresham  was  tendered  and  ac- 
cepted the  office  thus  made  vacant,  and  filled  it 
in  a  manner  highly  creditable  to  himself  and 
satisfactory  to  the  public.  Near  the  close  of 
President  Arthur's  term,  he  became  secretan,-  of 
the  treasury,  vice  Secretary-  I'olger  who  had  died, 
.md  in  all  his  connection  with  the  cabinet,  was 
one  of  the  president's  most  valued  advisers.  He 
withdrew  from  the  cabinet  in  October.  1884,  and 
in  December  following,  was  appointed  United 
States  circuit  judge  to  fill  the  vacancy  caused 
by  the  resignation  of  Judge  Drummond,  at  Chi- 
cago. This  high  position  is  one  for  which  he  is 
eminently  fitted.  Learned  in  the  law,  a  thorough 
scholar  and  close  reasoner,  with  a  high  sense  of  jus- 
tice and  an  appreciation  of  the  responsibility  ami 
dignity  of  his  office,  his  rulings  and  decisions  arc 
characterized  by  accuracy,  ])romptness,  directness 
and  uniform  firmness.  His  endeaxor  is  to  do  justice 
regardless  of  who   the   litigants   before  him    may 


be.  or  by  whom  represented.  The  young  law- 
yer ne\er  has  just  cause  to  complain  of  the  treat- 
ment he  receives  ;  the  poor  man's  cause  is  listened 
to  with  as  close  attention  as  that  of  the  rich  cor- 
poration, and  all  alike  find  in  him  an  able  jurist — 
a  just  judge.  He  is  firm  in  all  his  convictions 
of  duty,  and  under  all  circumstances  has  the  cour- 
age of  his  convictions,  and  this  gives  color  to  all 
his  acts. 

Judge  Gresham  has  always  been  a  great  reader, 
and  in  matters  of  history  and  general  literature  he 
has  at  his  command  a  wide  range  of  valuable  in- 
formation ;  in  fiction,  especially,  he  delights ;  and 
the  best  that  has  come  through  that  source,  from 
the  world's  best  authors,  he  has  made  his  own.  His 
peculiarity  is  to  appropriate  what  he  reads,  and  as 
a  result  he  is  not  only  well  informed,  but  also 
has  his  knowledge  at  ready  command. 

In  stature  the  Judge  is  si.x  feet  high  and  some- 
what slender:  he  has  clean-cut,  regular  features, 
w  ith  black  hair  and  beard,  liberally  streaked  with 
gra)- ;  has  a  dignified,  manly  bearing  ;  is  pleasing 
in  his  address,  and  courteous  and  affable  in  manner, 
and  w  ithal  exceedingly  modest.  He  is  popular  with 
his  friends,  and  uni\ersally  esteemed  for  his  noble, 
manly  qualities,  and  it  would  be  difficult  to  find 
an\'  one  who  would  say  aught  but  in  his  favor. 

In  1858  he  married  Miss  Matilda  McGrain.  a 
daughter  of  Mr.  Thomas  McGrain,  an  old  settler 
of  Harrison  county,  Indiana,  of  Scotch-Irish  de- 
scent.    The\-  ha\e  one  son  and  one  daughter. 


JOHN    STOCKTON    MILLER, 


CHICAGO,    ILL 


ONK  of  the  most  honoreil  members  of  the 
Chicago  bar  is  John  S.  Miller,  present 
corporation  counsel  of  Chicago.  He  is  a  man  of 
refinement,  and  manifests  kindness  ami  courtesy 
toward  all. 

He  was  born  in  Louisville.  .St.  Lawrence 
county.  New  York,  May  24,  1847,  the  son  of  Jojin 
and  Jane  (McLeod)  Miller.  His  father,  a  lawyer, 
was  a  man  of  sterling  worth,  w;ho  was  highly 
esteemed  in  his  community,  and  for  many  years 
county  clerk  of  St.  Lawrence  county.  Pater- 
nally Mr.  Miller  traces  his  ancestry  to  an  old 
Massachusetts  family,  while  maternalh-   he   is  <>f 


Scotch-Irish  descent.  lie  received  the  usual 
common  school  and  academic  education,  and  then 
entered  the  St.  Law  rence  University  at  Canton, 
\ew  York,  and  was  graduated  therefrom  at  the 
age  of  twenty-two.  He  then  took  a  course  in  the 
law  department  of  the  same  University,  and  was 
admitted  to  the  bar  at  Ogdensburg,  New  York,  in 
1870.  The  ne.xt  three  years  he  filled  the  profes- 
sorship of  Latin  and  Greek  in  his  alma  mater. 
Meantime  he  kept  up  his  study  of  the  law,  in  the 
law  ofiices  of  the  late  Judge  Sawyer,  of  the  Su- 
preme Court  of  New  York,  and  Leslie  W.  Russell, 
late  attorney  general,  and    now  (^1892)  Judge  of 


7i8 


lUOGRAPHICAl.  D/cr/OXAh')-  .1X7)  rORTRMT  GALLERY. 


the  Supreme  Court  of  New  York.  With  such  pre- 
ceptors. Air  Miller  became  well  grounded  in  the 
principles  of  the  law.  and  desiring;  to  make  a  name 
for  himself  in  the  work!,  he  resigned  his  professor- 
ship in  1874,  and  removed  to  Chicago  and  en- 
gaged in  practice.  He  practiced  alone  until  1876, 
when  he  formed  a  ])artnership  with  Messrs. 
George  Herbert  and  l<ihn  1!.  .S.  (Juick,  the  firm 
name  being  Herbert,  (Juiek  6c  Miller.  This  part- 
nership continued  until  the  death  of  Mr.  Herbert, 
when  the  firm  became  (Juick  &  Miller,  which  con- 
tinued until  May  I,  1886,  when  Mr.  Miller  be- 
came associated  with  Senator  Henry  \V.  Lcman  : 
about  May  1.  1890,  Mr.  Merritt  Starr  was  ad- 
mitted to  the  firm. 

While  Mr.  Miller's  practice  has  been  general  in 
its  character  and  yearly  increasing,  yet  he  has 
devoted  himself  more  especially  to  chancery 
causes,  and  he  ranks  among  the  ablest  chancery 
lawyers  at  the  Chicago  bar. 

In  religion  he  is  an  Episcopalian,  and  a  mem- 
ber of  Grace  Church.     In  politics  Mr.  Miller  is  an 


earnest  Repvdjlican,  but  is  not  what  is  termed  a 
politician.  an<l  the  position  he  now  holds  is  not 
on  account  of  any  political  obligation,  but  .solely 
on  account  of  merit. 

Mr.  Miller  married  in  1887,  Miss  Annie  Gross, 
daughter  of  Dr.  J.  K.  Gross,  of  Cliicago.  They 
have  two  children,  John  S.,  Jr.,  and  Janet. 

Mr.  Miller  was  appointed  cor])oration  counsel 
of  the  city  of  Chicago,  May  i.  1891.  He  is  a 
member  of  the  University  Club  of   Chicago. 

His  life  has  been  more  or  le.ss  of  a  struggle,  and 
his  achievements  have  been  the  result  of  hard 
work.  He  lo\es  his  profession  and  takes  delight 
in  unravelling  its  mysteries,  and  when  not  so  en- 
gaged loves  to  be  with  his  family,  in  whose  pleas- 
ures he  takes  the  keenest  tlelight.  He  is  a  man 
of  genial  character,  kind  and  true,  and  possesses 
those  sterling  qualities  .if  the  New  England  race 
from  which  he  sprang,  namely  :  industry,  integ- 
rity and  perse\erance.  Success  has  crowned  his 
cfTorts,  and  has  made  his  name  worthy  to  be  re- 
corded among  the  representative  men  of  Chicago. 


CYRUS    HALL   McCORMICK, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 

THE  subject  of  this  .sketch  is  the  eldest  child  chine  Company,  an  office  which   he  holds  at  the 

of  Cyrus  H.  and  Nettie  (Fowler)   McCor-  present  time. 
niick.      His' parents  spent   the   winter   of   1859  in  On  March  5,  1889,  Mr.  McCormick  was  married 

Washington,   1).  C,  his  father  being  occupied    in  to  Miss  Harriet  Bradley  Hammond,  niece  of  Mrs. 
securing  patents  ujion   liis  celebrateil    rea|)er,  and 


there,  on  May  l6tli  of  that  _\-ear,  our  subject  was 
born.  He  passed  successfullv  through  tlie  gram- 
mar and  high  schools  in  Chicago,  graduating 
from  the  Chicago  High  School  at  the  head  of 
his  class,  and  then  went  to  I'rincelon  College, 
from  which  he  was  graduated  with  the  class 
of  I  8 7. J. 

In  the  aulvmm  of  that  >ear  he  entered  the  em- 
ploy of  the  McCormick  Harvesting  Machine 
Compan\- ;  and  in  ortler  to  thoroughly  acquaint 
himself  with  its  affairs,  he  not  only  filled  vari- 
ous positions  in  the  office  of  the  companx',  but 
also  served  a  time  in  the  several  departments  of 
its  Works. 

Upon  the  death  of  his  father,  which  occurred 
in  May,  1884,  he  was  elected  t.i  succeed  him 
as   president   of  the    McCormick    ll.irvesting    Ma- 


E.  S.  Stickney  of  Chicago,  at  the  beautiful  little 
Church  of  St.  Mary's-by-the-Sea,  at  Monterey, 
California.  They  lia\e  two  children,  a  son  and 
tlaughter. 

.Mthough  a  young  man,  Mr.  McCormick  has 
been  called  to  numerous  positions  of  trust,  in  all 
of  which  his  careful  methods  ha\e  shown  him 
worthy  of  the  confidence  reposed.  l'"or  several 
years  he  has  been  a  director  of  the  Merchants' 
Lt)an  and  Trust  Comiiany  of  Chicago.  He  was 
elected  a  member  of  the  Hoartl  of  Trustees  of 
Princeton  Universit\-  in  June,  18S9.  He  is  also  a 
member  and  secretar\-  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of 
the  McCormick  Theological  Seminary  of  the 
Presbyterian  Church,  and  first  vice-president  of 
the  N'oung  Men's  Christian  A.ssociation  of  Chi- 
cago. 

During  the   summer  of    1889,    Mr.    McCormick 


^^^Wt>o<«<?7r"^^/L^  0-tT^c^c.<JL^^j\^ . 


BIOCRAI'HICAI.   niCTIOXAKV  A.\n  I'OKTRAIT  OAI.LERV. 


721 


spent   several    weeks    in    Paris    lookini;    after    his  the  I'niletl  Slates,  il   heini;  rarely  conferral  upon 

Company's  exhibits  at  the  tjreat  exposition,  anti  a   lorei^ncr. 

soon  afterward  was  decorated  by  the  President  of  In  all  his  relations,  Mr.  .McC'onniek  Jias   shown 

the    French    Republic,    '"  Officer    of    the    Merite  rare   good,  judgment,   and    by    his    fine   personal 

At^ricolc,"  and   as   stated    by  the    Courier  d'llli-  qualities,  and    his   straightforward,  manly  deport- 

nois  this  is  one  of  but  a  few  instances  where  that  ment,    he    bdtli     merits    and    receives    uni\ersal 

decoration   has  been   bestowed   upon  a  citizen  of  esteem. 


CLIFFORD    MITCHFLL,    M.D. 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


TH  E  Nantucket  Mitchells  have  furnished  many 
eminent  men  and  women  to  the  learned 
professions  ;  among  them  not  the  least  noted  is  the 
subject  of  this  memoir.  Dr.  Clifford  Mitchell 
was  born  January  28,  1854,  in  Nantucket,  Massa- 
chusett.s,  and  is  the  descendant  and  last  scion  on 
his  father's  side  of  that  noted  family  of  Mitchells 
who  came  here  in  the  eighteenth  century  from 
the  Isle  of  Wight. 

The  son  of  Francis  ]\I.  .Mitchell,  his  paternal 
grandfather  was  William  Mitchell,  one  of  the 
overseers  of  Harvard  College,  and  a  scientific 
man  of  much  repute.  His  father's  sister  was 
Maria  Mitchell,  so  celebrated  for  her  achie\e- 
ments  in  astronomy.  No  less  richly  endowed 
from  the  maternal  side,  his  mother's  people 
belonged  to  the  same  famih-  as  the  immortal 
discoverer  and  sage,  Benjamin  Franklin.  His 
mother,  whose  maiden  name  was  Ellen  Mitchell, 
has  a  wide  reputation  as  a  lecturer  on  literar\- 
topics.  She  was  one  of  the  founders  and  at  one 
time  president  of  the  Fortnightl>-  Club  of  Chi- 
cago, and  enjoj-s  the  distinction  of  being  the 
first  woman  ever  appointed  on  the  Huard  of 
Education  in  this  city.  Her  brother  is  Dr.  J.  .s. 
Mitchell,  the  eminent  Chicago  physician,  and  her 
father,  Mr.  Joseph  Mitchell,  was  at  one  time 
autlitor,  and  for  a  long  term  .served  as  member 
of  the  legislature  of  the  State  of  Massachusetts. 

Having  pursued  a  thorough  course  of  study  in 
the  Chicago  private  schools,  chieflj-  under  the 
direction  of  Mr.  E.  S.  \\'aters,  an  educator  of 
\ery  high  character,  he  entered  the  academic  de- 
partment at  Har\ard,  and  graduated  with  honor 
in  1S75,  His  medical  studies  were  for  a  time  pur- 
sued at  the  Chicago  Medical  College,  and  in  187S 
he    recei\e(l   the   de<ifree   of   M.D.  at    the  Chicago 


Homa-opathic  .Medical  College.  Dr.  Mitchell  is 
a  member  of  the  Chicago  .\cadem_\-  of  Homuo- 
pathic  Phj'sicians  and  Surgeons,  of  the  Illinois 
State  Homoeopathic  Medical  Society,  and  of  the 
National  Institute  of  Homteopathy.  He  is  also 
a  member  of  the  Har\ard  Club  and  Twentieth 
Centur\-  Club.  His  rei)utation  in  this  cit\-  as  a 
practitioner  is  of  the  most  honorable  character, 
and  in  certain  de[)artnients  of  medical  science  he 
has  gained  a  more  than  national  fame.  Having 
made  a  specialt}'  of  the  stud\-  of  diseases  of  the 
kidneys,  he  is  the  author  of  se\eral  important 
works  upon  the  subject,  notably  :  "  The  Stu- 
dent's Manual  of  Urinary  Analysis,"  a  small  book 
published  in  1879,  '^"'^  soon  supplanted  by  the 
"  Practitioner's  Guide  to  Urinar\-  i\nal)-sis,"  now 
in  its  second  edition.  Within  the  present  year 
(18901  he  has  published  a  book  of  over  four  hun- 
dred pages,  entitled  :  "A  Clinical  Stud\-  of  Dis- 
eases of  the  Kidneys."  He  also  wrote  the  "  Ph)-- 
sicians'  Chemistry,"  which  has  passed  through 
se\eral  editions  and  is  much  rcferreil  to,  and  in 
188S,  at  the  request  r)f  the  National  Dental  Asso- 
ciation, he  compiled  a  treatise  on  Dental  Chemis- 
tr\-  and  Metallurgy,  which  was  accepted  by  the 
as.sociation,  and  is  now  the  standard  text-book  on 
Dental  Chemistry  in  the  dental  colleges  of  Amer- 
ica. Dr.  .Mitchell's  name  is  well  known  among 
medical  journals  by  his  freciuent  and  valuable 
contributions,  and  to  the  medical  profession  as 
jjcrhaps  one  of  the  earliest  translates  of  Pasteur's 
great  papers  on  "  Chicken  Cholera"  and  "Sple- 
nic ]-"e\er." 

DdCtor  .Mitclull  li.is  traveled  much  in  man\- 
lands,  and,  in  atiditinn  to  a  thorough  acquaintance 
with  his  own  country,  has  sojourned  in  almost 
e\ery  portion  i.f  tin-  (  (Id  Workl,  being  con\ersant 


722 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  A.XD  PORTRAIT  CALLER V. 


with  the  French,  German  and  Itahan  languages, 
the  latter  of  which  he  studied  under  Mr.  James 
Russell  Lowell  at  Harvard.  He  is  an  enthusias- 
tic mountain-climber,  and  a  fine  example  of  the 
hardiness  and  vigor  gained  in  that  most  magnifi- 
cent of  gymnastics. 

In  1878,  with  what  seemed  a  singularly  appro- 
priate and  felicitous  choice,  Dr.  Mitchell  was 
united  in  marriage  to  Miss  Susan  Peason  Lillie. 
His  wife's  father  was  the  Rev.  James  Lillie,  of 
Scotland,  a  graduate  of  Edinburgh  University,  a 
profound  scholar  and  ver}-  learned  man,  whose 
name  is  familiar  as  the  author  of  se\  eral  notable 
works    on    theology.     Mrs.     Mitchell     has    spent 


man}-  years  abroad  in  tra\-el  and  study.  She  is 
an  accomplished  F"rench  scholar,  and  is  remarka- 
bly well  versed  in  English  literature.  She  has 
also  pursued  the  study  of  art — herself  an  ama- 
teur of  no  mean  ability.  Mrs.  Mitchell  is  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Ciuirch. 

To  return  to  Dr.  Mitchell,  and  speaking  of  him 
in  his  social  aspect,  no  higher  praise  is  needed 
than  tliat  he  is  a  gentleman  after  Bacon's  own 
heart,  who,  though  traveled  and  acquainted  with 
the  world,  "doth  not  change  his  countrj'  manners 
for  those  of  foreign  parts,"  and  though  young  to 
be  so  highly  honored,  is  yet  not  envied,  because 
"  his  fortune  seemeth  due  unto  him." 


WILLIAM   T.    BAKER, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


WILLIAM  TAYLOR  BAKER,  president 
of  the  World's  Columbian  Exposition  and 
e.\-president  of  the  Board  of  Trade,  was  born  at 
West  Winfield,  New  York,  September  11,  1841. 
His  parents  were  William  and  Matilda  (Peabody) 
Baker.  His  father  was  a  farmer  by  occupation. 
In  1855,  at  the  age  of  fourteen,  William  became  a 
clerk  in  a  country  store  in  Groton,  New  York ;  a 
little  later  he  removed  to  McLean,  New  York, 
and  entered  the  ser\'ice  of  Messrs.  D.  P.  Marsh 
&  Co.,  with  whom  he  remained  six  years.  He 
had  a  strong  desire  to  \isit  the  rapidly  growing 
Western  States,  and  in  1861  he  made  a  tour  of 
inspection  through  the  West,  which  resulteil  in 
his  locating  at  Chicago. 

His  first  position  there  was  as  book-keeper  for 
Messrs.  Hinckley  and  Handy,  commission  mer- 
chants, with  whom  he  became  a  partner  at  the 
end  of  one  year,  under  the  fiiiii  name  of  Hinck- 
le\-,  Handy  &  Co.  In  the  following  year  the 
partnership  was  dissolved,  Mr.  Baker  succeeding 
to  the  business,  which  he  continued  until  1868, 
when  he  formed  a  copartnership  with  Messrs. 
W.  !•'.  (.'obb  and  C.  H.  Knight,  under  the  firm 
n.mie  of  Knight,  Baker  &  Co..  which  continued 
until  1S72,  when  Mr.  Knight  retired,  the  st\le 
of  the  firm  became  ^\^  T.  Baker  &  Co.  Imme- 
diately after  the  fire  of  1 87 1  the  firm  occupied 
temporary  quarters  in  the  Wigwam,  on  the  West 
side,  but  afterward  removed  to   No.   86   La  Salle 


street,  where  the}-  remained  some  seven  years. 
I'he}-  then  removed  to  the  Chamber  of  Com- 
merce Building,  corner  Washington  and  La  Salle 
streets,  and  in  the  spring  of  1885,  on  the  com- 
pletion of  the  new  Board  of  Trade  Building, 
they  remo\-etl  to  No.  240  La  Salle  street.  Two 
years  later  they  changed  to  more  commodious 
offices  at  Nos.  427  to  420  Pheni.x  Building,  corner 
Jackson  and  Clark  streets. 

Mr.  Baker  was  elected  presitlent  of  the  Hoanl 
of  Trade  on  January  1,  1 890,  and  re-elected  in 
iSgi.  an  honor  which  abnndantl}-  e\-idences  his 
])opularit\'  and  abilit}-. 

His  hrni  does  a  large  commission  business,  both 
in  grain  ami  provisions,  and  he  is  also  a  prominent 
oi)erator  on  the  Board.  His  speculations  are 
bold,  while  they  are  combined  with  that  practical 
knowledge  so  necessary  to  success,  and  a  judg- 
ment and  foresight  that  seldom  err. 

Mr.  Baker  has  come  to  be  know^n  as  a  man  of 
great  executive  ability,  and  it  was  but  natural 
that  he  should  ha\e  been  chosen  president  of  the 
local  directorate  of  the  Woijd's  Columbian  Expo- 
sition. He  is  a  nieniher  of  the  L'nion  League 
antl  se\eral  other  prominent  social  clubs.  Mr. 
Haker  is  a  man  of  deej)  religious  convictions  and 
liberal  in  lns\iews,  and  cheerfull}-  contributes  to 
all  worth}'  objects  of  benex'olence. 

In  iS6j  he  married  Miss  E.  H.  Dunston,  who 
dietl  in  1873.     Si.x  years  later,  in  1879,  ''"-'  nianied 


a- 


■^<^^o^ 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  CAl.I.ERY. 


725 


Miss  Anna   F.  Morgan,  of  Troy,  New  York.     He  worked    his    way    up.    step   b)-  stop,  to   his   liigii 

has  five  children.  position  among  Chicago's  citizens  and   represen- 

Beginning  hfe  with  a  capital  consisting  only  of  tative  men,  and  is  a  worthy  example  of  the  self- 

hcaltli.    honor,    ability    and     enterprise,    he    has  made  man. 


JOHN    THORPE, 


IM-.ARL  KI\F.K,    X.   V 


ONE  of  the  most  extensi\e  and  most  attract- 
ive departments  of  tlie  World's  Columbian 
Exposition  will  be  the  department  of  Floricul- 
ture. It  will  occupy  the  greatest  area,  attract 
the  greatest  number  of  visitors,  and  will  probably 
contain  the  greatest  variety  of  exhibits  of  any 
department.  There  w  ill  be  specimens  of  our  na- 
tive plants  anil  flowers,  gathered  in  every  climate 
and  culled  from  everj-  soil  from  Maine  to  Florida 
and  from  New  Jersey  to  California.  We  shall 
have,  also,  the  Giant  Croton  from  Cul)a,  Tree 
Ferns  from  Australia,  with  the  bulbs  of  Hoilaiul. 
the  Pansies  of  England,  and  the  rare  ami  beauti- 
ful of  everj'  country.  They  will  be  spread  tor 
exhibition  not  only  in  the  vast  building  appro- 
priated to  them,  but  they  will  surround  every 
building  and  occupy  eveiy  island,  and  e\en 
thrust  their  beautiful  forms  from  the  bottom  of 
the  artificial  lakes,  and  rest  in  peace  and  repose 
on  their  surface. 

At  the  head  of  this  department  is  placed  the 
subject  of  this  sketch,  John  Thorpe,  a  man  whose 
professional  experience  and  ;ibilit\'  as  a  florist  is 
acknowledged  by  all. 

Mr.  Thorpe  was  born  in  Keyhan,  Leicester- 
shire, England,  on  the  3d  of  April,  1842.  His 
parents  were  horticulturists,  as  their  ancestors  had 
been  for  two  centuries.  Like  the  flowers  he  so 
much  loves,  he  was  born,  reared  and  grew  up  in  a 
garden.  His  early  education  was  obtained  in  the 
village  school,  and  when  old  enough  he  was  ap- 
prenticed to  his  uncle,  a  well-known  horticulturist. 
In  this  way  he  received  a  practical  training  from 
an  early  age  in  all  the  details  of  gardening;  and 
gave  early  proof  of  his  ability  as  a  horticulturist, 
which  has  since  made  him  one  of  the  foremost 
men  of  his  profession.  After  many  years  of 
study  and  practice  in  his  native  countr)-,  Mr. 
Thorpe,  desiring  a  wider. field  for  his  labors,  came 
to  this  country  in  1874.     Since  that  time  he  has 


earned  for  himself,  in  this  country,  the  reputa- 
tion of  being  a  man  of  energy,  ability  and  suc- 
cess. He  is  progressive  in  his  methods,  earnest 
in  his  undertakings,  and  hokls  the  foremost  pnsi- 
tion  amongst  the  men  of  his  profession.  He  is 
the  founder  nl  tin-  .Society  of  American  I-^lorists, 
and  was  elected  its  first  and  second  president, 
eight  years  ago  in  this  city.  To  him  is  due  the 
great  advance  maile  by  this  society  and  the  im- 
petus which  it  has  given  to  improved  methods 
and  progressive  ideas.  Mr.  Thorpe  is  also  presi- 
dent of  tile  American  Clirj-santliemum  Societw 

The  World's  F'air  Directors,  recognizing  his 
ability  ant!  exiKiience.  lia\e  selected  him  for  the 
important  position  of  Chief  of  the  Bureau  of 
Floriculture.  Mr.  Thor|)e  has  accepted  the  offer, 
and  has  temporarily  left  his  home  at  Pearl  River, 
New  York,  and  will  remain  here  until  the  close  of 
the  Exposition  in  1893.  In  his  hands  this  depart- 
ment will  be  shown  to  the  best  advantage,  and 
the  exhibits  will  be  made  a  re\elation  of  the  pro- 
gress of  the  present  and  possibilities  of  the  future. 

The  arrangement  and  cl.issification  of  millions 
of  rare  and  beautiful  plants,  spread  o\er  liundreds 
of  acres  of  ground,  in  a  climate  well  adapted,  is  a 
labor  to  which  Chief  Thorpe  brings  a  refined 
taste,  practical  experience,  and  scientific  knt)\\l- 
edge;  and  we  have  no  doubt  that  he  will  make 
this  di\'ision  of  the  Exposition  one  of  its  most 
beautiful  and  most  successful  features.  The 
Chief  has  alread\-  commenced  active  work,  and 
the  selection  and  arrangement  of  specimens  for 
his  department  is  daily  receiving  his  personal 
attention;  and  many  new  features  will  be  intro- 
tluced  if  the  time  and  the  means  at  his  disposal 
permit.  Soon  after  his  ap])ointment  as  chief  of 
the  department.  Mr.  Thorpe  invited  some  of  the 
best  florists  of  this  country  to  meet  him  here  to 
devise  the  best  means  of  making  the  exhibits  in 
this  department    extensi\e,    representative,    com- 


726 


BIOGR.irHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AND  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


pletc  and  successful.  I'lic  result  was  most  satis- 
factory to  all.  While  the  visitors  were  here  the 
Chicago  Horist  Club  tendered  Chief  Thorpe  a 
banquet  at  Kinsley's,  to  which  the  \isitors  and  a 
large  number  of  guests  were  invited.  This  was  a 
verj-  high  compliment  paid  to  the  chief,  but  was 
also  the  means  of  increasing  the  interest  of  nuun- 
in  the  floral  exhibits. 

Chief  Thorpe  is  a  man  of  fine  ph\sical  de\el- 
opment,  in  the  prime  of  life,  and  is  the  ])icture  of 
robust    health.     Strong,    active    and    rugged,    he 


looks  like  one  that  can  attack  his  work  early  in 
the  morning  and  not  be  afraid  of  it  if  it  occupies 
him  until  late  at  night. 

He  was  married  im  Christmas  da\-,  1S63,  to 
.Miss  Clara  Soars,  the  tlaugliter  (if  a  well-to-do 
farmer  of  Leicester  count\-.  They  have  a  famih" 
of  six  children,  two  boys  and  four  girls.  Chief 
rhorjie  is  a  domestic  man,  and  in  the  bosom  of 
his  family  he  finds  his  greatest  happiness,  and  to 
afford  them  every  comfort  and  pleasure  is  his 
constant  endeavor. 


BENJAMIN    F.    AVER. 


CHlC.'^iGO.   ILL. 


BENJAMIN  FRANKLIN  AVER,  a  native 
of  King.ston,  Rockingham  count}-.  New 
Hampshire,  was  born  April  22,  1825,  to  Robert 
and  Louisa  (Sanborn)  Ayer.  He  is  of  the  eighth 
generation  of  the  New  England  family,  whose 
father,  John  Ayer,  emigrated  from  Norfolk 
county,  England,  in  1637.  and  in  1645  .settled  at 
Haverhill,  Massachusetts.  Here  Benjamin's 
father  was  born  August  14,  1791.  His  mother 
was  a  daughter  of  Benjamin  Sanborn,  of  King.s- 
ton, New  Hampshire,  a  descendant  of  John 
Sanborn,  grandson  of  Rev.  Stephen  Batchelder, 
who  emigrated  from  Derbyshire,  England,  in 
1632,  and  on'  the  settlement  of  Hampton,  New 
Hampshire,  in  1638,  became  the  first  minister 
(if  the  church  in  that  town.  Lewis  Cass  and 
Daniel  Webster  were  among  his  descendants. 

After  closing  his  preliminary  studies,  young 
A\-er  prepared  for  college  at  the  Albany  Acad- 
cni)-;  he  then  entered  Dartmouth  College,  from 
which  he  was  graduated  with  the  class  of  1846. 
He  spent  part  of  the  next  three  years  in  the  law 
department  of  Harvard  University,  was  admitted 
t(i  the  bar  in  1849,  'i"<^^  ^^  ^"'^^  began  the  prac- 
tice of  his  ])rofession  at  Manchester,  New  Hamp- 
shire. He  was  a  close  student,  and  had  an 
analytical  mind.  More  than  all,  he  pos.sessed  a 
genius  for  hard  work,  and  soon  came  to  be  know  n 
as  a  conscientious,  painstaking  and  successful 
lawyer.  His  fellow-citizens  appreciated  his  abili- 
ties, and  in  1853  elected  him  to  the  legislature  of 
the  State :  and  the  following  \-car  he  was  ap- 
pointed   prdsccuting    attdrney    for     Hillsborough 


count)-.  New  Hampshire,  and  held  that  office 
until  he  removed  to  Chicago,  in  1857.  On  the 
15th  of  Ma\-  in  that  year,  he  w-as  admitted  to 
practice  in  Illinois.  His  ability  was  soon  recog- 
nized, and  within  a  few  months  he  held  a  leading 
position  at  the  Chicago  bar.  From  1861  to  1865 
he  was  corporation  counsel  of  Chicago,  and  was 
the  author  of  the  revised  city  charter  of  1863. 

Soon  after  his  term  of  office  closed  he  became 
a  member  of  the  firm  of  Beckwith,  Ayer  and 
Kales,  which  continued  until  1S73,  when  .Mr. 
Beckwith  withdrew  and  the  firm  name  changed 
to  Ayer  and  Kales.  While  engaged  in  the  gen- 
eral practice  of  his  profession,  Mr.  Ayer  gave  his 
attention  largely  to  the  law  of  corporations,  and 
in  that  branch  of  jurisprudence  has  few  equals. 
His  success  in  the  management  of  corporate 
matters,  involving  the  law  governing  railroads, 
brought  him  into  special  prominence ;  and  al- 
though he  had  a  large  and  constantly  growing 
practice,  he  was  induced,  in  187''',  to  give  it  up 
and  become  general  solicitor  for  the  Illinois  Cen- 
tral Railroad  Company,  of  which  he  was  made  a 
director,  one  year  later. 

Since  January  i,  1S9O.  he  has  been  general 
counsel  of  this  conqjany.  The  following  tribute 
from  a  brother  attorney,  who  knows  him  inti- 
niatcK-.  is  as  true  as  it  is  beautiful; 

••  Benjamin  1-".  Ayer  has  stood  in  the  first  rank 
of  lawyers  in  Chicago  for  more  than  thirty  years. 
Nothing  has  been  allowed  to  dixert  him  from  his 
profession;  he  ne\er  relies  on  others  to  do  his 
work  ;     e\ery    (|uestion    is   in\estig.ite(l    until   the 


^-  ?■  (lu 


LH^L 


niocRArmcAi.  nicrioxARv  axp  portrait  i;a/././:rv. 


729 


subject  is  c.\li;iusteci.  W'liilc  not  coiitroUctl  b\- 
precedents,  he  personally  examines  cver\-  case 
where  the  subject  has  been  in\ol\ed,  in  order  to 
extract  the  principles  applicable  to  the  matter  in 
hand.  The  most  remarkable  (.piality  is  the  ability 
to  make  a  connected  and  logical  statement  to  the 
court.  This  is  done  in  language  that  cannot  be 
misunderstood  ;  and  when  presented  orallj-,  it  is 
with  a  clear  voice  and  appropriate  emphasis,  gi\-- 
ing  the  greatest  pleasure  to  the  listener.  The 
manner  is  one  of  honesty  and  candor,  which 
leaves  no  room  to  doubt  as  to  his  own  convictions. 
He  has  always  had  the  credit  of  sincerity  with  the 
court,  stating  facts  in  a  conservative  way  and  sup- 
pressing nothing,  regardless  of  the  effect  upon 
his  ca.se.  He  has  ahvaj-s  endeavored  to  aid  the 
court  in  arriving  at  correct  conclusions,  both  as  to 
fact  and  law,  believing  that  the  highest  duty  of  a 
lawyer  is  to  see  that  justice  is  done.  In  short,  he 
commands  the  confidence  and  respect  of  judges 
and  lawyers,  and  as  a  citizen  is  without  reproach." 

He  is  clear,  logicJil  and  concise  as  a  S])eaker, 
and,  without  any  attempt  at  oratorical  display, 
his  addresses  seldom  fail  to  carrj-  conviction. 
His  sincerity  and  conservativeness  enter  into 
ever>-thing  that  he  does;  and  these,  combined 
with  his  wide  range  of  legal  learning  and  ready 
use  of  pure  English,  make  him  a  power  before 
cither  court  or  jury. 

.Mr.  A}-er  is,  withal,  a  man  of  rare  modest}- ; 
and,  while  inclined  to   reticence,  is  a  most   enter- 


taining and  agreeable  companion.  His  \-ears  of 
varied  experience,  his  knowledge  of  general  lit- 
erature, his  observation  of  men  and  events,  and 
his  constant  endeavor  to  keep  himself  in  touch 
with  the  trend  of  current  thought,  combined  with 
his  courteous  manner  and  gentlemanly  bearing, 
win  for  'him  universal  respect,  and  make  him 
especially  popular  in  his  wide  circle  of  friends. 

He  is  a  prominent  member  of  the  American 
Har  Association,  and  has  been  president  of  the 
Chicago  Bar  Association. 

In  1878  his  altna  mater  conferred  upon  him  the 
degree  of  LL.  D.  In  1889  he  helped  to  organ- 
ize the  association  known  as  Sons  of  New  Hamp- 
shire, and  for  two  years  served  as  its  president. 

He  is  a  member  of  the  Chicago  Club,  the 
Chicago  Literary  Club,  and  the  Chicago  Histor- 
ical Society;  and  since  1879  has  been  president 
of  the  Western  Railroad  Association. 

In  stature,  Mr.  Ayer  is  little  less  than  six  feet 
in  height,  and  well  proportioned  ;  he  has  a  well- 
shaped  heaii.  and  blue  eyes;  his  features  are 
strong,  clear-cut  antl  regular,  and  his  whole  bear- 
ing are  indicative  of  a  cultured  and  high-minded 
gentleman. 

In  1868  Mr.  A}-er  married  Miss  Janet  A.  Hop- 
kins, a  daughter  of  Hon.  James  C.  Hopkins,  of 
Madison.  Wisconsin,  who  was  United  States 
District  Judge  for  the  Western  District  of  Wis- 
consin. They  have  four  children,  Walter.  Mary 
Louisa,  Janet  and  Margaret  Helen. 


FRAXK    RICHARD   GRliENE, 

CHIC.'Vt.O,    ILL. 


A.MOXG  the  nian\-  bright  and  promising 
young  men  of  Chicago,  who,  step  by  step, 
have  worked  their  way  to  the  front  by  their  own 
energy,  ability  and  force  of  character,  none  is 
more  deserving  of  honorable  menticm  than  the 
subject  of  this  sketch. 

Frank  Richard  Greene  was  born  at  Newport, 
Ohio,  on  June  8,  1859.  and  is  the  son  of  James  H. 
and  Melissa  (Wood)  Greene.  He  is  descended 
from  a  line  of  distinguished  ancestors,  and  is  a 
direct  descendant  of  General  Nathaniel  Greene, 
of  revolutionary  fame.  His  grandfather,  Richard 
Greene,  was  one  of  the  pioneers  who  settled  near 


Marietta,  Ohio,  in  1788,  when  Ohio  was  known  as 
the  •'  Northwest  territory,"  Marietta  being  the 
first  settlement  in  tliat  territory.  Our  subject's 
father  was  a  well-to-do  farmer  of  Washington 
county,  Ohio,  and  a  prominent  and  influential 
citizen,  and  still  lives  on  the  old  homestead,  where 
his  father,  Richard  Greene,  settled  in  1788.  He 
was  a  soldier  in  the  late  war  of  the  rebellion,  and 
was  a  member  of  the  general  assembly  of  Ohio  in 
1866  and  1867. 

I-"rank  spent  his  boyhood  on  his  fathers's  farm, 
attending  the  district  schools  and  helping  in  the 
farm-work,    and    when    old     enough,     pursued     a 


730 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AND  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


course  of  study  at  Marietta  Collet^e,  Ohio.  His 
father  had  a  large  family  to  support,  and  in  order 
to  relieve  him  of  a  part  of  the  burden,  Frank  left 
school  at  the  age  of  seventeen  years  to  start  in 
life  for  himself.  Being  offered  a  clerkship  in  a 
bank  at  Marietta,  he  accepted  it  and  remained 
with  the  institution  some  five  j^ears,  being  pro- 
moted from  time  to  time,  until  he  became  teller 
and  head  book-keeper.  When  about  twenty-two 
years  old  he  went  to  Indianapolis,  Indiana,  where 
he  held  important  and  responsible  positions  with 
various  commercial  houses.  He  went  thence  to 
St.  Louis,  Missouri,  and  later  to  St.  Paul,  Minne- 
sota, where  he  was  assistant  cashier  for  the 
Northern  Pacific  Railway  Company  for  two  years. 
In  1885  Mr.  Greene  located  in  Chicago,  and 
entered  the  employ  of  Messrs.  Weaver,  Tod  and 
Company,  coal  merchants,  remaining  with  them 
five  years  as  confidential  book-keeper.  He  re- 
signed his  position  in  March,  1890,  to  assume  the 
duties  of  auditor  for   the   Chicago  City  Railway 


Company.  He  filled  that  position  until  January, 
1891,  when  he  was  elected  secretary  of  the  com- 
pany, and  was  re-elected  in  January,  1892. 

Mr.  Greene  united  with  the  Baptist  denomina- 
tion when  a  boy,  and  for  some  fourteen  years  has 
been  a  devoted  and  earnest  worker  in  religious 
and  church  matters,  and  takes  an  active  interest  in 
whatever  tends  to  the  betterment  of  his  fellow- 
men.  In  political  sentiment  he  has  alwaj's  been 
a  Republican.  He  takes  a  deep  interest  in  polit- 
ical matters,  but  is  in  no  sense  a  politician. 

Mr.  Greene  was  married  September  24,  1 891,  to 
Miss  Berinthia  M.  Thompson,  of  Monticello,  Illi- 
nois, a  lady  of  education,  culture  and  refinement, 
and  many  womanly  graces. 

Though  young  in  years,  Mr.  Greene  has  at- 
tained to  a  place  in  the- confidence  of  the  business 
world  that  few  men  of  his  years  reach,  and  b\- 
his  upright  character  and  straightforward  manly 
conduct,  holds  the  high  esteem  of  all  who  know 
him. 


WILLIAM    E.   W.   JOHNSON, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


THE  career  of  him  whose  name  heads  this 
sketch  is  one  of  which  any  man  might  well 
be  proud.  Possessed  of  an  indomitable  will  and 
untiring  energj-,  he  has  accomplished  much  ;  that 
which  most  men  strive  for — honor  and  wealth — he 
has  attained.  His  history  is  interesting  in  show- 
ing how  he  has  risen  from  obscurity  to  promi- 
nence in  the  city  of  his  adoption. 

William  E.  W.  Johnson  was  born  in  Philadel- 
phia, November  7,  1850,  the  son  of  Charles  F. 
and  Mary  A.  Johnson.  He  was  sent  to  the  public 
schools  in  his  native  city  until  the  age  of  four- 
teen, and  by  studious  habits  mastered  the  rudi- 
ments of  a  good  education,  but  was  compelled  to 
leave  school  at  this  early  age  and  begin  the  battle 
of  life.  He  went  to  Bowling  Green,  Kentucky, 
and  secured  a  position  as  clerk  in  a  United  States 
recruiting  office,  where  recruits  for  hulian  wars 
were  being  enlisted.  F'rom  there  he  went  to  Des 
Moines,  Iowa,  where  he  sold  books  for  a  year. 
He  next  secured  employment  in  a  hardware  store, 
and  beginning  at  the  bottom  he  worked  his  way 
up  until  he  attained  the  position  of  salesman. 


In  1871  Mr.  Johnson  returned  to  Philadelphia- 
where  he  secured  a  position  with  the  large  pack- 
ing firm  of  Washington  Butchers  Sons,  as  head 
teamster  and  storage  clerk.  He  was  ambitious 
and  his  rigid  training  stood  him  in  good  stead. 
He  applied  himself  closely  to  his  work  and  by  his 
faithfulness,  and  industn,-  and  efficiency,  gained 
the  confidence  of  his  emploj-ers,  and  in  a  short 
time  was  appointed  superintendent,  and  held  that 
position  until  188;.  During  that  year  the  house 
opened  a  branch  in  Chicago,  and  placed  Mr.  John- 
son in  charge  of  it,  and  at  the  same  time  he  was 
given  an  interest  in  the  Chicago  branch  of  the 
business.  He  conducted  the  business  successfully 
until  July,  1889,  when  he  associated  himself  as  a 
partner  with  Mr.  B.  V.  Cronkrite  in  the  real-e.s- 
tate  business,  though  he  did  not  engage  actively 
in  the  business  until  si.K  months  later.  After  clos- 
ing the  affairs  of  his  former  business,  he  engaged 
with  his  accustomed  zeal  and  enterprise  in  the 
affairs  of  his  new  firm,  which  under  its  able  man- 
agement has  come  to  be  one  of  the  foremost  real- 
estate  firms  in  Chicago. 


BIOCRArmCAL  DICTIOXARY  AM)  PORTRAIT  CAI.I.F.RY. 


7ZZ 


In  politics,  Mr.  Joliiisoii  is  a  Democrat,  but  he 
is  in  no  .sense  a  politician. 

He  is  a  member  of  the  Union  Leatjue  Club  of 
Chicago,  and  a  life  member  of  the  Manhattan 
Athletic  Club  of  New  York  City. 

Mr.  Johnson  is  interested  in  many  enterprises. 
He  is  president  of  the  Western  Roiling  Stock  and 
Equipment  Company  of  Chicago. 

Although    Mr.   Johnson   did   not   have   the  ad- 


vantages of  a  thorough  education  in  early  life,  he 
has  been  a  careful  observer  of  men  and  events, 
and  devotes  much  time  to  reading;  and  he  has 
acquired  a  large  fund  of  valuable  information  that 
renders  him  a  most  interesting  conxersationalist 
and  companion. 

Vet  in  the  prime  of  life,  he  has  attained  to  an 
cn\iablc  place  as  a  business  man,  and  may  justly 
attribute  his  success  to  his  own  merit. 


LOUIS    KISTLER, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


10UIS  KISTLER,  lawyer  and  advocate,  was 
-•  born  June  25,  1S35,  in  Strasburg,  Germany, 
being  the  eldest  son  of  Andrew  and  Maiy  Kistler. 
His  father  was  a  brave  soldier  in  the  Napoleonic 
wars,  and  died  in  1 845  from  the  effects  of  wounds 
and  exposure.  At  ten  years  of  age,  therefore, 
Louis  was  left  virtually  alone,  his  mother  being 
in  no  position  to  assist  him.  The  next  year  he 
came  to  America,  and  settled  in  Rochester,  New 
York.  He  immediately  set  about  to  earn  his  own 
living,  making  at  the  same  time  persistent  efforts 
to  master  the  English  language ;  and  by  his  own 
original  resources  succeeded,  by  dint  of  effort,  in 
pursuing  a  classical  course  of  study  at  the  Syracuse 
University,  from  wJiich  institution  he  graduated 
with  honor  in  1858.  He  then  became  a  teacher 
in  Greenwich  Academy,  Rhode  Island;  and,  in 
1862,  he  revisited  Europe  for  the  purpose  of  pur- 
suing a  course  of  higher  study  at  the  University 
of  Berlin,  at  the  same  time  carefully  scrutinizing 
the  social,  commercial  and  political  condition  of 
the  land  of  his  birth.  Returning  in  1S64  to 
America,  the  land  of  his  choice  and  adoption,  he 
accepted  a  position  in  the  Northwestern  Univer- 
sity at  Evanston,  as  professor  of  the  Greek  lan- 
guage and  literature,  and  as  professor  of  political 
.science — his  term  of  service  covering  fourteen 
years — which  position,  in  1878,  he  resigned,  and 
commenced  the  active  practice  of  the  law  in  Chi- 
cago, having  remarkable  and  unvaried  success 
with  a  constantly  growing  clientage.  The  prac- 
tice of  the  law  absorbs  his  time  and  talent. 

His  staunch  character  and  recognized  ability 
made  him  prominent  in  Republican  circles;  and 
as  president  of  the  Germ.iii-Anurioan    Republican 


Club,  he  made  one  of  his  characteristic  extempo- 
raneous spceclies  of  welcome  to  the  Hon.  James 
G.  Blaine,  at  the  Grand  Pacific  Hotel,  on  October 
25,  1884,  which  is  considered  one  of  the  political 
"  gems"  of  that  marvelous  campaign.  It  is  here 
given  as  a  model  of  its  kind  ; 

"  Mr.  Blaine, — ^Weare  pleased  to  meet  \ou.  As 
men  coming  from  the  various  walks  of  life,  and 
representing  the  German-American  Republicans  of 
Chicago,  the  metropolis  of  the  northwest,  we  ex- 
tend to  you  a  cordial  greeting.  W'c  are  ac- 
quainted with  your  long  and  varied  career  as  a 
public  servant.  Your  course  as  a  member  and 
speaker  of  the  House  of  Representatives,  senator 
and  member  of  the  great  and  lamented  Garfield 
cabinet,  and  as  the  historian  of  those  great  na- 
tional events  that  have  rendered  the  name  and 
fame  of  our  country  a  household  word  among  the 
great  nations  of  the  civilized  world,  commands 
most  truly  our  confidence  and  respect.  During 
your  long  and  honorable  public  service,  given  to  the 
country  of  our  choice  and  adoption,  you  have 
been  distinguished  from  all  other  men  in  public 
life,  as  the  typical  American  statesman — broad  and 
liberal  in  your  ow  n  \iews,  seeking  your  countn,-'s 
highest  and  best  interests,  and  never  losing  sight  of 
those  fundamental  principles  of  the  American  con- 
stitution, which  stand  forth  so  prominently  as  the 
great  bulwark  of  protection  to  every  American  citi- 
zen in  his  personal  rights  and  his  personal  libertj-. 
Being  zealous  of  our  own  personal  liberty  in  the 
country  of  our  choice  and  adoption,  and  being 
fully  identified  with  its  great  and  varied  interests, 
we  hail  you  as  the  great  leader  and  champion  of 
our  aspirations.     Your  earnest  and  persistent   ad- 


734 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


vocacy  of  protection  to  the  great  industries  of  our 
loved  land,  now  far  dearer  to  us  than  the  land  of 
our  fathers;  your  broad  statesmanship  ;  your  love 
of  liberty — all  these  inspire  in  us  the  belief  that 
your  administration  of  the  national  government 
will  be  the  beginning  of  a  new  era  in  our  national 
growth  and  prosperity.  You,  sir,  and  our  gallant 
Logan,  are  the  chosen  leaders  in  this  grand  march 
of  our  national  prosperity.  You  have  our  hearti- 
est support.     Please  accept  our  presence  as  an  in- 


dorsement of  your  life,  character  and  public  ser- 
vices. In  the  name  of  the  German-American  Re- 
publicans of  Chicago,  we  bid  you  a  most  hearty  wel- 
come to  the  queen  among  the  cities  of  the  lakes." 
Mr.  Kistler  speaks  the  English  language  with 
purity,  power  and  a  faultless  accent,  and  is  greatly 
devoted  to  American  institutions  and  American 
interests.  He  is  prominently  connected  with  the 
orders  of  Odd-Fellows  and  Masons,  and  takes 
ereat  interest  in  their  welfare. 


GEORGE    M.    PULL^LA.N, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


IN  this  practical  and  utilitarian  age,  he  deserves 
and  receives  the  esteem  and  admiration  and 
praise  of  his  fellow-men,  the  work  of  whose  hand 
secures  the  greatest  good  to  the  greatest  number. 
When  judged  by  what  he  has  done,  by  the  last- 
ing benefits  which  his  genius  and  enterprise  have 
conferred  upon  all  classes,  he  whose  name  heads 
this  sketch  must  be  ranked  among  the  world's 
greatest  philanthropists.  George  M.  Pullman  is 
one  of  Chicago's  most  distinguished  citizens.  He 
is  a  native  of  the  village  of  Brocton,  Chautauqua 
county.  New  York,  and  was  born  on  March  3, 
1 83 1.  His  father,  James  Lewis  Pullman,  was  a 
native  of  Rhode  Island  ;  he  was  a  mechanic  by 
occupation,  and  a  man  of  great  force  of  character 
and  influence  in  his  community  ;  and  withal  was 
known  for  his  fair-mindedness,  his  pure-hearted- 
ness  and  his  loyalty  to  what  he  believed  to  be 
right;  he  died  on  November  1,  1853.  His 
mother,  Emily  Caroline  (Minton)  Pullman,  was  a 
woman  of  rare  good  sen.se  and  womanly  virtues; 
she  was  a  daughter  of  James  Minton,  of  Auburn. 
New  York. 

Our  subject  has  four  brothers  and  two  sisters. 
viz.:  Rev.  Royal  H.  Pullman,  pastor  of  the  First 
Universalist  Church  of  Baltimore;  Albert  B. 
Pullman,  for  many  years  connected  with  the 
Pullman  Palace  Car  Company,  but  now  engaged 
in  other  business;  Dr.  James  M.  Pullman,  a  Uni- 
versalist minister  at  Lynn,  Massacluisctls  ;  Charles 
L.  Pullman,  connected  with  the  Pullman  Palace 
Car  Company  ;  Helen  A.,  the  wife  of  Mr.  George 
West,  a  merchant  of  New  York  city,  and  Emma 
C,  the  wife  of  Dr.    William    1-".  I'luhrer,    a   promi- 


nent surgeon  of  New  York  city.  His  brother, 
Frank  W.  Pullman,  a  lawyer,  who  was  assistant 
United  States  District  Attorney  at  New  York, 
died  in  1879. 

George  M.,  aside  from  careful  home  training, 
received  a  good  common-school  education,  and 
while  yet  a  boy  disclosed  that  independence  and 
self-reliance  and  luanly  persistence  that  have 
characterized  his  subsequent  life  and  been  such 
important  factors  in  his  remarkable  success.  He 
was  full  of  original  ideas,  and  had  much  inventive 
genius;  and  best  of  all  had  a  practicality  in  his 
ideas,  and  a  perseverance  and  constancy  in  utiliz- 
ing them,  that  enabled  him  to  turn  them  to  good 
account.  His  introduction  to  business  life  was 
as  a  clerk  in  a  store  near  his  home  when  fourteen 
years  old,  for  which  he  received  an  annual  salary 
of  forty  dollars.  His  elder  brother.  Royal  H., 
'  was  conductiifg  a  small  cabinet-making  establish- 
ment at  Albion,  New  York,  at  this  time,  and  at 
the  end  of  his  first  \ear  in  the  store,  George  took 
a  place  in  his  shop  to  learn  the  cabinet-making 
tratle  :  a  most  important  step  as  subsequent 
events  discloseil.  While  yet  in  his  teens  he  be- 
came a  partner  with  his  brother,  and  the>-  were 
reasonabl)-  prosperous.  But  upon  the  death  of 
his  father,  the  care  of  his  mother  and  younger 
brothers  and  sisters  largeh'  devolved  upon  him, 
and  he  found  it  necessary  to  increase  his  income. 
With  his  other  acquirements  he  had  gained  a 
considerable  knowledge  of  mechanics  and  engi- 
neering, and  when,  about  this  time,  the  State  of 
New  York  advertised  for  bids  to  widen  the  Erie 
Canal  and    raise  the  buildings   along  its  line,  he 


ni(H:R.irnic.\i.  nicTioxjKv  .i.\n  portrait  c.alli:rv. 


Ill 


sccurcil  a  contract :  ami  so  siiccessfiill)'  diti  he 
accomplish  the  work  that  he  was  soon  ranked 
with  the  leading;  contractors  in  that  particular 
line  of  business,  anil  found  no  difficult)-  in  t^ettin^' 
all  the  work  he  could  do. 

Hut  a  wider  field  was  opening  for  him.  Chi- 
catjo  was  about  to  engage  in  an  undertaking  re- 
quiring at  its  head  a  man  of  just  his  type  and 
ability.  The  city  authorities  hatl  tlecided,  for 
sanitary  reasons  and  in  order  to  secure  cleanliness, 
to  raise  the  grade  of  the  streets  in  the  business 
portion  of  the  south  division  some  si.x  feet,  and 
in  order  to  accommodate  themselves  to  the  new 
order  of  things,  owners  of  buildings  found  it 
necessary  to  raise  them  to  the  street  grade.  Mr. 
Pullman  learned  of  the  situation,  and,  with  a 
capital  of  si.x  thousand  dollars,  removed  to  Chi- 
cago and  bid  for  and  secured  some  of  the  largest 
contracts  for  raising  the  buildings  in  the  whole- 
sale district  along  Lake  and  Water  streets.  This 
was  in  1859.  The  buildings  were  large  four  and 
five-story  structures  of  brick,  iron  and  stone,  .iiul 
to  raise  them  bodily  seemed  impossible,  and  a 
long  siege  of  confusion  and  interruption  of  busi- 
ness was  looked  for.  What  was  the  happy  sur- 
prise of  those  who  had  feared  the  worst  when 
they  .saw  one  after  another  of  these  massixe  struc- 
tures lifteil  to  the  required  height,  and  at  the 
same  time  saw  their  business  going  on  day  after 
day  with  comparatively  little  inconvenience  and 
as  though  nothing  had  happened.  This  success- 
ful achievement  was  regarded  as  a  marvel"  of 
engineering  skill,  and  increased  the  reputation  and 
fame  of  the  man  who  had  accomplished  it. 

Mr.  Pullman's  ne.vt  engineering  experiences 
were  in  Colorado,  whitlier  he  was  attracted,  with 
the  thousands  of  others,  upon  the  discovery  of 
gold  there.  Me  sjjcnt  three  years  among  tJie 
mines,  and  made  considerable  money. 

Prior  to  going  to  Colorado,  he  had  imperfectly 
carried  out  a  long  cherished  plan  of  Ics.scning  the 
discomforts  of  traveling.  The  introduction  of 
sleeping  accommodations  in  railway  coaches  had 
met  with  little  encouragement  owing  to  the  ill- 
suited  contrivances  that  had  been  used.  Mr. 
Pullman  was  quick  to  sec  that  comfort  was  an 
indispensable  requisite,  and  that  the  more  the 
luxuries  afforded  the  greater  would  be  the  de- 
mand for  such  accommodations.  To  illustrate 
his  theory,  he,  in  the  spring  of  1859,  had  fitted  up 


two  old  passenger  cars  belonging  to  the  Chicago 
ami  .Mton  Railro.id  Com]Kiny,  to  be  used  as 
"sleepers."  The  novelty  and  ingenuity  and  feasi- 
bility, combined  with  the  elegant  taste  of  his 
plan,  attracted  favorable  consideration  and  com- 
ment. It  was  the  perfection  of  his  work  thus 
begun,  that  he  determined  upon  when  he  returned 
to  Chicago  from  Colorado  in  1863. 

With  the  aid  of  able  a.ssistants  he  set  about  his 
task  with  a  will,  sparing  no  expense  in  giving  ex- 
pression to  his  ideas,  greatly  to  the  surprise  and 
discomfiture  of  many  of  his  friends  who  looked 
upon  his  venture  as  foolishly  extravagant  and  im- 
practical. After  many  months'  labor  and  an  e.x- 
penditure  of  eighteen  thousand  dollars,  he  pro- 
duced his  first  car  ready  for  service.  It  was  a 
marvel  of  beauty  and  comfort  and  luxury,  and  was 
called  by  its  owner,  the  "  Pioneer."  "  The  Pull- 
man Palace  Car,  viewed  simply  as  a  stationary 
miniature  palace,  w^ould  be  a  wonder  of  architec- 
tural and  artistic  beauty.  But  it  is  a  thing  of  a 
thousand  mechanical  devices ;  a  \ehicie  and 
house  ;  a  kitchen,  dining-room,  parlor,  ofifice, 
sleeping-room  and  boudoir,  all  in  one.  To^  have 
made  this  alone  would  have  ranked  Mr.  Pullman 
as  an  inventor  of  world-wide  celebrity."  The 
"  Pioneer "  made  its  first  trip  as  a  part  of  the 
train  which  bore  the  remains  of  President  Lin- 
coln from  Washington  to  their  final  resting 
place  at  Springfield.  Soon  afterward  it  was 
called  into  requisition  on  the  occasion  of  Gen- 
eral Grant's  return  to  his  Galena  home ;  and 
not  long  before  it  ceased  to  be  regarded  simply  a 
luxury,  and  was  demanded  by  the  traveling  pub- 
lic as  a  necessity,  and  all  the  leading  railroads  in 
the  country  were  ready  to  gratify  the  wishes  of 
their  patrons.  This  popular  demand  was  a  vindi- 
cation of  Mr.  Pullman's  advanced  ideas,  that  the 
public  would  be  willing  to  pay  for  whatever  would 
remove  the  discomforts  of  travel  and  add  to  it  the 
comforts  and  luxuries  of  home,  and  it  is  in  fur- 
therance of  those  ideas  that  has  come  the  \esti- 
bule  train  of  more  recent  years. 

The  demand  for  these  cars  led  to  the  organiza- 
tion of  the  Pullman  Palace  Car  Company,  Febru- 
ary 22,  1867,  whose  operations  had  become  so 
extensive  in  1880  that  new  works  and  larger  and 
more  improved  facilities  were  required.  Here 
was  offered  an  opportunity  of  testing  a  plan 
which  he  had  long  cherishetl   of  building  a  town. 


738 


BIOGRAI'llICAL  DICTIOXAKY  A.XD  I'ORTRAIT  CALI.F.RV. 


to  comprise  the  necessary  shops,  stores,  markets, 
places  of  amusement,  houses  for  his  workmen  and 
their  famihes,  school-houses  and  churches,  all  to 
be  under  the  care  of  the  company.  Four  thou- 
sand acres  of  land  were  bought  along  and  near 
the  western  slimf  of  Lake  Calumet,  some  twelve 
miles  south  of  the  then  limits  of  Chicago,  and 
five  miles  inland  from  Lake  Michigan,  with  which 
it  is  connected  by  the  Calumet  Ri\er.  The  land 
was  first  prepared  by  a  thorough  system  of  drain- 
age into  Lake  Calumet,  whence  the  town  site 
gradually  rises.  Streets  were  laid  out  and  im- 
proved, bordered  on  either  side  by  grass  plats, 
beds  of  flowers  and  rows  of  elms.  The  shops  of 
the  company,  built  of  pressed  brick  and  stone  and 
roofed  with  slate,  are  artistic  in  design  and  models 
of  convenience  for  their  various  uses  ;  and,  sepa- 
rated as  they  are  bj-  broad  avenues  and  well-kept 
lawns,  they  present  a  view  beautiful  and  unique. 
These,  covering  some  thirty  acres  of  land,  are 
separated  from  the  southern  or  residence  portion 
of  the  town  by  a  broad  boulevard  with  handsome 
dwellings.  From  this,  running  southward,  are 
five  broad  avenues,  which  bear  the  names  Ste- 
phenson, Watt,  F"ulton,  Morse  and  Pullman,  and 
along  which  stand  the  cottages  occupied  by  the 
workmen  employed  in  the  works.  There  are 
nearly  eighteen  hundred  houses,  of  a  great  variety 
of  artistic  designs,  and  they  rent  for  prices  vary- 
ing according  to  size,  location,  etc.  The  Arcade 
building,  erected  at  a  cost  of  three  hundred  thou- 
sand dollars,  is  occupied  by  the  theatre,  the  post- 
ofifice,  the  bank,  the  library  and  the  stores  of  the 
town,  which  latter  open  onto  an  interior  court 
with  galleries,  and  which,  under  the  electric  lights 
at  night,  resemble  a  brilliantly  illumined  bazaar. 
In  the  center  of  the  tow  n  is  a  massive  tower,  the 
center  of  the  water  and  sewerage  systems.  Other 
notable  structures  are  the  Hotel  Florence,  the 
several  churches  and  sch(H)l  houses,  all  models  of 
elegance  and  good  taste  in  architectual  designs, 
and  provided  with  every  modern  convenience  and 
appliance  requisite  to  comfort  and  sanitary  com- 
pleteness. Improvements  are  constantly  being 
made,  and  at  the  present  time  (1892)  nearly  eight 
million  dollars  have  been  expended  in  bringing 
the  place  to  its  present  state  of  completeness. 
The  power  for  the  shops,  which  began  operation 
in  April,  1881,  is  furnished  by  the  celebrated  Cor- 
liss engine  used  at  the  Centennial    Exposition  at 


Philadelphia.  The  inhabitants  number  over 
twelve  thousand,  and  the  social,  moral  and  intel- 
lectual character  of  the  place  is  greatly  superior 
to  that  of  the  average  industrial  town.  Taken 
all  in  all,  it  is  a  most  remarkable  illustration  of 
practical  philanthropy,  and  the  wonderful  success 
that  has  attended  the  enterprise  from  its  incep- 
tion verifies  the  thecMv  of  its  originator  and  pro- 
moter :  "  That  beauty  and  culture  have  an 
economical  \alue,  and  that  the  working  classes 
are  capable  of  appreciating  and  appropriating  the 
highest  ministries  of  excellence  and  art." 

Professor  David  Swing,  speaking  of  this  "  New 
alliance  between  capital  and  labor,"  said  :  "  A 
sense  of  harmonj-  predominates.  Each  detail  is 
in  proper  place  and  proper  porportion.  The  build- 
ings for  labor  are  not  joined  to  the  fireside. 
Home  and  shop,  and  church  and  opera  house,  and 
library  and  railway  station,  are  where  each  should 
be,  and  instead  of  making  a  discord  they  verify  to 
the  full  the  definition  of  him  who  said  that 
'  Architecture  was  frozen  music'  Here  the  stores 
are  as  numerous  as  the  population  demand  ;  the 
churches  pay  some  regard  to  the  souls  that  need 
transformation  from  sin  to  goodness  ;  the  theatre 
is  adapted  to  the  number  of  those  who  need  hours 
of  laughter  and  merriment ;  the  library  fits  the 
community  as  neatly  as  a  glove  the  hand  of  the 
lady;  even  that  strange  invention  of  man  in  his 
estate  of  sin  and  misery — the  saloon — is  subjected 
to  the  eternal  fitness  of  things,  and,  inasmuch  as 
a  community,  however  large,  needs  no  saloon  at 
all,  that  is  the  number  laid  out  by  the  thoughtful 
architect  and  built  by  the  founder.  It  receives  its 
due  proportion  of  time  and  money.  But  the  ma- 
terial symmetry  of  this  new  cit\-  is  only  the  outward 
emblem  of  a  moral  unity  among  the  inhabitants. 
Unity  is  a  common  bond  of  interest  and  feeling,  a 
bond  great  enough  to  hold  men  together,  but  not 
strong  enough  to  cramp  human  nature  in  an\-  of 
its  honorable  departments." 

The  Pullman  Palace  Car  Company  is  the  largest 
railroad  manufacturing  interest  in  the  world.  It 
employs  a  capital  of  forty  million  dollars,  and  has 
assets  exceeding  forty-five  millions.  It  has  in  its 
service,  according  to  its  last  report,  two  thousand 
two  hundred  and  thirty-nine  cars  ;  employs  thir- 
teen thousand  eight  hundred  and  eighty-five  per- 
sons, whose  annual  wages  aggregate  three  million 
three  hundred  and  thirtv-one   thousand  five  hun- 


ji/oGK.iF/ncAL  lycno.y.iKV  .i.v/)  /'OAT/ci/r  d.tuj:^): 


739 


drcti  aiui  twciit\'-scvcn  dollars  ami  forty-ono  cents, 
bcinjj  an  average  of  six  hundred  and  ten  dollars 
and  seventy-three  cents  per  capita.  During  l8gi 
about  five  and  a  half  million  passengers  were 
carried,  and  the  aggregate  distance  traveled  was 
about  one  hundred  and  eighty-seven  million 
miles. 

.\ithough  Mr.  Pullman  has  been,  and  is,  the 
moving  spirit  of  this  gigantic  enterprise,  he  has 
at  the  same  time  been  largely  interested  in  im- 
portant interests.  Among  these  may  be  men- 
tioned the  Eagleton  Iron  Works,  of  New  York, 
and  the  New  York  Loan  and  Improvement  Com- 
pany, of  which  he  was  president,  and  which  was 
organized  in  his  offices  in  that  city  in  1874-75, 
and  built  the  Metropolitan  Elevated  Railway  on 
Second  and  Si.xth  avenues.  In  this  company  he 
was  associated  with  Mr.  Jose  F.  DeNavarro  and 
Commodore  Garrison,  each  owning  one-third  of 
the  stock.  The  project  was  strenuously  opposed 
by  the  street  railway  companies  of  New  York  and 
some  of  the  most  influential  citizens,  who  sought 
to  defeat  it  by  every  process  known  to  the  law. 
Finally  the  company's  cause  was  sustained  by  the 
higher  court,  when  all  but  one  hundred  days  of 
the  time  stipulated  in  the  company's  charter  for 
having  the  road  in  operation  had  expired.  Noth- 
ing daunted,  the  projectors  went  to  work  with  a 
will,  calling  to  their  aid  all  the  available  help  they 
could  secure,  and  in  ninety-six  days  had  their 
road  in  operation.  He  has  been  interested  in  the 
Nicaragua  canal  project  since  its  inception. 

The  Pullman  building,  one  of  the  most  massive 
and  imposing  office  and  apartment  buildings  in 
Chicago,  situated  at  the  corner  of  Michigan  avenue 
and  Adams  street,  was  built  by  the  Pullman  Car 
Company  in  1884,  at  a  cost  of  one  million  dollars. 
Two  floors,  and  one  half  of  a  third,  are  occupied  by 
the  offices  of  the  Pullman  Palace  Car  Company  ; 
the  United  States  Army  offices,  a  floor  and  a  half, 
and  the  upper  floors  arc,  for  the  most  part,  oc- 
cupied by  offices. 

His  palatial  house  on  Prairie  avenue  overlook- 
ing Lake  Michigan,  surrounded  by  broad  velvety 
lawns  and  graceful  elms,  with  its  spacious  apart- 
ments, costly  furniture,  and  treasures  of  art  and 
literature,  and  withal,  its  generous  hospitality,  is 
a  marvel  of  elegance  and  taste.  His  nobleness 
of  character  could  not  better  be  illustrated  than 
by  the  devotion  and  care  which   he  has  always 


sliown  his  mother.  No  personal  sacrifice  was  too 
great  for  him  to  make  in  order  to  minister  to  her 
wants.  "  When  some  years  ago  old  age  was  com- 
ing on,  and  the  spring  and  energj*  of  life  run  out 
in  her,  unless  .something  could  bring  back  the 
zest  of  living,  her  da):i  were  numbered.  Accord- 
ingly, Mr.  Pullman  purchased  an  island  on  the 
St.  Lawrence  River,  and  there  erected  for  her  a 
magnificent  home  which  was  called  Castle  Rest. 
We  do  not  emphasize  the  costliness  of  her  sur- 
roundings. But  the  beauty  of  her  home  and  the 
almost  royal  luxuriousness  of  her  living  were 
only  the  smallest  part  of  the  life-long  tribute  that 
was  paid  to  her;  this  luxury  was  the  gift  not  of 
ostentation  but  of  love,  but  back  of  it  all  there 
was  personal  devotion,  a  personal  service  that 
was  more  precious  than  anything  that  wealth 
could  do.  For  all  the  years,  in  all  the  children's 
homes,  the  mother's  birthday  was  the  central  day 
in  all  the  year.  Wherever  she  was,  to  her  they 
came,  and  music  and  art,  and  the  pleasant  re- 
callings  of  the  early  days  in  "mother's  life" 
gave  to  her  the  homage  of  a  queen.  So  her  life 
went  on  into  extreme  old  age — eighty-four  years 
of  it — before  its  translation  into  the  other  life 
that  grows  not  old.  And  then  the  end  came,  not 
that  the  years  had  brought  sorrow,  not  that  the 
zest  of  life  was  gone,  not  that  the  love  that  min- 
istered to  her  grew  weary,  but  that  she  had  lived 
her  appointed  years!  Memory,  vision,  sympathy, 
all  the  faculties  of  life  were  unwasted.  Her  love 
of  beauty  was  as  keen,  her  wit  as  bright,  her  ap- 
preciation of  the  love  and  devotion  of  her  chil- 
dren as  quick  as  it  had  ever  been.''  A  touching 
and  tender  tribute  to  her  memory,  by  Almon 
Gunnison,  D.D.,  appeared  in  the  Christian  Leader, 
June  9,  1892. 

In  all  his  business  relations  Mr.  Pullman  is 
prompt  and  never  acts  hastily.  His  great  achieve- 
ments have  been  the  results  of  carefully  devised 
plans.  His  personal  and  social  qualities  are  such 
as  to  endear  him  to  all  who  come  within  the 
range  of  his  influence.  His  hand  is  open  to  all 
worthy  charities,  and  all  public  enterprises  find 
in  him  a  warm  friend,  and  in  all  his  relations  his 
conduct  is  characterized  by  modesty  and  mod- 
eration. 

In  March,  1S67,  Mr.  Pullman  married  Miss 
Hattie  A.  Sanger,  daughter  of  Mr.  James  T. 
Sanger,    of    Chic.-isn).     Their    four    children    are, 


740 


mOGRAl'IIICAI.  DICTIOXARY  AXD  I'ORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Florence  Sanger,  Harriet  Sanger.  George  M.  and  and  Cliristian  virtues,  and  with  lier  charming 
Walter  Sanger,  the  last  two  being  twins.  Mrs.  daughters  takes  an  earnest  interest  in  religious 
Pullman    is   a   woman   of   rare   accomplishments     and  benevolent  work. 


N.    K.    FAIRBAXK. 


CHICAGO.    ILL. 


NATHANIEL  K.  FAIRBAXK  is  perhaps 
as  fair  an  example  of  the  .self-made  man 
as  is  to  be  found  in  the  city  of  Chicago.  He  was 
born  in  1829,  at  Sodus,  Wayne  county,  New 
York.  He  was  educated  in  the  public  schools  of 
his  nati\-e  town  and  by  private  study  at  home 
with  a  tutor.  Being  prepared  for  college  at 
too  early  an  age  to  enter,  he  was  apprenticed 
to  a  bricklayer  at  the  age  of  fifteen  ;  he  com- 
pleted his  apprenticeship  at  Rochester,  New 
York.  Shortly  after  this  he  accepted  a  posi- 
tion as  book-keeper  in  a  flouring-mill.  and  at 
the  end  of  six  months  became  a  partner  in  the 
business.  Attracted  by  the  advantages  and  in- 
ducements offered  to  energetic  young  men  in  the 
rapidly  growing  West,  he  resolved  to  go  thither, 
and  in  1855  removed  to  Chicago  and  established 
himself  in  the  grain  commission  business,  and  he 
became  the  western  agent  of  David  Dows  and 
Company,  of  New  York,  and  remained  such  some 
ten  years.  During  this  time  he  had  become 
financially  interested  in  the  lard  and  <iil  refinery 
of  Smedley,  Peck  and  Company.  The  business 
was  prosperous,  but  after  some  four  years  suf- 
fered the  loss  of  its  valuable  plant  by  fire,  entail- 
ing a  loss  of  fifty  thousand  dollars.  This,  how- 
ever, was  but  a  temporary  check.  .And  the  fol- 
lowing year  {1870)  the  firm  built  the  present 
refinery,  situated  at  the  corner  of  Eighteenth  and 
Blackwell  streets,  at  a  cost  of  more  than  eighty 
thousand  dollars.  Some  two  years  later  Mr. 
Smedley  sold  his  interest,  and,  afterward,  Mr. 
Peck  withdrew  from  the  business,  their  places 
being  filled  by  Messrs.  W.  H.  Burnet  and  Joseph 
Sears,  the  firm-name  changing  to  N.  K.  Fairbank 
and  Company,  which  soon  became  known  all  o\er 
the  world. 

Mr.  Fairbank  is  a  man  of  broad  sympathies 
and  generous  public-spiritedness,  and  intensely 
practical  in  his  ideas.  For  .several  years  pre- 
vious to    the    fire    Mr.    Fairbank    was    an    active 


member  uf  the  Relief  and  Aid  Society,  and 
after  the  fire  he,  as  w  ell  as  his  fellow-members  of 
the  board,  devoted  his  entire  time  for  two  years 
or  more  to  the  faithful  distribution  of  the  world's 
great  charity.  The  present  home  of  the  Chi- 
cago Club,  on  Monroe  street,  was  built  through 
his  enterprise  in  1874,  when  the  Club  was  finan- 
cially and  numerically  weak,  as  compared  with 
its  condition  to-da\-.  Of  the  one  hundred  and 
thirty-five  thousand  dollars  which  the  Club- 
house cost,  eighty  thousand  dollars  were  sub- 
scribed b\-  the  members  before  the  building  was 
completed,  and  the  balance  of  fifty  thousand 
dollars  was  paid  by  Mr.  Fairbank.  As  a  mark  of 
their  appreciation  of  his  generosity  and  execu- 
tive ability,  as  well  as  an  expression  of  their 
regard  for  him  personalh',  the  members  elected 
him  president  of  the  Club  upon  taking  posses- 
sion of  the  new  house  in  1876,  and  he  con- 
tinued in  that  office  by  re-election  for  thirteen 
years.  Another  monument  to  the  enterprise 
and  public  spirit  of  Mr.  Fairbank  is  the  Cen- 
tral Music  Hall.  Chicago's  need  of  such  a 
structure  was  first  suggested  by  the  late  ]\Ir. 
(ieo.  B.  Carpenter,  whose  zeal  and  enthusiasm 
excited  public  interest.  But  money  was  needed. 
The  object  appealed  to  the  practical  judgment 
of  Mr.  Fairbank,  and.  although  Chicago  was  but 
just  recovering'  from  the  effects  of  the  great  fire 
of  1871,  he  placed  the  matter  before  the  capital- 
ists of  the  city,  and  such  was  the  influence  of  his 
endorsements  that  all  the  stock  was  quickly  sub- 
scribed for,  and  the  building  now  known  as  Cen- 
tral Music  Hall  was  erected.  But  his  helps  are 
not  alone  for  the  higher  or  well-to-do  classes — the 
poor,  the  needy,  the  friendless,  have  always  found 
in  him  a  generous  friend.  The  Newsboys'  Home 
which,  some  years  ago,  was  heavily  mortgaged, 
he  helped  to  release  from  its  burden  of  indebted- 
ness by  getting  subscriptions,  and  by  interesting 
those  in  favored  circumstances  in  its  noble  work. 


'^^r<C^. 


^^^O'^r'-Z^ 


FtlOGR.M'HICAl.   IVCTIOXARV  A.\T>  J'ORTh'.l/r  GALLERY. 


743 


St.  I.iikc'>  Hospital  is  another  iiistilulioii  wliich 
has  cause  to  feci  grateful  for  his  practical  hel|). 
Seeing;  the  need  of  a  commodious  building,  he 
headed  the  subscriiHion  list  with  twenty-five 
thousanil  dollars,  and  raised  by  personal  solicita- 
tion the  remainder  of  the  money.  The  result  was 
the  new  hospital  building,  which  is  an  honor  to 
Chicago.  He  has  always  been  to  it  a  true  friend, 
a  liberal  patron,  and  a  faithful  officer. 

In  religious  faith  Mr.  Fairbank  has  been  since 
childhood  a  Presbyterian.  For  man\-  years  he 
was  connected  with  the  South  Church,  of  which 
rrofes.sor  Swing  was  formerly  pastor.  Upon  the 
retirement  of  Professor  Swing  from  that  pas- 
torate, Mr.  Fairbank  was  one  of  his  most  faithful 
adherents,  and  entered  heartily  into  the  work  of 
organizing  the  Central  Church,  whoso  services 
are  held  in  Central  Music  Hall  and  conducted  by 
Professor  Swing.  He  was  one  of  lift\-  persons 
who  pledged  themselves  to  make  good  any  deficit 
of  money  in  carr)-ing  on  the  work  of  the  church, 
for  a  period  of  three  years.  He  is  an  influential 
member  of  the  board  of  trustees  and  a  member 
of  the  music  committee,  and  in  many  ways  has 
devoted  himself  unsparingly  to  the  work  of  the 
church,  which  has  come  to  be  one  of  the  most 
influential  in  Chicago.  Mr.  Fairbank  is  a  lover  of 
music,  and  has  been  a  liberal  patron  of  all  move- 
ments calculated  to  cultivate  musical  taste,  par- 
ticularly the  P'estival  .Vssociation  and  the  numer- 
ous concerts  conducted  by  the  celebrated  Theo- 
dore Thomas.  He  has  been  and  is  greatly  inter- 
ested in  pisciculture,  and  the  angler  throughout 
the  Northwest,  and  more  especially  in  the  States 


of  Wisconsin  and  Illinois,  owes  much  to  his  en- 
terprise. 

In  personal  appearance,  Mr.  I-"airbank  is  above 
the  average  height,  well-pro[)ortioned  and  digni- 
fied in  bearing.  I  lis  features  betoken  rare  intel- 
lect, and  great  energy,  while  in  manner,  he  is 
courteous,  affable  and  of  a  genial  nature  ;  gifted 
as  a  conversationalist,  he  is  an  excellent  host. 
In  political,  literar)-  and  social  ciricles,  he  is  a 
marked  and  ])romincnt  figure,  anil  an  e\'er  wel- 
come guest. 

He  is  withal  a  man  of  domestic  tastes  and  a 
lover  of  home-life,  and  besides  his  elegant  home 
at  the  corner  of  Michigan  avenue  and  Eighteenth 
street,  he  has  a  beautiful  summer  residence  at 
Lake  Geneva,  Wisconsin,  also  a  cottage  which 
he  occupies  as  a  winter  residence,  at  LekyI  Island, 
Georgia,  where  he  is  vice-president  of  the  Lckyl 
Island  Club,  and  where  he  and  members  of  his 
family  spend  the  better  part  of  each  winter. 

In  1866  he  married  Miss  Helen  L.  Graham, 
of  New  York.  They  ha\c  four  sons  and  three 
daughters. 

Mr.  Fairbank  is  one  of  the  most  successful 
business  men  in  Chicago.  His  success  is  largely 
due  to  his  inflexible  integrity,  his  marvelous  fore- 
sight, and  his  habits  of  thoroughness,  persever- 
ance and  lionesty.  Chicago  owes  much  to  Na- 
thaniel K.  Fairbank;  he  has  done  much  t(j  rai.se 
her  to  the  position  she  to-day  holds,  and  no 
man  of  this  great  western  metropolis  may  be- 
termcd  more  representative,  or  better  illustrates 
its  marvelous  growth  and  immense  enterprise 
than  he. 


REV.    ROBERT    McIXTVRE. 


CHlCACiO,    ILL 


IT  were  as  difficult  to  "  paint  the  bow  upon 
the  bended  heavens."  to  perpetuate  the 
variegated  flashes  of  the  aurora,  or  by  the 
magic  of  art  to  reproduce  the  momentary  sparkle 
of  a  gem,  as  with  words  to  delineate  an  adequate 
picture  of  Robert  Mclntyre,  the  preacher,  the  ora- 
tor, the  scholar,  the  Itteratcnr.  Robert  Mclnt\re 
is  a  born  orator,  and  has  "  high  and  peculiar  gifts 
of  nature,"  impelling  his  mind  to  creati\e  imag- 
ery of  the  highest  type,  and  which  enable  him   to 


reach  conclusions  seemingly  by  intuition.  He 
was  born  at  Selkirk,  .Scotland,  November  20, 
1851.  His  parents,  Charles  and- Elizabeth  Mcln- 
tyre, immigrated  to  the  United  States  when  Rob- 
ert was  a  boy,  anil  settled  at  Philadelphia,  where 
he  attended  the  public  schools,  and  also  a  short 
time  the  \'anderbilt  University.  He  has  been  a 
student  all  his  life  at  home,  being  a  lover  of 
books,  and  he  gained  most  of  his  education  there. 
His    tastes   were    for   literature  and    travel.      His 


74 


liUx.K.U'lilL.ll.  lUCTIOSARY  AND  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


parent^  (IkiI  early  in  life  leaving  him  anil  his 
younger  brother.  Joseph  1'.  Mclntyre,  to  care  for 
themselves.  At  an  early  age  Robert  was  appren- 
ticed to  learn  the  bricklayer's  trade.  He  served 
his  employer  faithfully  for  three  years,  improving 
his  spare  time  by  study  and  in  the  spring  of  1872 
he  removed  to  Chicago,  where  he  did  effective 
work  with  his  hands  and  trowel  in  rebuilding  the 
city  after  the  great  conflagration  of  1871.  Ik- 
worked  as  a  journeyman  four  years,  after  which 
he  traveled  and  acted  as  newspaper  correspondent. 
In  1877  he  was  converted  to  Christianity  and 
joined  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  and  soon 
afterward  felt  himself  called  to  preach  the  gospel. 
Prior  to  this  time  he  had  led  a  aimless  existence. 
II  is  marriage,  however,  changed  the  whole  course 
of  his  life,  and  made  him  what  he  is.  The  influ- 
ence of  a  Christian  woman  led  to  his  conversion 
and  subsequent  course  in  life.  He  entered  the 
ministry  in  tktober,  1878,  and  joined  the  Illinois 
Conference.  He  has  had  five  pastorates.  His 
first  charge  was  at  Easton,  Illinois,  where  he  found 
a  feeble  church  with  no  meeting-house.  But  he 
was  not  disheartened.  He  secured  the  donation 
of  a  suitable  lot.  then  solicited  donations  of 
building  material,  and,  laying  aside  his  minis- 
teri.d  garb  donned  his  mason's  suit,  and  went 
to  work  on  the  foundations  of  a  house  of  wor- 
ship. He  laid  the  walls  with  his  own  hands,  and 
the  trowel  with  which  he  did  the  work  now 
hangs  in  his  study — a  sacred  memento  which  he 
delights  to  show. 

The  building  was  soon  finished  and  dedicated, 
and  he  had  a  very  successful  pastorate  there  of 
two  years.  His  second  charge  was  at  Marshall, 
Illinois,  where  he  remained  three  years,  highly 
appreci.ited  for  his  zeal  and  masterly  eloquence. 
He  was  next  sent  to  Charleston,  Illinois,  and  re- 
mained there  three  years  with  good  result.s,  and 
then  had  charge  of  the  church  at  Urbana,  Illi- 
nois, two  years.  Hy  reason  of  his  markeil  abili- 
ties, his  oratorical  powers  and  his  earnest  and 
deep  spirituality,  the  young  preacher  had  now 
become  widely  known,  and  in  1887  he  was  called 
to  fill  the  pulpit  of  Cirace  M.  E.  Church  of  Chi- 
cago, being  appointed  by  the  Rock  River  Confer- 
ence, to  which  he  had  been  transferred.  His 
congregation  is  one  of  the  largest  in  Chicago,  and 
during  the  time  he  has  been  pastor  of  Grace 
Churcli  a  womlerful  work  has  bevn  accomi)lished. 


At    the    end    of    two    jears  he  was    reappointed 
for  the  third  year. 

Mr.  Mclntyre  is  a  member  of  both  the  Masonic 
and  Odd  Fellows  orders,  and  chaplain  of  his 
lodges.  He  has  traveled  extensively  through 
.\merica,  Europe,  Asia  and  Africa.  He  is  thor- 
oughly orthodox  in  his  religious  views.  He  is  a 
Republican,  and  takes  an  active  interest  in  polit- 
ical affairs. 

Dr.  Mclntyre,  on  December  31.  1S77.  married 
Miss  Ella  Chatten,  a  daughter  of  Mr.  H.  I.  Chat- 
ten,  of  Quincy,  Illinois.  They  have  three  chil- 
dren: Ruth,  Carlyle  and  Nellie.  Mrs.  Mclntyre 
is  a  woman  of  much  culture,  and  a  noble  Chris- 
tian character,  and  to  her  influence  and  counsels 
is,  in  a  large  measure,  due  the  remarkable  suc- 
cess  of  her  husband. 

He  is  a  man  of  robust  health,  and  has  a  strong 
physical  development  commensurate  with  his 
mental  powers,  so  that  he  is  able  to  do  a  vast 
amount  of  work  without  fatigue.  He  loves  his 
study  and  finds  congenial  companionship  with 
his  books,  and  cares  little  for  social  enjoyments, 
though  he  is  by  no  means  a  recluse.  He  is 
warmly  attached  to  his  chosen  friends.  He  is 
fond  of  fishing  and  hunting,  and  frequently  takes 
recreation  in  that  way. 

He  is  one  of  the  most  popular  lecturers  in  the 
country.  At  the  Canadian  Chautauqua,  in  1S89, 
the  noted  evangelist,  Sam  Jones,  said  :  "  Having 
heard  the  prominent  orators  of  our  day,  I  am  free 
to  declare  that  I  reckon  Robert  Mclntyre  of  Chi- 
cago the  finest  popular  speaker  on  this  continent." 
Hishop  X'incent  says:  "Robert  Mclntyre  filled 
the  bill  at  Chautauiiua.  His  lecture  was  magnifi- 
cent and  made  a  great  hit."  Gen.  .\lger  says  of 
him  :  "  I  heard  Robert  Mclntyres  war  lecture  ; 
it  is  a  thrilling  picture,  and  will  stir  every  one 
fortunate  enough  to  hear  it."  John  A.  Logan 
said:  "The  lectures  of  Robert  Mclntyre  arc 
verj-  fine.  I  commend  them  to  the  G.  .\.  R. 
I'osts  as  ins]}iring  and   instructive." 

.\mong  the  subjects  treated  in  his  lectures  are: 
"Thirty  Hours  in  the  Sunless  World,  or  a  Trip 
through  Wyandotte  Caverns,"  "  The  Sunny  Side 
of  a  Soldier's  Life,"  "  The  Holy  Land,"  "  Egypt, 
the  Land  of  the  Tharaohs,"  "  Fun  on  the  Farm, 
or  Old  Times  in  the  West."  "  Huttened  \j\>  Peo- 
ple." "  .\  Week  in  Wonderland."  "  Yosemitc  and 
the  Big  Trees."  "The  Six  Creative  Days,"  "  From 


BiocK.iriiKAL  nicrioxAKv  Axn  rouTKAir  c.ai.li:kv. 


745 


the  I'rairics  to  the  Pyramids."  As  a  preacher 
Mr.  Mclntyre  lias  few,  if  any,  equals  in  tlic  West. 
Although  versatile  he  is  not  superficial ;  e.\actness 
and  thorouijhness  characterize  all  his  attaiments. 
His  intellectual  possessions  are  unified  and  assim- 
ilated:  they  are  his  own.  Everything  is  brouj^ht 
to  bear  upon  his  life  work  as  a  minister  of  the 
gospel.      He   is  at   his    best    on    great    occasions 


which  bring  out,  when  his  efforts  are  often  of  a 
high  order  of  genius.  John  McGovern,  editor, 
poet  and  author,  sajs  of  him  :  "He  is  a  man  of 
warm,  sympathetic  nature  l  he  delights  in  giving 
encouragement  to  others  in  their  literary  pursuits. 
I  cannot  express  how  greatly  I  am  indebted  to 
him  for  his  counsel  and  help  at  times  when  I 
greatly  needed  such  an   advisor  and  friend." 


DENIS   .1.    SWENIE, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


Tl  II-:  name  of  Denis  j.  Swenie,  the  Chief  of 
Brigade  and  Marshal  of  the  Fire  Depart- 
ment, has  for  over  forty  years,  been  known  in  this 
city,  and  has  become  as  familiar  as  a  "  household 
word,"  and  one  that  the  people  look  up  to  with 
confidence  and  esteem.  Since  1849  he  has  con- 
tinuously and  uninterruptedly  devoted  himself  to 
the  people's  service.  From  a  little  village  in  the 
forties,  with  its  wooden  buildings,  volunteer  fire 
com])an\-,  hand-pump  and  church-bell  alarm,  he 
has  seen  it  become  in  the  nineties,  a  city  phenom- 
enal in  wealth,  commerce  and  po])ulation,  and  with 
a  fire  brigade  unsurpassed  in  the  world  for  its 
efficiency.  The  \olunteer  company  has  been 
superseded  by  a  paid  service,  the  old  hand-pump 
has  given  way  to  the  steam  engine,  and  the  village 
bell  has  been  succeeded  by  the  fire  alarm  tele- 
graph system.  The  department  of  which  he  is 
the  head  has,  like  the  city,  become  unique,  and  is 
to-day  unsurpassed.  Chief  Swenie  may,  after 
years  of  labor,  look  with  pride  on  the  result.  It 
is  with  pleasure  that  we  place  the  name  of  Denis 
J.  Swenie  among  Chicago's  representati\-e  men. 
Others  may  build  our  warehouses,  direct  our 
banks  or  run  our  factories,  but  to  him  is  largely 
due  the  security  we  enjoy  of  both  life  and  prop- 
erty. 

He  was  born  of  Irish  parents  in  Glasgow,  Scot- 
land, July  29,  1834,  and  was  educated  at  the 
public  schools  of  his  native  city  until  he  was  four- 
teen years  of  age.  In  1848  his  parents  brought 
him  to  this  country  and  located  in  Chicago, 
where  young  Swenie,  like  many  others,  combined 
work  and  .study.  As  an  apprentice  to  the 
saddlery  and  firemen's  sup])lies  business  he  ga\e 
much     satisfaction     b\-    his   earnest    and    upright 


character.  In  1849  he  joined  the  No.  3  Hose  Com- 
pan\\  .\s  a  \olunteer  fireman  \-oung  Swenie  soon 
attracted  attention  b)'  his  bravery  and  daring. 
The  work  of  the  volunteer  was  at  that  time  diffi- 
cult and  dangerous,  and  for  want  of  the  proper 
appliances,  was  very  often  unsuccessful.  Quick 
to  grasp  the  necessity  of  the  moment,  and  practi- 
cal in  meeting  an  emergency,  he  suggested  many 
useful  appliances  and  pointed  out  many  improve- 
ments, which  have  since  proved  highly  useful  in 
fighting  fire.  In  1856  he  was  elected  first  assist- 
ant engineer,  and  two  years  later  was  made  Chief. 
The  first  steam  fire  engine  was  used  in  Chicago 
the  same  year,  1858.  It  was  named  "  Long  John," 
after  Hon.  John  W'entworth,  who  was  mayor 
about  that  time.  This  same  year  witnessed  a 
bitter  controversy  on  the  subject  of  volunteer 
versus  paid  firemen.  In  the  work  of  reorganiza- 
tion Mr.  Swenie  met  with  bitter  opposition.  The 
first  company  commissioned  under  full  pay  was 
the  Atlantic  Engine  Conipan\-,  No.  3,  organized 
October  21,  1858.  During  the  following  year 
four  new  engines  were  purchased,  and  as  many 
paid  companies  organized.  In  August,  1875,  the 
city  abolished  the  board  of  fire  commissioners,  and 
established  the  management  under  a  fire  marshal, 
who  should  also  be  called  chief  of  brigade.  The 
change  proved  to  be  most  important  for  the  effic- 
iency ofthe  department,  as  it  gave  it  but  one  direct- 
ing head.  In  1873,  the  maj-or,  on  the  recom- 
mendation of  the  board,  a|)pointed  Mr.  Swenie 
first  assistant,  and  the  council  confirmed  the  a])- 
pointment.      He  was  made  Chief  in    1879. 

Among  the  many  excellent  improvements  in- 
troduced b\-  the  Chief,  is  what  is  called  the  Stand 
I'ipe  or  Water  Tower,   which  consists  of  a  series 


746 


iiiiu;R.\riiicAJ.  niCTioxARV  Axn  i'ortrmt  (.ai.lery. 


of  pipes  telescopin:^  iiitn  cacli  other,  and  rumiiny 
II])  at  will  from  ihirly  tn  seventy  feet,  ami  which 
may  be  inclined  at  an_\-  antijlc  by  machinery  at  the 
base.  I'liur  enijines  can  be  worked  on  this  one 
]>i])e  and  a  two-inch  stream  forced  a  distance  of 
two  hundred  feet,  if  necessar\-. 

Chief  .Swenie.  like  an  able  and  experienced  L;en- 
eral,  iiandles  his  lii-iL;ade  of  nearly  a  thousand  men. 
tluring"  the  excitement  of  a  \ast  coiitlaijalion.  with 
the  precision  and  oidei'  of  a  well-trained  army. 
The  telegraph  fire  alarm  ser\ice.  under  the  direc- 
tion of  Mr.  Harretl.  the  city  electrician,  is  a  won- 
der to  those  who  learn  its  methods  and  sec  its  re- 
sults for  the  first  time.  Hy  it  the  Chief  can  locate 
and  direct  his  force  with  ease  antl  efficiency. 
What  is  of  great  importance  the  CHiief  has  the 
confidence  and  affection  of  his  men.  Cool. 
cautious  and  careful  in  his  conmiamls,  he  is 
watchful  and  anxious  for  their  safet\-,  \et  he  has 
the  dash  and  the  daring  necessar\-  in  the  perform- 
ance of  a  fireman's  duty.  Long  experience,  thor- 
ough knowledge  and  the  power  of  organization, 
render  him,  in  an  emergency,  a  great  central  fig- 
ure, inspiring  confidence  and  stimulating  exertion. 

Although  fifty-seven  years  of  age  Chief  Swenie 
is  robust,  active  and  vigorous.  He  is  as  anxious 
and  as  energetic  about  the  efficiency  of  his  brig- 
ade to-day,  as  he  was  when  first  commissioned 
to  reorganize  it. 

lie  is  a  man  of  original  mind,  but  is  as  ready  to 
accept  a  suggestion  as  he  is  to  make  t)ne.  He 
has  great  ability  to  grasp  a  subject  and  an  indom- 
itable will  to  overcome  obstacles.  In  conversation 
he  is  fluent,  pleasing,  quick,  .witty  and  humorous. 
Me  has  taken    every   opportunity    ollered    by    his 


scant  leisure  to  make  u])  by  reading  and  study  for 
till,  loss  of  an  early  education,  and  has  succeeded. 

In  jjolitics  Chief  .Swenie  desires  to  take  no  part. 
"  Our  object  and  our  use  in  this  department,"  he 
says,  "is  to  put  out  fires,  not  to  put  out  parties." 

Me  was  married  October  16,  1853,  when  only 
nineteen  years  old,  to  ^Miss  Martha  Toner,  of  this 
cil\-.  Tluy  h.ne  been  blessed  with  a  famil)'  of 
se\'en  children,  wlmm  it  has  been  the  greatest 
pleasure  of  his  life  to  alTord  the  athantage  of  a 
liberal  education,  and  to  surround  with  e\er\- 
comfort  and  pleasure.  An  affectionate  husband 
and  an  indulgent  father,  he  has  .ilways  found  his 
greatest  peace  and  ha[)piness  in  the  bosom  of  his 
famil)-. 

Tin:  city  iif  Chicago  is  grateful  to  its  public 
men  who  honestly  and  honorabl}'  pei'form  their 
dut\'.  When  heroism  goes  hand  and  with  ability 
in  the  [lerformance  of  public  duty,  she  cannot 
afford  to  be  outdone  in  generosit}-.  Were  it  our 
dut)-  here  to  tell  the  value  of  property  sa\-ed,  and 
the  number  of  li\cs  rescued  during  Chief  Swenie's 
forty-three  years  connection  with  the  dep.artment. 
it  w  ould  astonish  the  public.  To  those  w  ho  will 
look  up  the  record  of  the  vast  fires  that  have, 
like  some  great  monster,  devoured  the  lives  and 
property  of  our  citizens,  will  be  revealed  the  fact 
that  only  for  the  heroism  and  self-sacrifice  of  the 
fire  brigade,  the  terrible  story  of  destruction 
wt)uld  be  doubled.  To  the  skill,  experience, 
genius  and  daring  of  Chief  Swenie,  we  owe  not 
only  thanks  for  the  past,  but  to  him  we  look  for 
securil}-  in  the  future.  His  present  position  is  a 
])roof  of  the  people's  confidence  and  a  mark  of 
their  high   esteem. 


EDWIN    HARTLEY    PRATT,   A.M..  M.D.  LL.D. 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


Tl  IE  life  and  achievements  of  him  whose  name 
heads  this  biography  worthily  illustrate 
what  may  be  attained  by  persistent  and  painstak- 
ing effort.  Edwin  Hartley  Pratt  is  a  native  of 
Towanda.  Penn.sylvania,  and  was  born  .\o\  ember 
6,  1849,  the  son  of  Leonard  I'ratt.  ALU.,  and 
Betsey  (Belding)  Pratt,  both  of  w  hom  are  of  Eng- 
lish descent.  The  father,  now  a  resident  of  San 
Jose,  California,  was  formerly  connected  with  Hah- 


nemann Medical  College,  Chicago,  and  for  many 
yiars  was  one  of  the  most  distinguished  physi- 
cians in  the  Northwest.  He  is  a  man  of  pro- 
gressive idea.s,  noted  for  nobility  and  integrity  of 
character,  gentleness  of  manner  and  promptness 
in  all  things.  The  maternal  ancestors  were  long- 
li\ed  people,  and  the  mother  of  our  subject  in- 
herited a  rugged  constitution.  She  is  a  woman 
of  large  stature,  energetic  and   fearless,  and  perse- 


BlOuKArillCAr.   lycno.XARV  A.\n  I'ORTRAIT  i.Al.I.llRY. 


"49 


veriiig.  ami,  wlien  convinced  of  tiic  riglitiicss  t>l  ^i 
purpose  or  plan,  allows  no  obstacle  to  stand  in 
the  way  of  its  achievement.  Our  subject  pos- 
sesses a  happ\'  combination  of  many  of  the  quali- 
ties and  characteristics  of  both  his  parents.  In 
physical  organization  he  resembles  most  the 
Beldings,  being  large  in  stature,  si.\  feet  tall, 
finely  proportioned,  and  weighing  two  hundred 
and  fifty  pounds.  In  mental  make-up  he  has  the 
cheerfulness  and  hopefulness  of  his  father,  com- 
bined with  his  mother's  indomitable  energy,  cuur- 
age  and  perseverance.  His  only  living  sister. 
Nettie  L.  Pratt,  is  aj-oung  lady  noted  for  her  un- 
usual musical  attainments.  She  resides  at  San 
Jose,  California.  Another  sister,  Ilattie,  ilied 
when  thirteen  years  of  age  of  malignant  (li])li- 
theria,  it  being  one  of  the  first  cases  in  this  coun- 
try.    An  only  brother  died  in  infancy-. 

Prior  to  his  fifteenth  year  Edwin  attentled  the 
common  schools,  and  then  spent  a  year  at  .Mt. 
Carroll  Seminary.  In  order  to  give  him  the  ad- 
vantage of  a  college  education,  his  father  now  re- 
moved to  Wheaton,  Du  Page  county,  Illinois,  and 
he  pursued  the  first-year  preparatory  course  at 
Wheaton  College.  Upon  the  opening  of  the  sec- 
ond \-ear,  the  college  authorities  learning  that  he 
had  interested  himself  in  the  organization  of  a 
Good  Templars'  Lodge,  and  being  opposed  to 
secret  societies,  demanded  that  he  sever  his  con- 
nection with  the  lodge.  He  was  only  a  day  stu- 
dent, living  at  his  own  home,  and  his  father  was  a 
member  of  the  lodge,  and  feeling  the  injustice  of 
the  demand  refused  to  comply  with  it ;  and  leav- 
ing the  school  at  once  entered  the  seconil-year 
class  in  the  preparatory  de])artnient  nf  the  L'ni- 
versity  of  Chicago.  He  remained  at  thai  iiistitu- 
tif>n  six  \-ears,  completing  a  thorough  classical 
course  of  study,  and  graduating  with  the  class  of 
1871,  with  the  degree  of  ,\.H.  In  college  he  was 
known  as  a  hard  worker,  and  dexelopeil  a  special 
aptitude  for  geometry,  logic,  metaphysics,  Eng- 
lish grammar  and  rhetoric,  and  was  especially 
fontl  of  the  Odes  of  Horace  and  Ars  Poiiica,  by 
reason  of  their  help  to  him  in  writing  and  speak- 
ing. In  the  literary  society  to  which  he  belonged, 
the  "  Tri  Kappa,"  he  was  a  leader  in  deb;ite,  and 
among  the  foremost  writers  and  speakers,  and 
made  himself  popular  among  his  fellow  students 
by  entering  heartil}-  into  the  true  spirit  of  college 
life.     He  was  a  prominent  member  of  the  "  Delta 


Kappa  Epsilon  "  fraternity.  He  also  had  fine 
musical  tastes  and  talents,  and  improved  these  by 
attending  various  musical  schools  during  the  sum- 
mer \acations,  gi\ing  special  attention  to  the 
study  of  harmony  and  thorough-bass.  His  own 
choice  was  to  fit  himself  for  the  practice  of  law, 
but  knowing  the  disappointment  his  father  would 
experience  should  he  not  enter  the  medical  pro- 
fession, he  }-ielded  his  own  wishes,  and  in  Octo- 
ber, I  S71 ,  enteretl  I  l.ihnemanii  Metlical  College, 
Chicago,  and  w.is  graduatetl  therefrom  in  the 
spring  of  1873,  with  the  degree  of  M.D.  During 
his  medical  course  he  acted  as  quiz-master  in  con- 
nection with  his  father's  chair,  that  of  special 
patholog)-  and  diagnosis,  and  also  during  his  last 
\ear  filled  the  position  of  demonstrator  of  anat- 
omy under  appointment  of  the  incumbent  of  that 
chair.  After  listening  to  his  wilcdictor}-  address, 
the  Board  of  Trustees  of  the  college  were  so  fa\or- 
ably  impressed  that  they  at  once  invited  him  to 
become  demonstrator  and  adjunct  professor  of 
.matoni)-.  In  order  to  hctti-r  qualify  himself  for 
the  place,  he  \isited  Philadelphia  and  spent  the 
spring  term  in  Professor  Keen's  School  of  .Anat- 
omy, and  JefTerson  Medical  C<^>llege.  In'the  fall 
of  1 873  he  entered  upon  the  duties  as  teacher, 
lecturing  twice  each  week,  and  in  addition  filled 
the  jilace  of  the  professor  of  anatomy,  when  that 
gentleman  was  absent,  and  as  he  was  present  but 
twice  during  the  entire  winter,  tlie  responsibilities 
of  that  position  de\oKe(l  upon  Dr.  Pratt.  .Al- 
though the  mental  strain  was  sc\eic,  he  bore  up 
under  it.  and  at  the  close  of  the  year  had  the 
satisfaction  of  knowing  that  his  wDrk  was  highly 
satisfactory.  As  a  niaik  of  their  appreciation, 
the  students  who  had  receivetl  the  benefits  of  his 
teaching  presented  him  with  a  beautiful  gold- 
headed  cane  at  the  close  of  his  last  lecture. 

Dr.  Pratt  was  now  tendered  the  professorship 
of  anatomy,  but  the  desire  to  engage  in  active 
practice,  and  the  thought  that  he  could  not  afford 
to  longer  donate  his  services,  led  him  to  at  first 
decline  the  offer.  The  college  authorities,  how- 
ever, knowing  the  wilue  of  his  services,  were  re- 
luctant to  let  him  go,  and  at  once  tendered  him  a 
salary  of  fi\e  hundred  dollars  a  year.  Under  this 
arrangement  he  accepted  the  position,  and  filled 
it  until  the  spring  of  1876.  At  this  time,  owing 
to  ilissensions  between  the  hoard  of  trustees  of 
the  college  and  the    facull\-,   ten   of   the   thirteen 


750 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIONARY  A.XI)  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


professors  resigned  and  organized  the  Chicago 
Homoeopathic  Medical  College.  With  these  Dr. 
Pratt  sympathized  most  heartily,  believing  them 
to  be  in  the  right,  and  although  the  Hahnemann 
College  desired  him  to  continue  his  connection 
there  at  the  same  salary,  a  sense  of  duty  impelled 
him  to  decline  the  offer  and  accept  the  profes- 
sorship of  the  same  chair  in  the  new  institution 
without  remuneration.  This  chair  he  filled  for 
.seven  years,  during  which  time  the  honio'opath- 
ists  were  admitted  to  the  wards  of  the  Cook 
County  Hospital.  Dr.  Pratt  was  elected  a  mem- 
ber of  the  hospital  staff,  and  occupied  a  position 
first  in  the  theory  and  practice  department,  later 
in  the  gyn.xcological  department,  and  afterwards 
was  elected  attending  surgeon  of  the  hospital.  In 
1883  a  vacancy  occurring  in  the  chair  of  surgery 
in  the  college.  Dr.  Pratt,  with  the  consent  of  the 
faculty,  retired  from  the  chair  of  anatomy,  and 
accepted  that  of  surgery.  It  was  here,  while  hand- 
ling the  complicated  and  obscure  cases  at  the  col- 
lege clinic  that  he  discovered  what  has  at  once 
marked  an  era  in  the  treatment  of  chronic  diseases, 
and  made  his  own  name  famous.  It  w^as  the  spring 
of  1876.  While  holding  clinic,  the  thought  came  to 
him  that  he  had  found  a  satisfactory  explanation 
of  the  existence  of  all  forms  of  chronic  diseases. 
Inspired  by  the  thought  of  his  discovery,  he  was 
about  to  announce  it  to  his  class,  but  a  second 
thought  prompted  him  to  dismiss  them  with  the 
announcement  that  his  next  lecture  would  be 
"  Chronic  Diseases  from  a  .Surgical  Stand-point." 
He  had  i)romised  an  article  for  a  medical  journal, 
and  being  pressed  for  time  he  employed  a  stenog- 
rapher to  report  this  lecture  in  fulfillment  of  that 
promise.  His  purpose  of  jMesenting  something 
new  had  been  noised  about,  and  when  he  entered 
his  lecture-room  he  found  it  crowded  to  its  full 
capacity,  among  the  audience  being  many  visitors 
from  other  colleges.  It  was  a  moment  of  supreme 
importance  to  him,  and  as  he  ad\anced  in  his  lec- 
ture, the  heavy,  tired  and  restrained  feeling  which 
he  experienced  at  the  opening  passed  away,  there 
capie  u]5on  him  a  flood  of  light  and  he  spoke  as 
under  the  pou  er  of  an  inspiration,  lidldinL;  his 
auditors  si)ell-bound  to  the  close,  when  their 
breathless  silence  was  broken  by  loud  and  long 
applause.  Such  was  the  effect  of  the  lecture  that, 
.although  it  was  within  tlnx-e  weeks  of  the  close  of 
the  term,  and  the  students  were  busy  with  exami- 


nations and  tired  from  their  winter's  work,  during 
that  time  sixteen  members  of  the  class  presented 
themselves  for  treatment  under  the  new  di.scov- 
ery,  which  the  discoverer  had  named  the  Orificial 
Philosophy.  The  results  of  the  treatment  upon 
these  cases  we're  so  satisfactory,  and  so  man\-  were 
cured,  that  the  new  philosophy  w^as  at  once  pro- 
nounced a  marvelous  success.  From  that  time 
the  surgical  clinic  of  the  college  was  conducted 
on  the  orificial  principle,  and  for  a  year  was  vis- 
ited by  physicians  of  all  schools  from  all  parts  of 
the  United  States,  who  came  to  witness  the  work- 
ings of  the  new  philosophy.  The  spread  of  the 
new  idea  brought  so  many  inquirers  that  Dr. 
Pratt  found  the  drain  upon  his  time  and  strength 
more  than  he  could  endure  and  keep  up  his  pri- 
\'ate  practice,  and  this  led  him  to  receive  and  in- 
struct his  professional  brethren  in  orificial  work, 
in  classes  instead  of  singly  as  was  at  first  his  cus- 
tom. He  now  holds  these  classes  semi-annually 
for  a  week,  and  during  that  time  he  devotes  the 
time  to  lectures  and  clini-cal  work,  allowing  mem- 
bers of  the  class  to  bring  their  most  difficult 
cases,  upon  which  he  publicly  operates.  After 
the  second  class  of  this  kind,  those  present  organ- 
ized the  National  Association  of  Orificial  Sur- 
geons, electing  Dr.  Pratt  as  honorary  member, 
and  providing  in  their  constitution  that  there 
never  should  be  but  one.  This  association  has 
had  a  wonderful  growth,  and  promises  to  be  one 
of  the  largest  medical  societies  in  the  United 
States,  and  such  has  been  the  effect  of  the  new 
method  of  treating  chronic  diseases,  that  four- 
fifths  of  the  cases  apparently  incurable  are  speed- 
ily restored  to  health.  In  recognition  of  his  .ser- 
vices the  Chicago  Homeopathic  Medical  College 
established  a  chair  of  Orificial  Surgery,  to  be 
filled  by  Dr.  Pratt.  Other  medical  colleges  fol- 
lowed the  example,  and  now  this  new  philosophy 
is  taught  in  all  the  medical  colleges  of  this  coun- 
try that  i)retend  to  keep  up  with  the  progress  of 
the  age. 

Dr.  Pratt  was  honored  with  the  degree  of  LL.D. 
b)-  his  alma  mater  in  188-.  He  is  an  honor- 
ary'member  of  the  Missouri  Medical  Society,  the 
Ohio  Medical  Society,  the  Kentucky  Medical  So- 
ciety and  the  Southern  Association  of  Physicians, 
and  an  active  member  of  the  Illinois  State  Medi- 
cal Association,  tlu-  Chicago  Academy  of  Meili- 
cine  and  the  .\nierican  Institute  of  HonKeopathy. 


liiouRArmcAi.  nicTioxARY  A.\n  roRTRAiT  t;Ai.i./:Ry. 


751 


Dr.  I'ratt  has  .1  \oiy  laiijc  and  lucrative  practice. 
He  is  a  liaril  stiulent,  has  an  elegant  library  filled 
witii  several  thousands  of  tlie  choicest  books,  and 
contributes  largely  to  current  literature,  and  is 
author  of  a  beautifulh-  illustrated  work  on  Ori- 
ficial  Surgery,  now  in  its  second  edition. 

Dr.  Pratt  was  married  June  26,  1877,  to  .Miss 
Isa  M.  Bailey,  of  Jerse}-  Heights,  New  Jcrse\-. 
Mrs.  Pratt  is  a  lady  of  unusual  attainments,  with 
literary  ami  musical  tastes  and  abilities  of  a  \er)- 


high  order,  and  withal  a  woman  of  rare  good 
sense,  and  a  charming  hostess.  Hoth  she  and 
Dr.  Pratt  arc  members  of  the  Apollo  Club,  of 
which  the  latter  was  one  of  tiie  founders  and  is 
now  a  directi>r.  They  have  iiad  two  children.  A 
daughter,  Isabel,  died  when  eighteen  months  old. 
A  son,  Edw  in  Hailey  Pratt,  is  now  ten  years  old,  and 
a  rtmarkabl)'  precocious  child.  He  speaks  Ger- 
man and  I'rench  fluentl)-,  and  shows  peculiar  apti- 
tude for  mathematics  antl  philci->nphical  studies. 


JOHN    FALKENBURG   WILLIAMS,    M.D. 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


IT  is  ahvays  pleasant  to  review  the  life  of  a  good 
physician,  and  especially  so  when  it  is  as  in- 
teresting, eventful  and  successful  as  that  of  Dr. 
Williams.  Born  in  Center  county,  PennsyKania, 
May  6,  1837,  and  a  very  vigorous  and  hard\-  man, 
he  comes  of  a  long-lived  race.  His  father,  Mr. 
George  Williams,  of  Lee  county,  Illinois,  at  the 
present  time  (1890)  paying  a  visit  to  the  doctor,  is 
eighty-nine  years  old.  Dr.  Williams'  paternal 
great-grandfather,  a  Welshman,  was  a  Nolunteer 
in  the  Rc\olutionary  War,  and  an  intimate  friend 
of  George  Washington.  He  was  a  fine  mechanic, 
and  in  the  course  of  that  gallant  struggle,  in 
which  the  soldiers  had  no  weapons,  whenever  a 
saw-mill  or  any  such  place  was  captured,  the 
brave  Welshman  was  called  upon  to  turn  the 
saws  into  swords. 

The  wife  of  this  soldier  was  a  young  Hol- 
lander, brought  over  under  contract,  aiul 
whom  he  bought  and  married.  After  the  war 
they  lived  for  a  time  in  Chester  county.  Pennsxl- 
vania,  finallj-  locating  in  Center  count)'  of  that 
State.  One  of  their  sons,  the  grandfather  of  our 
subject,  settled  in  Bald  Eagle  Valley.  His  wife, 
whose  name  was  Falkenburg  (of  German  extrac- 
tion), was  the  daughter  of  the  owner  of  large  rice 
plantations  in  New  Jersey.  The  mother  of  our 
subject,  Mary  Adams  Williams,  born  in  Pennsyl- 
vania, was  of  Scotch-Irish  descent.  Her  father,  a 
forgeman  bj-  trade,  and  an  e.xtensive  iron  manu- 
facturer, was  a  prominent  and  wealthy  citizen  of 
Pennsylvania. 

Dr.  Williams  had  five  brothers  and  fixe- sisters, 
of  whom  there  are  li\ing  three  brothers  and   two 


sisters:  Ellis  1.  Williams,  a  resident  of  Chicago; 
Alexander  A.,  a  farmer  of  Manson,  Iowa  ;  Julius 
C,  residing  on  the  old  homestead  in  Lee  county, 
Illinois  ;  Nancy  A.,  wife  of  Hollis  Prescott,  of 
Di.xon,  Illinois,  and  Mrs.  J.  P.  Goodrich. 

Like  many  another  of  our  best  and  foremost 
citizens,  the  earl)"  )ears  of  Dr.  Williams' life  were 
spent  on  the  farm,  his  education  being  obtained, 
after  he  had  reached  the  age  of  twenty,  in  the 
common  and  graded  schools  of  the  da)-.  It  had 
always  been  his  ambition  to  "  be  a  doctor,"  and 
from  early  childhood  he  showed  marked  adapta- 
bilit\-  for  the  profession.  W'hile  on  the  farm 
he  had  read  physiolog)-,  and,  obtaining  a  skele- 
ton from  the  family  physician,  had  studied  anat- 
oni)-.  Later  he  read  medicine  under  the  direc- 
tions of  the  family  ph)-sician.  With  bright  prom- 
ise of  success  he  was  prejiaring  for  the  more 
advanced  .study  of  his  profession  (so  much  be- 
loved), when  the  war  broke    out. 

He  enlisted  in  the  I''ift\--third  Illinois,  Corn- 
pan)-  .\,  which  comi)any  was  afterward  trans- 
ferred to  the  P'iftecnth  Cavair)-.  This  was  a 
compan)-  of  picked  men,  secured  as  a  bod)- guard 
b)-  General  H.  C.  lialleck,  anil  )-oung  Williams, 
brawny,  hardened  by  exposure  in  the  fields,  and 
a  perfect  athlete,  was  considered  a  good  man 
to  go  into  it.  Shortly  after  Dr.  Williams  was 
detailed  by  the  surgeons  of  the  Fifty-third  Regi- 
ment for  medical  service  in  the  ami)-  of  the 
Tennessee,  Hurlbut's  Brigade.  In  this  capacity 
he  ser\-cd  until  after  the  c\acuation  of  Corinth, 
when  he  was  himself  taken  sick,  and  after  lying  for 
two  months  on  the  grouml  was  dischargeil. 


752 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARV  AND  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Ho  came  Immc-,  studicil  medicine  for  a  time 
ill  a  pliysician's  office,  matriculatetl  at  tlie  Uiii- 
\-ersit\'  of  Michigan,  and  graduatetl  from  the 
Chicago  Medical  College,  March.  1865.  Part  of 
his  course  in  the  latter  institution  was  under  the 
direction  of  the  eminent  and  \enerable  Professor 
N.  S.   Davis. 

After  the  completion  of  his  studies  Di'.  Williams 
enlisted  as  assistant  surgeon  in  the  Second  United 
States  Volunteer  Infantry  stationed  at  Fort  Dodge, 
Kansas,  where  he  was  the  first  to  establish 
hospital  service.  In  December,  1865,  he  was 
honorably  discharged,  and,  retiring  from  the  front, 
located  at  Ashton,  Lee  county,  Illinois,  where  he 
remained  three  years. 

In  i86g  he  came  to  Chicago,  where  he  has  ever 
since  resided,  and  where  he  h;is  built  up  a  large 
anil  lucrative  practice.  Dr.  Williams  is  a  promi- 
nent specialist  in  g\-necology,  at  the  same  time 
devoting  much  atterition  to  general  practice,  be- 
ing a  great  favorite  as  a  famil)-  physician.  He 
was  formerl)-  atteniling  ])hysician  to  the  North 
Star  P'ree  Dispensary  :  is  a  member  of  the  Chicago 
Medical  Society:  of  the  Illinois  State  Medical 
Society,  and  of  the  .\merican  Medical  Associa- 
tion. 

Dr.  Williams  stands  high  in  the  "blue"  lodge 
of  the  Masonic  Order.  He  was  made  a  Mason  in 
Ashton  Lodge,  A.  F.  A.  M.,  in  1866;  became  a 
charter  member  of  Lincoln  Park  Lodge,  No.  611, 
and  has  held  nearly  all  the  offices  in  the  gift  of 
the  lodge.     He  is  examining  physician  for  the  \. 


().  L'.  W..  and  also  for  the  Masonic  Aid  Associa- 
tion ;  is  a  member  and  was  at  one  time  surgeon 
to  the  Washington  Post.  G.  A.  R.,  No.  593,  and 
is  a  prominent  figure  in  the  military  order  of  the 
Chicago  Union  Veteran  Club,  and  is  also  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Loyal  Legion  of  the  United  States. 

.Son  of  an  oltl-tiine  Whig  and  Abolitionist,  Dr. 
Willi.uiis  is  bv  inheritance,  as  w  ell  as  by  principle, 
,1  staunch  Republican.  He  attends  the  Episcopal 
clun'cli.  and  in  his  religious  \iews  is  liberal. 

The  Doctor  is  a  man  of  many  mru'ked  traits  of 
character;  kintl-hearted,  generous  and  ti'ue,  and  a 
most  agreeable  companion  and  a  trust}-  frientl.  He 
has  attained  his  ideal  of  eminence  in  his  profession, 
and  respect  of  his  fellow-citizens,  but  e\'ery  step 
of  the  wa\- was  carxed  out  b}-  hard,  up-hill  work, 
in  which  the  only  secret  of  success  was  that  he 
found  no  obstacles  insurmountable. 

In  1S67  Dr.  Williams  was  married  to  Miss 
h'rancis  Raymond,  (laughter  of  .Mr.  Hiram  Ray- 
monil,  of  Rock  count}-,  Wisconsin.  .Mr.  R.a}-mond, 
who  settled  in  Wisconsin  when  it  was  but  a  terri- 
tor}-,  was  an  acti\-e  politician  and  a  brilliant  man. 
He  died  in  Iowa  about  two  weeks  before  the  last 
presidential  election,  in  his  ninetieth  }-e;u-.  Mrs. 
Williams  is  an  extremely  modest  wonian,  a  great 
reader  ami  a  de\-otee  of  art.  \'er}-  domestic,  she 
is  of  great  assistance  to  the  doctor  b}-  reason  of 
her  busiiiess  tact  and  s\-stem, .  and  lull}-  (leser\-es 
the  jiraise  of  her  husband,  who  sa}-s  "she  is  a  re- 
markable woman  in  her  wa}-."  'I'he}-  ha\-e  one 
child,  Elsie  V..  Williams,  .iged  nine. 


SVI<N    WINDROW,    A. 


,D. 


CHICAC.O,    ILL, 


SVEN  WINDROW  was  born  March  13,  1S53. 
in  Stockholm,  .Sweden.  His  father,  John 
Henry  Windrow,  whose  fmefathers  were  mer- 
chants, died  in  lSSl,aged  se\ent}--si.\  }ears,  and 
his  mother,  still  living  at  the  age  of  se\-ent}--two 
years,  came  to  America  in  iSSS.  Both  p;u-ents 
were  descended  thi-ough  centuries  of  Sweilish 
.-mcestors.  The  remaindei-  ol  the  famil}-  consists 
of  a  brothel-,  Charles  Hem-}-,  foi-iULrl}-  a  mer- 
chant in  the  old  countr}-.  now  a  resident  of 
Chicago;  a  half-hrollu'r,  John  \'.  Windrow, 
a    sea     capf.-iin    s.iiling     from     San     l""rancisco;    a 


)f  a  merchant   of 


half-sister,   now    deceased,  wife 
Sweden. 

1)|-.  Windrow  is  a  gradu;ile  of  the  Stockholm 
L\ceum,  class  of  '73,  and  of  the  Universit}-  of 
L'ps.d.-i,  where,  in  1S77.  he  received  the  degree 
(]f  .\.M.  I'he  L'ni\ersit}-  of  I'psala,  as  is  well 
known,  is  one  of  the  most  ancient  se;its  ot  le.-irn- 
ing  on  the  continent  and  ranks  with  the  foremost 
schools  of  the  world.  In  1 S7S  he  was  cnii- 
necled  with  the  Carolina  .Medical  and  .Surgical 
Institute'  in  .Slockhiilm;  w.is  ])h}sician  and  sur- 
geon in  the    Uov.il  (iarrison  Hospital    in    1879  81. 


/^m^  y^^^.^:^^^^.^,^./'^. 


BIOCRArmCAL   DICTIOXARV  AXD  J'DKTA'Air  C,AI  LERY. 


755 


and  from  1880  to  1S84  served  as  surgeon  in  the 
Swedish  ariny. 

In  1886  Dr.  Windrow  came  to  America,  locatetl 
in  I'liiladeljiliia,  entered,  and  in  1887,  graduated 
from  the  University  of  Pennsj'K  ania.  He  then 
removed  to  Cliicago,  and  was  for  one  year  llic 
attending  oculist  at  the  Chicago  i'olscliiiic.  Ik-- 
sides  having  built  up  an  extensive  practice  htie, 
Dr.  Windrow  is  one  of  the  founders  antl  also 
superintendent  of  the  Linnican  Hospital,  in  whicii 
he  is  associated  w  itli  sucii  men  as  Drs.  Christian 
Fenger  and  G.  C.  Paoli.  He  is  also  a  director  in 
the  Chicago  Midwife  Institute,  one  of  the  found- 
ers and  incorporators  of  the  Scandinavian  Medi- 
cal SocietJ',  of  which  he  has  been  two  years  secre- 
tary and  treasurer,  and  since  1S91  its  president. 
His  office  is  one  of  the  handsomest  and  most 
elegantly  appointed  in  the  city. 

Dr.  Windrow  is  a  prominent  Swedish  Mason, 
initiated  in  the  First  Northern  Lodge,  Stockholm, 
Sweden  ;  created   a   Knight  Tem])iar  in   January, 


i88j,  and  hekl  the  ofilice  of  master  of  ceremonies, 
in  his  Commandery ;  is  a  member  of  and  exam- 
ining physician  to  fourteen  different  societies. 
He  is  also  examiner  for  Union  Central  Life  In- 
surance Company  of  Cincinnati,  and  Home  Life 
Insurance  Compan\-  of  New  York. 

His  political  sympathies  are  Republican. 

Being  fond  of  natural  history  he  has  explored 
much  of  Sweden  and  Norway  as  a  botanist,  and 
has  extended  his  travels  through  E^urope,  Asia, 
and  portions  of  Africa.  Besides  being  an  exten- 
sive traveler,  he  has  found  time  to  invent  and 
perfect  several  surgical  instruments,  to  make  him- 
self a  skilled  performer  on  the  piano  and  I-Vench 
horn,  and  to  win  a  medal  and  the  "  champion 
gokl  skate"  for  ])rohcieiicy  on  the  ice.  Very 
fond  of  social  life.  Dr.  Windrow  is  eminently 
fitted  to  adorn  il  b\-  his  magniticent  physical 
presence  as  well  as  by  tact,  suavity  of  tempera- 
ment and  a  genial  attractive  personality. 

He  was  married  .\]iril,  1892. 


OSCAR    ORLANDO    BAINES,    M.D. 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


ONE  of  the  most  successful  of  the  younger 
class  of  physicians  of  Chicago  is  Dr.  Oscar 
O.  Raines,  who  was  born  in  Ashtabula  county, 
Ohio,  in  1863.  His  father,  William  B.  Raines,  at 
the  age  of  eighteen,  immigrated  to  this  country 
from  England,  settled  in  S(Hithern  Wisconsin  in 
1865,  and  became  a  prominent  farmer,  owning  and 
residing  upon  what  was  then  widely  known  as 
the  Willard  farm.  His  mother,  whose  people 
were  wealthy  manufacturers  in  (iermany,  came  to 
this  country  from  a  village  on  the  Rhine,  when 
she  was  twenty-two  years  old.  Our  subject's 
family  consists  of  a  sister  (Mary),  now  the  wife  of 
Mr.  William  Rladon,  assistant  cashier  in  the  Mer- 
chants' and  Mechanics'  Savings  Rank  in  Janes- 
ville,  Wisconsin,  and  three  brothers,  all  well-known 
men  in  their  respective  calling.s.  William  is  a  farmer 
in  Southern  Wisconsin  ;  Charles  is  a  thriving  com- 
mission merchant  in  Omaha,  Nebraska,  and  Frank 
is  the  foremost  leaf-tobacco  merchant  in  Wiscon- 
.sin,  doing  more  business  than  all  the  other  dealers 
of  that  state  combined.  Oscar  began  his  educa- 
tion in  Jancsville,    Wisconsin,  acquitting  himself 


with  honor  in  the  primaiy  and  high  schools  of 
that  city.  With  a  stiong  litcrar)'  inclination  he 
found  himself  well  atlapted  to  the  study  of 
medical  science,  which  he  began  in  the  office  of 
Dr.  S.  .S.  Judtl,  of  Janes\ille.  Having  remained 
there  two  years,  he  in  1883  matriculated  at  Bennett 
Medical  College,  of  Chicago,  and  was  graduated  in 
1885,  carrying  off  the  highest  honors  of  his  class. 
He  located  in  the  north  division  of  Chicago,  and 
ill  the  fall  of  1886  was  elected  demonstrator  of 
anatomy  by  his  alma  mater.  This  position  he 
held  until  1889,  when  he  was  elected  to  the  chair 
of  general  and  descriptive  anatomy,  and  in  1890 
to  that  of  general,  descriptive  and  surgical 
anatomy.  He  is  a  member  of  the  National 
Eclectic  Medical  Association,  also  of  the  .State 
Eclectic  Medical  Society,  and  vice-president  of 
the  Chicago  Eclectic  Medical  and  Surgical  Society. 
Dr.  Raines  ranks  very  high  in  the  profession  and 
in  the  community,  both  in  his  specialty  of  dis- 
eases of  women  and  in  medical  and  surgical 
work  generally,  the  extent  of  his  practice  suffici- 
ently demonstrating  his  standing  as  a  jjhysician. 


756 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIO.XARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


In  politics,  though  non-partisan,  his  sympatliics 
arc  with  the  Democratic  party,  and  he  belongs  to 
that  class  of  men  who  always  vote.  A  member 
of  the  Congregational  church,  he  is  in  every  way 
an  honorable  and  respected  citizen. 

On  the  25th  of  December,  1887,  Dr.  Haines  was 
married  to  Miss  Ida  Christie,  daughter  of  Mr. 
Angus  Christie,  of  Chicago,  and  a  descendant  of 
one    of    the    oldest    families    of    Canada.      Mrs. 


Haines  is  a  woman  of  marked  musical  talent  and 
ability,  distinguished  in  local  musical  circles  as 
a  vocalist.  Possessed  of  a  retentive  memory  and 
strong  will  power,  together  with  a  pleasant  and 
congenial  nature,  she  is  very  popular  in  .society. 
And  Dr.  Haines,  ble.s.sed  with  a  little  .son,  Ro- 
land, four  years  old,  enjoys,  in  addition  to  his 
success  in  public  life,  the  pleasures  of  a  delightful 
home. 


COL.   JOHN    THILMAN    DICKINSON, 


AUSTLN,  TK.\. 


THE  subject  of  this  sketch  is  a  man  of  marked 
and  distinguished  character,  who,  though 
but  thirty-four  years  of  age,  has  proven  himself 
the  possessor  of  such  industry,  integrity  and 
honesty  of  purpose  as  to  command  the  confidence 
of  men.  He  was  born  in  Houston,  Texas,  June 
iS,  1S5S.  His  father,  John  Dickinson,  was  a 
native  of  .Scotland,  descended  from  a  sturdy  line 
of  ancestors,  who,  on  many  a  hard  fought  field, 
stood  by  Wallace  and  Hruce,  and  on  more  than 
one  occasion  poured  out  their  lives  amid  the  fires 
of  martyrdom.  Scotch  history  is  permeated  with 
the  name  of  Dickinson,  and  always  in  connection 
with  deeds  of  valor  and  honor. 

Colonel  Dickinson's  father  came  to  America 
when  quite  young,  and  settled  in  Houston,  Texas, 
where  he  became  a  prominent  business  man,  and  yet 
found  time  to  give  attention  to  literature  to  such 
an  extent  as  to  be  a  frequent  writer  for  se\'eral 
leading  papers  in  his  nati\e  lanil,  and  also  the 
press  of  his  adopted  State.  He  was  a  man  of  fine 
appearance  and  of  the  strictest  integrity,  which 
gave  him  a  prominence  which  has  descended  to 
his  son.  He  was  united  in  marriage  to  Miss 
Elizabeth  Thilman  of  Virginia,  who.se  family  was 
among  the  oldest  in  the  old  Dominion,  and  whose 
first  ancestor  from  England  was  a  gallant  officer 
in  the  Revolutionary  Armj',  and  was  specially 
mentioned  because  of  bravery  on  the  field. 

Colonel  Dickinson  lost  his  father  when  he  was 
thirteen  years  old,  and  his  mother  when  he  was 
si.xteen.  He  was  first  educated  at  private  schools 
in  Houston,  Texas,  and  then  at  Eearnington, 
luigland,  and  Dundee,  Scotland,  and  later  on  at 
Randolph — Macon  College,  Ashland,  Virginia,   in 


the  slashes  of  Hanover  county,  where  Henry  Clay 
was  born.  He  afterwards  graduated  in  several  of 
the  academic  schools  at  the  University  of  Virginia 
at  Charlottesville,  and  received  the  degree  of 
Bachelor  of  Law  from  that  institution  in  June, 
1879,  when  he  was  twenty-one  years  of  age. 

In  the  summer  of  1879  he  attended  Eastman's 
Business  College  at  Poughkeepsie,  New  York, 
returning  in  the  fall  to  Houston,  Texas,  and  at 
once  secured  a  license  to  practice  law,  but  pre- 
ferring journalism,  became  one  of  the  owners  and 
editor  of  the  Houston  Daily  'filcgrniit,  the  leading 
Democratic  paper  in  that  city. 

In  January,  i88j,  while  on  a  visit  to  Austin,  the 
capital  of  the  State,  he  was  elected  secretarj-  of 
the  House  of  Representatives  of  the  Texas  Legis- 
lature, and  in  May,  1882,.  was  elected  secretary  of 
the  Te.xas  State  Capitol  Board  in  supervising  the 
construction  of  the  largest  State  House  in  the 
Union,  and  probably  the  largest  red  granite  build- 
ing in  the  world.  During  this  time  he  was  also 
elected  secretary  of  the  State  Penitentary  Board, 
and  several  other  State  boards,  and  filled  these 
positions  untier  three  governors,  Hon.  O.  M. 
Roberts,  Hon.  John  Ireland,  and  Hon.  L.  S.  Ross. 

About  a  year  before  the  completion  of  the 
Ca])itol,  he  originated  a  plan  for  the  ceremonies 
of  the  dedication  of  the  Capitol  building,  organiz- 
ing an  association  among  the  citizens  of  Austin 
for  this  purpose,  and  was  elected  .secretary  and 
general  manager,  and  one  of  the  directors.  Under 
his  management,  the  dedication  of  the  Capitol 
was  celebrated  by  an  interstate  and  international 
military  encampment,  and  international  band  con- 
test in  ]\Ia\-,  18SS.  which   was  considered  the  most 


^ 


c::^^  -  J.    ^: 


BIOGRAPIIICAl.  niCTIOXARV  AXD  rORTRAIT  CAI.I.ERY. 


759 


brilliant  and  successful  affair  t)f  the  kind  ever 
given  in  the  Southwest.  There  was  a  larije 
attendance  of  military  companies  from  neij^hbor- 
ing  States,  and  the  President  of  Mexico  sent 
military  representatives,  and  one  of  his  famous 
bands  of  music  to  honor  the  occasion.  So  suc- 
cessfidly  did  Colonel  Dickinson  carry  out  this  vast 
undertaking  that  the  citizens  of  San  Antonio, 
Te.xas,  immediatel)-  organized  an  Internatinnal 
Fair  association  and  elected  him  secretar_\-  and 
general  manager,  and  he  prepared  for  them  the 
first  Texas-Me.\ican  Exposition  which  was  gi\  en 
at  San  Antonio  in  November,  i8S8.  This  was 
regarded  by  the  people  as  the  best  arranged  and 
most  attractive  exposition  of  the  products  and 
resources  of  Texas  and  Mexico  that  had  ever 
been  held  in  the  State.  He  remained  in  .San 
Antonio  as  secretary  and  general  manager  of  this 
ExpositionAssociation  until  he  visited  Chicago  at 
the  time  that  cit\^  entered  the  contest  for  the 
location  of  tlie  World's  Fair.  His  ser\ices  were 
immediately  engaged,  and  he  was  sent  to  inter- 
view members  of  Congre.ss  in  several  States  on 
behalf  of  Chicago,  and  met  the  Chicago  committee 
in  Washington  in  December,  18S9,  and  remained 
with  them  until  Chicago  was  victorous  in  the 
contest. 


WIkii  the  hill  h.id  passed,  creating  the  World's 
Columbian  Exixisilion.  and  providing  for  two 
ct)mmissioners  from  each  State,  Colonel  Dickinson 
was  appointed  by  (ieneral  L.  S.  Ross,  Governor 
of  Texas,  as  the  Democratic  commissioner  to  re- 
present that  State. 

The  commission  held  its  first  meeting  in  the 
city  of  Chicago  on  June  26,  1890,  and  on  the 
following  day  Colonel  IJickinson  was  unanimously 
elected  secretary,  for  which  position  his  experience 
and  ability  pre-eminently  fitted  him.  In  1SS5  Mr. 
Dickinson  was  appointed  a  Colonel  on  the  staff  of 
Cioxernor  John  Ireland  of  Te.xas. 

By  education  and  completion.  Colonel  Dickinson 
is  a  staunch  Democrat  and  his  been  such  from 
his  youth  u|).  lie  is  an  ardent  believer  in  the 
principles  of  his  party,  but  has  great  charity  for 
those  who  differ  with  him  politically. 

In  his  religious  convictions  he  is  an  Episcopalian, 
his  family  having  been  members  of  that  church 
for  several  generations. 

He  is  a  man  of  commanding  presence.  Five 
feet  ten  and  a  half  inches  in  height,  of  considerable 
personal  magnetism,  courteous  and  dignified  in 
manner,  kind-hearted,  and  generous,  and  always 
attracts  those  who  come  within  the  circle  of  his 
influence.     Colonel    Dickinson  has  never  married. 


JAMES    P.   KETCHAM, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


JAMES  1'.  KETCHAM  was  among  the  suc- 
cessful business  men  in  the  (iarden  Cit\-. 
Few  were  more  closely  identified  with  her  larger 
interests  than  James  P.  Ketcham.  He  was  born  in 
Philailel|}hia,  Pennsylvania,  on  the  17th  day  of  No- 
vember, 1837,  son  of  Samuel  and  Roseanne(Py- 
ott)  Ketcham.  His  father  wasa  shoe  manufacturer, 
and  was  a  native  of  Penn.sylvania,  as  was  his  w  ife. 
In  1S52  they  removed  to  Ohio  and  remained 
there  one  year,  and  then  settled  at  Muscatine, 
Iowa.  There  James  received  his  primary  educa- 
tion in  the  public  schools,  and  afterward  attentleil 
the  academy  of  which  Mr.  George  H.  Dennison 
was  principal.  He  then  entered  the  emjjloy  of 
Messrs.  Dinsmore  &  Chambers,  lumber  dealers. 
He  was  entrusted  with  the  management  of  a 
branch   establishment    in    Marengo,     If)wa.       lie 


conducted  the  affairs  of  the  firm  with  ability,  anti 
learned  the  details  of  the  business,  and  in  about 
one  year  later,  in  1 861,  he  jjurchased  the  entire 
business  and  launched  out  foi-  himself.  For 
twelve  years  he  continued  alone  in  the  lumber 
trade,  building  up  a  very  large  business  and  every 
year  increasing  his  ca])ital.  In  1866  he  admitted 
his  youngei-  brother  William,  to  a  partnership 
and  in  1872,  lea\ing  him  \.o  carr\-  on  the  business, 
removed  to  Chicago.  He  first  bought  the  lumber 
yard  of  Messrs.  Jillett  &  King,  at  Taylor  .street, 
near  the  Rock  Island  depot,  and  remained  there 
seven  years.  He  then  located  at  the  intersection 
of  Blue  Island  and  -South  Hoyne  avenues. 

He  was  chairman  of  the  Board  of  Supervisors 
at  Marengo,  Iowa,  for  three  years,  and  a  member 
of  the  general  assembh'  and  of   the    Senate    of 


760 


BIOGRAPHICAL   DICTIOXARV  AXD  I'ORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Iowa,  one  term  in  each.  lie  was  furmerl)' a  mem- 
ber of  tile  Illinois  C'lnb,  but  witlulrew.  lie  was 
a  nieinbei-  of  C'k\ehuul  J,(i(iL;e  of  the  Masonic 
Order,  aiul  Washin^tmi  Chajiter  of  ]\oyal  .\rch 
Masons. 

He  was  a  staunch  Republican,  but  of  late  years 
took  little  interest  in  politics  other  than  to  vote 
at  all  imj^ortant  elections. 

In  1863  he  married  Miss  Agnes  A.  .\dams  at 
Marengo,  Iowa.  She  is  a  daughter  o[  Mr.  Noel 
Adams,  formerh-  of   Utica,  New  York.     (Jne  son. 


the  fruit  of  this  marriage,  survives,  \'iz.:  Frank 
Ketcham.  twent\-six  years  of  age. 

Mr.  Ketcham  was  an  elder  in  the  Presbyterian 
Church,  antl  was  church  treasurer  for  fi\e  years. 
He  was  a  man  of  genial  temperament,  socially  in- 
clined, broad  and  generous  in  his  views,  pleasant 
in  manner,  and  gave  largely  to  charities  and 
worthy  objects. 

lie  was  of  medium  height,  robust  in  build. 
liglit  complexion,  and  of  a  fine  presence  and  ad- 
dress.     He  died  I'^ebruary  16,  1892. 


AMOS    GRANNIS, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


OF  those  whose  active  lives  are  coe\al  with 
Chicago,  and  whose  trials  and  triumphs  are 
interwoven  in  her  history,  is  Amos  Grannis.  He 
was  born  April  17,  1825,  in  Attica,  Genesee 
county,  New  York.  His  father  was  Samuel  John- 
son Grannis;  his  mother,  Clarissa  (Ford)  Grannis, 
who  died  when  he  was  four  years  of  age.  His 
ancestors  came  from  the  Highlands  of  Scotland 
early  in  the  seventeenth  century.  The  family 
records  note  the  marriage  of  Edward  Grannis,  of 
Hartford,  to  Elizabeth  Andrews,  of  Farmington, 
Connecticut,  May  3,  1654,  and  the  birth  of  their 
son  Joseph,  March  31,  1657.  More  than  a  cen- 
tury later  another  Edward  Grannis  is  enrolled  as 
one  of  the  citizens  of  Hartford,  who  declared  for 
liberty  and  iiulependence  in  the  year  1775  ;  enlist- 
ing in  the  conflict  that  followed,  he  received  the 
mart_\'r's  crown  during  the  last  j'ear  of  the  Revo- 
lutionary war.  His  widow  li\'ed  to  the  age  of 
ninety-four  years.  Their  children  were  a  daugh- 
ter, and  a  son,  Samuel  Johnson  (irannis.  the 
father  of  Amos.  Samuel  J.  was  born  in  I'air 
Ihuen,  Connecticut.  He  mo\ed  to  Marcellus, 
New  'N'ork,  thence  to  Batavia  antl  Attica,  follow- 
ing the  trade  of  tanner,  currier  and  shoemaker. 
.August  25,  1836,  he,  with  six  children,  left  Attica 
for  Chicago,  taking  a  steamer  at  Buffalo  for  Erie, 
Pennsylvania.  There  he  was  joined  by  his  eklest 
son  Samuel  W.  Grannis,  who  still  lives  in  Chi- 
cago, and  his  wife  and  infant -child.  Taking  pas- 
sage on  the  steamer  Governor  Marcy,  they  en- 
countered rough  weather  and  decided  to  proceed 
over-land   from    Detroit.     A   farmer-tavern-keeper 


was  engaged  to  take  the  part)-  of  ten  to  Chicago, 
where  they  arrived,  after  ten  days  of  rough  expe- 
riences over  corduroy  roads  and  sand  hills,  on 
September  25,  1836 — just  one  month  after  they 
started  from  Attica — happy  and  hopeful,  with  less 
than  ten  dollars  for  their  necessities.  They  had 
a  hearty  welcome  from  a  daughter,  resident  for  a 
year  in  the  little  city.  The  next  day  they  were 
taken  by  Henry  Grannis,  a  brother  of  Amos,  to 
the  claim  he  had  made  two  years  previous.  This 
claim  adjoined  that  of  Mr.  Mancell  Talcott, 
about  a  half  mile  from  the  Desplaines  ri\er.  now 
in  the  town  of  Maine.  Here,  in  a  log  hou.se,  for 
two  years,  the  family  experienced  the  usual  hard- 
ships of  frontier  life.  One  house  only  was  in 
sight.  Prairie  woKes  were  numerous.  At  this 
time  Amos  was  eleven  )-ears  old  and  worked  on 
his  brother's  farm.  The  monotonj-  of  this  life 
was  varied  in  1840,  when  his  sister,  Amanda  M., 
was  married  to  Elisha  B.  Lane,  who  leased  the 
farm  of  Abram  Gale,  near  Oak  Park,  where  Al- 
bert (Irannis  Lane,  the  present  ])opular  superin- 
tendent of  schools,  was  born.  In  a  log  house, 
three  miles  distant  across  a  bleak  prairie,  he  at- 
tended school  three  months  during  each  of  three 
winters,  which  was  all  the  schooling  he  had  after 
his  fourteenth  \ear.  Several  years  later  he  left 
the  farm  and  worked  at  Green  Bay,  Wisconsin, 
for  the  Peshtigo  Lumber  Company.  Returning 
to  Chicago,  he  learned  the  carpenter  and  joiner's 
trade  with  Messrs.  Boggs  and  Webster,  receivhig 
thirty  dollars  the  first  year,  thirty-five  dollars  the 
second,    and   sixt\-   ilollars  the   third.      .Afterward 


^^  ^•^iptfd  fitUfsJunt  i>  £*-»/" 


BiociiArmcAi.  nicrioxAKV  axd  i'ortrait  c,ai.i.i:rv. 


763 


he  ont,';i_iicd  witli  I'ctcr  I..  Uiwlikt.'  ;it  one  dollar 
and  twenty-five-  cents  per  day,  the  current  wa^^es 
then,  and  i)aid  two  dollars  and  fifty  cents  a  week 
for  board  and  lodging. 

In  1850,  on  Christmas  eve,  at  the  age  of  twen- 
ty-five, Mr.  Cirannis  married  Miss  Jane  Taylor, 
daughter  of  Mrs.  Mary  Taylor,  now  eighty-eight 
years  of  age  and  living  in  their  faniih'.  Kew  Dr. 
Tucker,  then  [lastor  of  the  P'irst  Baptist  Church, 
officiated  at  their  marriage.  Ihe  ceremony  was 
in  a  liouse  on  Lake  street,  near  .State,  ownetl  by 
Mosely  and  McCord,  known  generally  in  tliose 
days  as  two  rich  old  bachelors,  who  boarded  at 
tile  Tremont  House.  Six  children  have  blessed 
this  marriage  and  cheered  a  happy  home. 

In  1851  he  commenced  business  on  his  own  ac- 
count, and  from  small  beginnings  worked  iiis  wax 
upward,  step  by  step.  To  .secure  a  home,  he 
leased  a  lot  on  Adams  street  where  the  Post-ofificc 
now  stands,  and  built  a  neat  cottage  for  about 
eiglu  hundred  dollars,  paying  from  six  to  seven- 
teen dollars  per  tliousand  for  lumber.  With  the 
expansion  of  his  business,  some  investments  were 
made  wliich  caused  him  much  concern  during  the 
financial  panic  of  1857.  With  wise  conservatism, 
he  made  prompt  sacrifices  to  save  his  good  name 
and  business  standing.  He  paid  dollar  for  dollar, 
and  with  undiminished  credit  moved  steadil\-  for- 
ward to  a  large  business  for  that  time,  as  a  leail- 
ing  contractor  and  builder.  The  style  of  archi- 
tecture then  was  rather  primitive,  if  not  crude. 
Only  the  plainest  buildings  were  erected,  chiefly 
balloon  frames,  except  in  the  business  portions 
where  brick  was  used.  The  principal  architects 
were  J.  M.  Van  Osdel,  K.  Hurling,  W.  W.  Boy- 
ington,  anil  later,  Asher  Carter.  I'rom  alioul 
1854  to  i860  the  st>-le  and  character  of  buildings 
began  to  show  marked  improvement.  Dwellings, 
as  well  as  business  blocks,  were  finer  .nul  more 
elaborate.  (Juitc  a  rivalry  sprang  up  among  ar- 
chitects in  making  new,  elegant,  and  most  suit- 
able designs.  Following  i860,  the  civil  wjir 
checked  building  and  many  other  enterprises  for 
several  years.  With  the  re\ival  of  business, 
building  was  brisk  and  the  style  of  architecture 
advanced  in  beauty  and  richness,  in  keeping  with 
the  general  prosjierity.  The  great  fire  of  1871 
swept  away  the  finest  improvements,  and  to  re- 
place those,  there  began  an  era  of  building  un- 
surpassed by  any  other  city  in  the  world. 


Before  the  fire  Mr.  (irannis  hail  erected  some  of 
the  most  notable  buildings,  as  for  example,  the 
Rock  Island  Depot,  Trinity  Methodist  Church, 
Grace  Episcopal  Church,  the  old  Nixon  Block, 
the  Exchange  Block,  and  others.  Though  a  heavy 
loser,  like  others,  from  the  great  calamity,  it 
brought  subsequent  compensation,  and  Mr.  Gran- 
nis  found  his  resoui'ces  of  character  and  skill  in 
unusual  ileniaml,  anil  soon  retrieved  his  losses. 
,'\mong  the  buildings  now  standing  which  were 
erected  by  him,  are  the  Rock  Island  Depot,  the 
American  Express  Company's  Building,  the  Gran- 
nis  Block,  St.  Caroline's  Court,  the  Calumet 
Block,  etc.  Also  fine  residences  for  John  B.  .Sher- 
man, W.  I*".  Tucker,  (ieo.  E.  Adams,  and  oth- 
ers; also  mail}'  subui'ban  residences  amounting 
in  one  \-ear,  at  Ri\ersi(le,  to  eight}-  thousand 
dollars. 

The  improvements  in  architecture  ha\-e  con- 
tinued until  a  complete  revolution  has  been 
wrought  from  foundation  to  top.  l-'ine,  solid 
l)uildings,  not  twenty  )-ears  olil,  are  out  ot  date 
and  style,  and  are  being  replaced  with  modern 
structures  combining  the  Romanesqe  and  Re- 
naissance in  distincti\-ely  American  designs.-  The 
present  st\le  of  sk\--scraper  buildings,  twelve  to 
eighteen  stories  in  height,  have  necessitateil  the 
help  of  the  engineer  to  determine  the  required 
foundations,  borings  i)eing  esseiiti.il  when  it  is 
sixty  feet  to  haril-pan.  The  ancient  s)-stem  of 
piling  .relied  on  at  the  building  of  the  Chicago 
Court-house,  the  bed  of  concrete  as  under  the  Chi- 
cago Post-ofTice  and  the  pyramidal  plan  of  stone 
are  now  \irtuall)-  displaced  by  the  isolated  ])ier 
system,  \iz.,  a  bed  of  concrete  on  solid  clay,  then 
several  layers  of  steel  rails  crossing  each  other, 
all  embedded  in  concrete.  On  the  center  of  these 
rest  the  piers  that  su[)port  the  superstructure, 
which  is  a  frame  work  of  steel,  all  jjarts  being 
riveted  together,  and  thus  in  every  respect  mate- 
rially changing  the  olil  style  of  architecture. 

Mr.  Grannis  has  been  active  in  promoting  pub- 
lic interests.  He  helped  to  organize  and  is  now 
treasurer  of  the  Chicago  Mechanics'  Institute  ; 
he  is  a  charter  member  of  the  Building  and 
Traders'  Exchange,  of  uliicli  he  was  treasurer  for 
several  years.  He  is  now  treasurer  of  the  Ma- 
sonic Building  .nid  Loan  .\ssoci.ilion,  and  a  di- 
rectin-  in  the  (dobe  National  Bank.  .About  1S67, 
Mr.  Cjrannis  became  a   Mascjn,  and  is  still  promi- 


764 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


nent  in  that  Order,  and  has  held  its  most  impor- 
tant offices.  For  three  years  he  was  master  of 
Home  Lodge,  No.  508  ;  and  was  advanced  regular- 
ly through  Chicago  Chapter,  No.  127.  He  held  the 
office  of  treasurer  in  these  bodies  continuously 
for  fifteen  vears.  In  1868  he  became  a  member 
of  Apollo  Commandcry,  No.  i.  Knights  Templar, 
and  of  Oriental  Consistorj-  S.  P.  R.  S.  and  Scot- 
tish Rite.  In  1881  he  was  chosen  eminent  com- 
mander of  Apollo  Commandry,  No.  i.  He  is 
now  (1892)  one  of  the  directors  and  vice-president 
of  the  Masonic  Fraternity  Temple  Association. 
He  was  for  several  years  trustee  and  chairman  of 
the  executive  committee,  and  vice-president  of 
the  Northwestern  Masonic  Aid  Association,  the 
largest  of  its  kind  in  the  world,  having  over  fifty- 
five  thousand  members.  He  is  now  its  treasurer. 
Though  not  a  politician,  his  con\-ictions  have 
kept  him  in  the  Republican  parts-  from  its  organ- 
ization.    He  served  as  Alderman  from  the  I'"(iurth 


Wartl  of  Chicago,  from  1878  to  1880.  In  1886  he 
was  elected  a  member  of  the  Reform  Board  of 
County  Commissioners  to  serve  an  unexpired 
term  of  three  montiis;  in  November  he  was  re- 
elected to  succeed  himself. 

Religiously,  although  not  a  member  of  any 
church,  he  has  always  attended  and  aided  the 
Methodist  Episcopal,  and  is  now  a  trustee  of  the 
Trinity  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  Rev.  Dr. 
Frank  M.  Bristol,  pastor. 

Sterling  integrity  of  character,  correct  and  safe 
judgments,  open-handed  generosity  and  sympa- 
thetic helpfulness,  a  genial  frankness  in  conversa- 
tion, an  unselfish  interest  in  the  prosperity  and 
success  of  his  acquaintances,  a  willingness  to 
contribute  time,  money,  and  his  best  thought  to 
enterprises  and  schemes  for  public  and  private 
good,  are  the  personal  characteristics  that  have 
made  Amos  Grannis  a  fitting  type  of  the  pro- 
gressi\'c.  public-spirited  Chicago  citizen. 


WM.    F.    SINGLETON, 


CHICAGO,    ILL 


THERE  are  few  better-known  men  in  the 
west  than  William  F.  Singleton,  the  subject 
of  this  sketch.  He  was  born  on  the  5th  day  of 
May,  1840,  at  Harrodsburg,  Kentuckw  His  an- 
cestors came  from  England  to  South  Carolina  in 
colonial  days,  and  his  great-grandfather  was  a 
colonel  in  the  Continental  Army,  and  distin- 
guished for  courage  and  ability.  Our  subject's 
father  was  Richard  M.  Singleton,  and  his  mother's 
maiden  name  was  Mary  Ann  McAfee.  She  was 
a  lady  of  admirable  qualities. 

William  received  the  rudiments  of  his  education 
in  private  schools  in  the  village  where  he  was 
born.  He  was  of  a  studious  nature,  and  capable 
of  acquiring  knowledge  very  rapidly — his  mind  be- 
ing logical  and  his  memory  very  retentive.  He 
attended  Center  College  at  Danville,  Kentucky, 
for  one  year,  and  then  entered  Jefferson  College, 
but  at  the  end  of  a  yc.ir  he  left,  and  was  enrolled 
as  a  student  at  the  University  of  \'irginia.  He 
pursued  the  course  thers  for  two  years  with  suc- 
cess and  credit,  and  had  entered  upon  his  grad- 
uating year,  when  his  studies  were  cut  short  by 
the  breaking  out   of  the   War    of   the    Rebellion. 


Fired  with  martial  ardor  and  a  desire  to  prove  his 
love  for  the  Confederacy,  he  left  his  books  and 
took  up  the  sword  in  defense  of  Southern  rights, 
in  which  he  firml\-  believed.  He  enlisted  in 
Company  C,  made  up  of  the  University  students, 
and  served  in  Stonewall  Jackson's  brigade  until 
the  fall  of  1862,  when  he  was  transfered  to  the 
Southwestern  Army  of  Tennessee  and  Kentuck)-, 
and  continucil  in  this  di\ision  until  the  close  of 
the  war. 

He  then  began  the  study  of  the  law  in  Harrods- 
burg, Kentuck)-.  In  1865  he  was  married  to  Miss 
Gertrude  Magoffin,  daughter  of  ex-Go\ernor 
Magoffin,  of  Kentucky.  Tn  1866  he  removed  to 
Illinois  and  located  in  Kankakee  county,  and  en- 
gaged in  farming  and  stock-raising  on  a  large 
scale.  In  1870  he  secured  the  passage  of  a  drain- 
age law  in  the  .State  of  Indiana,  having  the  co- 
oi)eratii>n  of  General  George  W.  Cass,  ami  other 
])rominent  owners  of  marsh  land  along  tlie  Kan- 
kakee ri\er.  i\s  a  result  of  that  law,  those 
lands  which  formerly  were  \alueless  ha\  e  been 
reclaimed. 

In  the  year  1878  Mr.  Singleton  organized  a  land 


> 


BUH-.RAPHICM.  niCTIOXARV    IXD  POKTRA/T  C.AI.I.ERV. 


767 


iniprovcmoiU  company  called  "Tlie  Lake  Agri- 
culture C(t,"  for  the  purpose  of  improving  a 
large  tract  of  land,  consisting  of  about  18,000 
acres,  and  owned  by  General  George  \V.  Cass, 
Mr.  W.  R.  Shelby.  Mr.  J.  P.  Williams  and  him- 
self, and  was  the  general  manager  of  that  com- 
pany until    1885. 

He  removed  to  Evanston,  Illinois,  in  1884,  to 
secure  better  educational  advantages  for  his 
children,  and  in  1887  began  to  organize  a  life  in- 
surance association,  based  on  the  requirements  of 
total  abstinence  from  the  use  of  alcholic  liquors. 
In  1 8S9  this  company  was  incorporated  as  "  1  he 
Total  Abstinence  Life  Association  of  America," 
with  Mr.  Singleton  as  president.  He  has  held 
this  position  ever  since,  and  lias  devoted  most  of 
his  time  and  energy  to  its  interests ;  he  has 
watched  it  from  its  infancy  to  its  present  vigorous 
growth,  and  may  well  be  proud  of  his  work.  The 
association  is  now  well-known  to  the  public,  and 
has  a  unique  experience  in  this  respect — it  has  paid 


every  death-claim  in  full  since  its  incorporation 
in  1889.  Its  growth  has  been  very  rapid,  audit 
has  a  most  enviable  reputation  for  prompt  pay- 
ment of  losses  and  equitable  treatment  of  mem- 
bers, and  of  all  who  have  business  relations 
with  it. 

In  1869  Mr.  Singleton  joined  the  Red  Ribbon 
temperance  movement,  and  soon  after  became 
identified  with  the  Prohibition  party,  and  has 
been  an  ardent  supporter  of  this  party  ever  since. 
He  has  represented  his  party  in  several  conven- 
tions, state  and  national,  and  took  part  in  that  of 
1888.  which  nominated  General  C.  B.  Fisk  for 
president.  He  is  strong  in  his  temperance  prin- 
ciples, but  of  a  broad  and  catholic  mind,  neither 
prejudiced  nor  bigoted,  and  full  of  the  milk  of 
human    kindness. 

He  is  of  courteous  manners,  social  tempera- 
ment, and  has  a  host  of  friends.  In  personal  ap- 
pearance he  is  of  medium  height,  straight,  robust 
and  of  a  fine  presence. 


GEORGE   WYNNE   SAUL, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


AMONG  the  few  men  of  this  city,  who,  while 
-  still  in  their  early  manhood,  have  reached  a 
position  of  eminence  in  the  community,  none  are 
more  deserving  of  prominent  mention  than  is 
George  Wynne  Saul. 

He  was  born  in  Cincinnati,  Ohio,  on  October 
16,  1838,  and  to-day,  at  the  age  of  thirty-four, 
he  has,  through  his  own  exertions,  reached  the 
eminent  position  of  president  of  a  railroail  com- 
pany. 

His  early  life  was  passed  in  the  city  of  his 
birth.  Here  he  obtained  his  earlier  school  edu- 
cation in  the  public  schools;  afterwards  complet- 
ing his  course  of  study  in  the  Cincinnati  High 
School.  At  the  age  of  eighteen  he  began  his 
business  career  by  accepting  a  po.sition  as  assist- 
ant book-keeeper  and  shipping  clerk  in  a  whole- 
sale grocer}'  establishment  ;  here  he  remained  for 
over  two  years,  at  the  end  of  which  time  he  be- 
came connected  with  the  railroads  of  the  west. 
His  first  position  in  this  connection  was  as  clerk 
and  private  secretary  to  C.  S.  Cone,  Jr.,  in  the 
passenger  department   of    the    Ohio    and    Missis- 


sippi Railroad.  The  next  year  we  find  him  in 
the  employ  of  the  Cincinnati,  Hamilton  and  Day- 
ton Railroad  Company,  in  the  transportation  de- 
partment. For  eight  years  he  remained  with  this 
corporation,  during  which  time  he  occupied  vari- 
ous positions  in  the  various  departments  of  oper- 
ation and  traffic,  and  thus  obtained  a  practical 
knowledge  of  all  the  different  branches  of  rail- 
road affairs.  He  filled  all  positions  that  were 
entrusted  to  him  to  the  satisfaction  of  his  supe- 
riors, and  in  1888  he  was  tendered  the  position  of 
general  manager  of  the  Fort  Wayne,  Cincinnati 
and  Louisville  Railroad.  While  occupying  the 
position  of  general  manager  of  the  F"ort  Wayne, 
Cincinnati  and  Louisville  Company,  he  was  also 
general  manager  of  the  Whitewater  Valley  Rail- 
road. In  1 889  he  became  general  manager  of  the 
Evansville  and  Terre  Haute  Railroad.  On  March 
I,  1890,  Mr.  Saul  became  connected  with  the 
Chicago  and  Eastern  Illinois  Railroad  Company 
as  general  manager,  and  on  June  3,  1890,  as  an 
appreciation  of  his  ability  and  fitness  for  the 
position,  he   was  elected   president    of  that   com- 


768 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  rORTRAlT  GALLERY. 


pany.  This  is  surely  a  remarkable  record.  He 
stands  to-day  as  the  youngest  president  of  an 
important  railway  company  on  the  continent : 
and,  to  use  the  language  of  one  of  his  ac- 
quaintances, "Mr.  Saul  is  undoubtedly  the  most 
competent  railway  official  of  his  age  in  the  Uni- 
ted States,  and  he  certainly  has  a  bright  future 
before  him." 

Mr.  Saul  is  one  of  the  fnrty-fnc  of  Chicago's 
representative  citizens  who  compose  the  Direc- 
tory of  the  World's  Columbian  Exposition,  and 
another  noteworthy  fact  is  that  he  is  the  young- 
est member  of  the  board.  He  is  a  member  of 
the  Transportation  and  Grounds  and  Buildings 
committees,  and,  as  an  acti\'e  member  of  the  lat- 
ter committee  expresses  it,  "Mr.  Saul  is   one  of 


t]ie  most  active  anil  useful  members  of  that  com- 
mittee." 

In  1 884  he  was  niarrietl  to  Miss  Lillian  Leon- 
ard, of  Cincinnati.  .Mr.  and  Mrs.  Saul  are  blessed 
with  two  bright  children,  a  girl  and  a  boy,  named 
Jane  and  Thomas,  and  in  the  circle  of  his  home, 
in  the  society  of  his  wife  and  children,  he  finds 
the  only  true  happiness — that  of  a  li)\ing  hus- 
band ant!  father. 

Such  is  the  biography  of  a  man  who  has 
reached  a  position  of  prominence,  while  still  in 
his  younger  manhood,  that  few  in  life  ever  attain ; 
and  it  is  certainly  true  that  his  success  is  de- 
served, as  he  has  always  transacted  the  business 
affairs  with  which  he  was  entrusted  in  such  man- 
ner as  to  merit  the  approval  of  all  interested. 


SIEGFRIED    M.    FISCHER, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


THE  career  of  him  whose  name  heads  this 
biography  illustrates  most  forcibh-  the 
possibilities  that  are  open  in  this  country  to 
earnest,  persevering  young  men,  who  have  the 
courage  of  their  convictions,  and  the  determina- 
tion to  be  the  architects  of  their  o\\  n  fortunes. 
It  proves  that  neither  wealth  nor  social  position, 
nor  influential  friends,  are  essential  to  the  attain- 
ment of  eminent  usefulness,  honorable  distinction 
and  true  success. 

Siegfried  M.  Fischer  is  a  self-made  man  in  the 
fullest  sense  of  that  often  misused  term.  He 
was  born  in  Neustadtl,  a  small  town  near  Carls- 
bad and  Marienbatl,  Austria,  June  2,  1847,  his 
parents  being  Solomon  and  Theresa  (Hirsch) 
Fischer. 

His  early  education  was  obtained  in  the  public 
schools  of  his  native  country.  At  the  age  of 
thirteen  he  determined  to  seek  his  fortune  in  the 
United  States,  and  during  the  ne.xt  two  years  we 
find  him  a  resident  of  New  ^'()rk  city.  Here  he 
obtained  a  position  as  errand-boy,  an<l  supple- 
mented his  daily  tasks  b\-  attending  the  night 
schools. 

In  1863  he  removed  to  Chicago,  and  became  a 
clerk  in  a  retail  dry  goods,  house  on  Randolph 
street.  At  the  end  of  six  months  he  took  a 
position  in  Milwaukee,  where  he  remained  during 


the  \-ear  1864,  after  which  he  returned  to  Chicago 
and  entered  the  retail  dry  goods  establishment  of 
Schoenfeldt  Bros.,  on  North  Clark  street.  Some 
six  months  later  he  entered  the  establishment  of 
Mr.  A.  Louis,  a  retail  clothier,  located  at  No.  221 
South  Clark  street,  on  the  site  of  the  present  Post- 
office.  While  clerking  for  Mr.  Louis  he  displayed 
great  aptitude  for  business  and  firmness  of 
character,  so  that,  although  but  twenty-one  years 
of  age,  Mr.  Louis  took  great  interest  in  him,  and 
later,  when  he  decided  to  open  a  place  of  business 
in  Marshalltown,  Iowa,  he  admitted  Mr.  Fischer  as 
a  partner,  and  put  him  in  charge  of  the  business 
there.  The  enterprise  was  crowned  with  suc- 
cess, and  after  four  years'  residence  in  Marshall- 
town,  Mr.  Fischer  returned  to  Chicago  and  became 
a  partner  in  the  wholesale  clothing  house  of  A. 
Louis  and  C(impan\-,  which  had  been  organized  by 
Mr.  Louis  after  the  Chicago  fire  of  October,  1871, 
and  b\-  which  he  suffered  heavy  losses.  In  this 
firm  Mr.  Fischer  was  credit-manager. 

l-"or  eight  years  the  firm  did  a  prosperous  busi- 
ness; at  the  end  of  that  time  (in  1880)  Mr.  Fisch- 
er, with  Messrs  Abram  Kuh  and  Adolph  Nathan, 
organized  the  wholesale  clothing  establishment 
of  Kuh,  Nathan  and  Fischer. 

During  the  past  decade  there  has  been  an  in- 
vention put  into  practical  use  that  has  virtually  re 


^f-^-^^l-^ 


BIOGRAI'IIICAl.   niCTIOXARV  AXD  PORTRAIT  C,ALI.I:RY. 


771 


volutionizcd  tlic  manner  of  transjxirtinLj  live-stock. 
It  lias  also  teiulcd  to  purify  our  food  products 
b\-  preserving  the  health  of  the  stock  while  in 
transit,  and  has  also  resulted  in  lart^^elyeliniinatint,' 
the  brutality  that  has  always  attended  the  trans- 
portation of  live-stock  in  the  ordinary  cattle  cars. 

K\ery  invention,  no  matter  how  meritorious,  is 
beset  with  difficulties,  and  the  utmost  skill  is  often 
required  to  utilize  it  and  make  it  a  public  benefit, 
and  at  the  same  time  remunerative  to  those 
financially  interested  in  it.  In  placing  Street's 
Stable  cars  before  the  public,  one  of  the  greatest 
obstacles  to  overcome  was  the  indisposition  of  the 
railroad  corporations  of  the  west  to  permit  the 
cars  to  be  operated  on  their  lines.  The  credit  of 
bringing  this  invention  to  practical  use  is  large!)- 
due  to  Siegfried  M.  Fischer. 

The  histor\-  of  the  manner  in  which  Mr.  Fischer 
become  interested  in  Street's  Stable  cars  is  deeply 
interesting.     The  story  is  as  follows  : 

During  his  first  year's  (1868)  residence  in  Mar- 
shalltown,  Iowa,  Mr.  Fischer  became  casually  ac- 
quainted with  Mr.  John  VV.  Street,  who  hatl  con- 
ceived the  idea  of  improving  the  cars  used  for 
shipping  cattle,  so  as  to  make  their  transportation 
less  barbarous. 

The  existence  of  Mr.  Street  had  almost  passed 
from  Mr.  Fischer's  mind,  but  he  has  the  faculty  of 
renn;mbering  faces,  and  while  walking  on  Madison 
street,  Chicago,  he  met  Mr.  Street,  accosted  him 
in  a  friendly  way,  and  invited  him  to  call  at  his 
place  of  business;  he  had  no  specific  object  in 
view,  but  merely  invited  him  in  a  friendly  spirit; 
within  an  hour  Mr.  Street  called  on  Mr.  Fischer, 
and  after  obtaining  an  interview,  he  requested  a 
personal  loan  of  fifty  dollars,  stating  at  the  time, 
that  his  family  was  suffering  for  necessaries.  Mr. 
Fischer  gladly  accommodated  him,  aiul  he  in 
sisted  on  giving  a  due  bill  for  the  amount.  This 
due  bill  is  still  in  the  possession  of  Mr.  I'ischer, 
and  he  treasures  it  as  a  memento.  He  then  re- 
quested Mr.  Fischer  to  favor  him  by  examining 
his  Stable  car,  and  note  what  he  had  accomplished. 
.Mr.  Fischer  replied  that  he  understood  the  cloth- 
ing business,  but  he  did  not  know  the  first  thing 
about  cars.  Finally,  after  urgent  solicitation, 
very  much  against  his  desire,  he  and  his  son,  I. eon, 
then  a  mere  boy,  accompanied  Mr.  Street  to  the 
Union  Stock  Yards,  and  examined  Mr.  Street's 
models.     V^ery  indifTerently    Mr.   Fischer    viewed 


the  plans,  and  reiterated  his  former  statement  that 
while  his  ideas  seemed  very  feasible,  and  were 
probably  very  good,  he  knew  absolutely  nothing 
about  cars.  At  this  stage  his  son  called  Mr. 
l-'ischer's  attention  to  some  of  the  advantages  to 
be  dcri\'ed  from  the  use  of  the  cars,  and  through 
his  and  Mr.  Street's  arguments,  Mr.  Fischer  was 
induced  to  advance  two  hundred  or  three  hundred 
dollars,  to  enable  Mr.  Street  to  have  a  car  con- 
structed, and  his  patent  completed.  Before  the 
car  was  completed  he  had  sixteen  hundred  dollars 
invested. 

After  several  trials  that  jjrovcd  the  efficiency  of 
the  system,  the  first  regular  shipment  was  made. 
Orrin  Male\',  a  cattle  raiser  of  Laramie,  Wyoming 
Territory,  being  the  first  regular  shipper  to  use 
the  cars.  Subsequently  two  more  cars  were  con- 
structed, and  later  on,  ten  more  were  added — Mr. 
Fischer's  desire  being  that  the  revenue  of  these 
thirteen  cars  should  support  Mr.  Street  and  family, 
who  were  dependent  upon  him  for  their  subsis- 
tence. These  thirteen  cars  were  finally  employed 
by  a  Mr.  Hathaway,  a  cattle  dealer  of  Boston,  for 
regular  shipment,  w  ith  the  most  satisfactory  re- 
sults, and  afforded  a  li\ing  for  Mr.  Street.  Mr. 
Fischer  had  much  to  contend  with,  and  bcsitles 
being  unable  to  interest  the  railroaii  companies  in 
the  iinention,  was  ridiculed  by  some  of  his  friends, 
most  of  whom  beliexed  that  he  had  sunk  the 
twenty  thousand  dollars  w  iiici)  he  had  invested  in 
the  enterprise. 

In  1886  Mr.  Adojpli  Nathan  and  some  of  his 
friends  invested  some  cajiital  in  the  enterprise,  and 
thus  formed  the  nucleus  of  the  present  companj-. 
Upon  its  organization  Mr.  Nathan  was  elected 
])resident  and  Mr.  Fischer,  treasurer.  In  1887 
Mr.  l-'ischer  was  elected  vice-president  and  gen- 
eral manager,  and  after  Mr.  Nathan,  owing  to  ill 
health,  resigned  in  1889,  he  was  elected  president 
and  treasurer,  which  offices  he  has  since  filled  to 
the  satisfaction  of  the  stockholders  and  directors. 

The  company  at  the  outset  had  great  difficulties 
to  overcome.  The  opi)osition  of  the  western 
railroads  was  especially  strong.  The  charges 
placed  on  the  cars  were  almost  prohibitive  ;  but 
the  difficulties  were  finallj-  overcome,  and  the  com- 
pany now  (  1892)  has  contracts  with  fifteen  different 
railroads,  which,  insteati  of  charging,  pay  the  com- 
pany for  the  use  of  its  cars.  The  number  of  cars 
now  operated  is  over  four  thousand. 


I 


772 


BIOGRAI'HICAL  DICTIOXARY  AM)  J'OKTKAIT  GALLERY. 


Tlie  company  is  chartered  for  fi\'e  million 
dollars — four  million  of  common  stock  and  one 
million  preferred.  It  has  always  been  conducted 
profitably,  and  since  its  organization  it  has  paid 
a  regular  dividend  of  seven  per  cent,  on  the  pre- 
ferred stock.  The  cars  as  they  are  now  constructed 
add  to  the  comfort  and  health  of  the  live-stock 
shipped.  The  animals  are  fed  and  watered,  and 
obtain  rest  in  the  cars  without  unloading.  Street's 
Stable  cars  have  improved  the  manner  of  shipping 
dumb  animals  as  much  as  the  Pullman  Sleeping, 
Parlor  and  Buffet  cars  ha\'c  imj)ro\'ed  the  mode  of 
travel  for  man.  It  is  the  parlor  and  dining  car 
for  cattle  combined.  The  result  is  of  such  benefit 
that  the  Secretary  of  Agriculture  ha,s  recom- 
mendetl  these  cars  to  be  used  for  shipping  live- 
stock. 

On  Januar_\-  i  ^,  1S74,  Mr.  h'ischer  married 
Miss  Sarah  Louis,  daughter  of  Mr.  A.  Louis,  his 
early  business  partner,  now  a  retired  ca[)italist. 
Five  children  have  blessed  this  union,  the  names 
in  order  of  birth  are—  Leon  J.,  aged  seventeen  ; 
Florence,  fourteen;  Harr\-  twelve  ;  Tessie,  eight ; 
and  Lucile,  an  infant  of  two  years.  Around  his 
hearth-circle,  made  cheerful  b_\'  the  merry  voices 
of  his  ha[)])\-  children,  he  finds  that  true  happi- 
ness, that  a  loving   parent   alone  can   teel.      He  is 


now  building  a  palatial  residence  on  Dre.xel  boule- 
vard, near  Fiftieth  street.  He  is  a  prominent 
Mason.  He  was  exalted  to  the  degree  of  Master 
Mason  in  Marshall  Lodge,  No.  108,  A.  F.  and  A.  M., 
in  1868.  He  afterwards  demitted  and  became  a 
member  of  the  Chicago  Lodge,  No.  437.  He  has 
passed  through  various  degrees  of  Masonry,  and 
is  now  a  life  member  of  the  Oriental  Consistory, 
thirty-second  degree  of  the  Scottish   Rite. 

The  Standard  and  Lakeside  clubs  count  him 
among  their  most  prominent  members.  He  is 
also  a  member  of  the  Chicago  Athletic  Club. 

He  is  a  director  of  the  Bank  of  Commerce,  and 
possesses  large  tracts  of  real  estate,  both  in  Chicago 
and  other  western  cities,  which  he  purchased  as  a 
safe  and  remunerative  in\estment,  antl  not  for 
speculative  purposes. 

He  has  tra\eled  extensively,  both  in  this 
countr\- and  in  Lurope,  and  finds  botli  rest  and 
recreation  in  his  freqtient  tri])s  across  the  Atlantic. 

Such  is  his  biography.  In  it  there  is  much  to 
emulate.  What  he  has  accomplished  has  been  by- 
steady  application  in  the  line  of  a  well-defined  and 
persistent  purpose. 

He  has  surmounted  many  obstacles,  and  to-day, 
while  still  in  the  prime  of  vigorous  manhood,  holds 
a  place  among  the  representati\e  men  of  Chicago. 


EDWV   JOSEPH    OGDEN,    M.D. 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


E\)\\\'  J.  OGDEN  w.is  born  at  Cooksville, 
near  T<ii-(intn,  count\'  of  Peel,  Canada,  (  )cto- 
ber  15,  1831.  llis  father,  Samuel  (  )gtleii,  was  a 
gentleman  farmer  antl  a  magistrate  ;  his  gr.uul- 
father,  Jo.seph  Ogden,  \\;is  a  Pennsylvania  loyal- 
ist, who,  because  he  would  not  take  up  arms 
against  the  king  of  England,  suffered  many  perse- 
cutions, and  after  the  re\'olutionar_\-  war  went  to 
Canada  and  settled   near  Toronto. 

The  Ogden  family  are  of  I'lnglish  origin,  some 
of  them  claiming  to  be  of  Saxon  descent,  the 
name  being  first  OakdeMi,  then  (  )k(len,  and  finall_\- 
Ogden.  Others  a.ssert  that  the\'  were  Norman 
Danes  and  knights  of  St.  Marlow.  I'he  coat  of 
arms  belonging  to  the  famih-,  as  the  records  in 
the  Herald's  office,  London,  England,  show,  were 
granted    by    King    Charles    IL    for    .services  ren- 


tlered  his  illustrious  father,  King  Charles  I.  The 
family  legends  say  (although  certain  generally 
accepted  historical  accounts  make  a  different  claim 
to  the  historic  oak)  that  after  a  battle,  where 
Charles  1.  was  defeated,  he  made  his  escape  with 
Lord  Wilmot,  but  was  pursued  b\-  some  liorse- 
nien  from  Cromwell's  army;  being  hanl  jiressed 
he  took  refuge  at  the  residence  of  Mr.  Ogden  yio 
w  horn  the  coat  of  arms  was  subsecjuently  granted) 
and  by  him  secreted  in  a  huge  oak  tree  upon  his 
lawn.  Their  pursuers  having  searchetl  in  \.iin, 
rode  awa\-  in  the  direction  tl^e  refugees  were  sup- 
jxised  to  ha\e  taken,  ami  not  returning,  the  king 
and  Lord  Wilmot  were  kindly  entertained  by  the 
family  until  al)le  to  communicate  with  their  fol- 
lowers. .\t  the  time  of  this  visit  Mrs.  Ogden  was 
dail\-  in  expectation  of  an   addition   to  her  family. 


/i/oi;A\i/'///c:i/.  />/r/7(>x.iA').i.y/)  iu)rtrait  cillery. 


773 


Tlic  kini;  requested  lier  to  call  the  eiiilil.  if  a  hoy, 
Wilmot.  if  a  girl,  Wilmotli,  in  honor  of  his  faith- 
ful companion — names  which  ha\e  been  in  the 
faniil\-  ever  since.  The  circumstances  connecteil 
with,  ant!  the  character  of.  the  yrant  and  the  pe- 
culiarity of  the  coat  of  arms  stront^ly  support 
the  familv  claim.  The  coat  of  arms  consist  of 
ciuarterin;j;s  of  oak.  an  oak  tree  with  acorns,  a 
lion  rami)ant :  the  crest  has  the  motto,  lUsi  os/iii- 
ilo  Hon  Jill  to. 

The  American  branch  bes;.ui  with  the  immi- 
i^ration  of  three  or  four  brothers,  previt)us  to,  or 
early'  in  tile  seventeenth  century,  Joseph,  Uz/iel. 
John,  and  one,  perhaps,  David,  whose  liistory 
this  branch  o(  the  family-  seems  to  ha\e  confused 
or  lost.  lost'ph  died  in  the  Cuniherlaiul  Valley, 
I'ennsyK  ania,  antl  his  son  Josejjh  was  the  Can- 
adian emigrant  before  referred  to.  Uzziel  and 
John  attached  themselves  to  the  cause  of  the 
colonists;  the  former  became  the  Episcopal 
bishop  of  New  Jersey,  and  the  latter,  whosL-  his- 
tory is  well  known,  removed  to  C'onnectieut. 
The  Ogden  family  are  a  numerous  one  in  the 
United  States,  and  are  chielly  descended  from 
Uzziel  and  John  Ogden. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  was  educated  in  and 
near  Toronto,  Canada,  his  professional  eilucatioii 
was  acquired  in  the  University  of  Toronto,  tile 
'loronto  .School  of  Medicine,  now  the  medical  tle- 
jiartment  of  that  university,  and  the  University 
of  the  City  of  New  \'ork.  lie  also  spent  some 
time  in  the  medical  schools  and  hospitals  of 
I'hiladelphia.  He  became  a  licentiate  of  L'pper 
Canada  in  1854,  an  M.D.  of  the  L'ni\ersily  of 
the  City  of  New  York  in  1833.  .\fter  .itlendin- 
lectures  upun  ophtlialmic  sui'gery  and  ,1  pi'ixate 
course  on  surgery  by  Valentine  jMott,  he  returned 
to  Toronto  and  took  the  degree  of  M.l).  in  the 
University  of  Victoria  College,  and  subsequently 
accepted  a  chair  on  surgery  in  its  medical  depart- 
ment, which  he  retained  until  tlu'  demand  of  a 
large  private  practice  rcquireil  all  his  time.  In 
I.S61  lie  was  gazetted  a  military  surgeon,  lia\  ini; 
been  ])reviously  appointed  by  the  crown  a  corcjuer 
for  the  county  of  Halton;  the  former  he  resigned 
soon  after  liis  removal  to  Chicago  in  1876. 

Since  residing  in  Chicago  he  has  acliieveil  dis- 
tinction as  a  general  practitioner,  but  by  reason 
of  his  cool,  calm,  deliberate  demeanor  he  is 
peculiarly  adapted   for    surgical    work.      His  emi- 


nent ability  as  a  surgeon  has  lieen  recognizetl  by 
the  railway  corporations  by  his  having  been  ap- 
pointed chief  surgeon  to  the  Chicago  and  Atlan- 
tic Railway  Coni[)any  and  local  surgeon  for  the 
Wabash  Railroad  Comjjaiiy. 

I-'rom  early  youth  he  has  had  a  decided  fond- 
ness for  out-of-door  sjiorts,  cricket  being  his  favor- 
ite game.  The  Ogden  name  is  familiar  to  cricket 
players  in  bdth  Mngland  and  America.  When 
he  settled  in  C'liicago  in  iSjO,  there  being  no 
cricket  club  in  or  near  the  city,  he  set  to  work 
antl  founded  the  Chicago  Cricket  Club.  At  the 
first  meeting  there  were  but  fi\e  persons  pres- 
ent, the  membershi))  the  first  yeai'  was  fifteen, 
tin-  second  ye.ir  the  numbi-r  reached  thirty. 
The  club  has  had  a  const. mt  lie.dthy  growth 
e\er  since,  until  at  the  piesent  time  (1892)  they 
ha\e  three  hundred  members  in  good  stand 
ing.  and  own  a  i)eautiful  park  of  seven  acres 
.It  I'arkside,  with  a  handsume  club-house  on 
the  grountls  :  the  total  cost  of  the  grounds 
anil  club-house  has  been  upwards  of  fifty  thou- 
sand dollars.  Many  interesting  contests  ha\e 
been  held  at  this  home  of  cricket  in  Chicago,  in 
foot-ball.  Lacrosse  and  lawn  tennis.  At  present 
there  are  ten  cricket  clubs  in  the  \icinity  of  the 
cit\-.  and  to  Dr.  Ogden.  more  than  any  other  man, 
is  due  the  creilit  for  their  successful  organization. 
Our  subject  has  been  president  of  the  Chicago 
Cricket  Club  sixteen  years,  and  his  second  son. 
Dr.  E.  Russell  Ogden,  familiarly  known  as  Doctor 
"Tetldy,"  a  noted  Canadian  cricketer,  now  resid- 
ing and  ])racticing  in  (."liicago,  captained  the 
Gentlemen  of  Canada  on  their  cricketing  tour  to 
I'.ngland  in  1SS7.  He  is  the  acknowledgetl  best 
all-i-oun(.l   cricket  play<.-r  on  this  continent. 

(  )ur  subject  had  three  brothers  ami  four  sisters; 
two  brothers  ami  three  sisters  siuxive.  One 
brother.  Doctor  M.  B.  Ogden,  an  old-time,  promi- 
nent physician  of  Joliet,  Illinois;  died  in  1885. 
Dr.  M.  D.  Ogilen  is  an  old  resident  and  one  of 
the  leading  i)hysicians  of  Chicago;  the  other  sur- 
\  i\  ing  brother,  W.  C.  Ogden,  is  a  successful 
m.mufacturer  of  Chicago.  The  three  eldest  sur- 
\'iving  sisters,  Agnes,  Eliza  and  Georgiana,  are  all 
married  and  reside  at   Rockford,  Illinois. 

Like  many  of  the  old  I'ennsyhani.i  loyalists 
.and  tiieir  descendants,  the  doctor  is  a  firm  ad- 
herent and  communicant  of  the  I'rotestant  h'.pis- 
copal  Church.      1  le  w  as  formerly  a  lay  member  of 


774 


lilQCRAPIIICAI.  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


the    Toronto    Synod.    Canada.        In    politics  his 
sympatliies  are  with  the  low-tariff  ])arty. 

Dr.  Ogden  was  married  first  in  1855  to  Miss 
Mary  M.  Switzer,  by  whom  he  had  two  sons — the 
eldest,  Charles  Palmer,  who  is  a  successful  broker 
and  real  estate  agent  in  Chicago,  and  a  noted 
cricketer,  was  born  in  1858,  and  Doctor  "Ted- 
dy," a  promising  and  rising  young  physician 
and  surgeon,  first  saw  the  light  of  day  in  i86i- 
Mrs.  Ogden  died  early  in  1874.  Dr.  Ogden 
married  his  present  wife,  formerly  Miss  Sarah 
Shaw  Wood,  late  in    187;.     She  is  a  daughter  of 


Richard  .Shaw  Wood,  Esq..  a  wealthy  citizen 
of  London,  Ontario,  and  formerly  of  Bermuda. 
Miss  Belle  Ogden  is  the  fruit  of  the  second  mar- 
riage, a  bright,  handsome  girl,  of  beautiful  charac- 
ter, who  is  acquiring  a  most  thorough  education. 
Mrs.  Ogden  is  a  talented  musician,  literary  in 
her  tastes,  of  retiring  disposition,  and  devoted 
to  her  home  life.  Dr.  Ogden  is  a  man  of  high 
standing,  unquestionable  integrity,  and  strongly 
attached  to  his  family,  and  frequently  enjoys 
by  his  cozy  fireside  on  Michigan  avenue  a  "  rub- 
ber" at   whist  with   his  family  aiid   friends. 


ADOLPH    NATHAN, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


THIS  work  contains  many  tales  of  success, 
and  this  biography  of  Adolph  Nathan  is 
but  another  illustration  of  what  determination, 
natural  ability  and  foresight  have  accomplished. 

He  was  born  on  May  8,  1844.  at  St.  Goar,  a 
Rhenish  city  in  Southern  Germany.  His  father, 
Jacob  Nathan,  was  connected  with  the  revolu- 
tion of  1848,  and  was  therefore  compelled  to  leave 
his  native  land.  He  chose  the  United  .States  as 
the  country  for  the  future  residence  of  himself 
and  family,  and  in  the  following  year  (1849)  he 
was  joined  by  his  wife  and  children.  They  em- 
barked at  Rotterdam  and  sailed  for  New  Orleans, 
occupying  seventy^-two  days  in  making  the  voj-- 
age.  After  a  short  stop  in  New  Orleans  the  fam- 
ily journeyed  northward  up  the  Mississippi  river, 
and  stopped  in  St.  Louis  two  months,  during  which 
time  young  Nathan  suffered  an  attack  of  Asiatic 
cholera,  which  was  epidemic  during  that  year. 
Continuing  their  journey  they  arrived  at  Galena, 
Illinois,  finally  locating  in  Lanca.ster.  Wisconsin, 
wliere  Jacob  Nathan  engaged  in  farming  and 
mining.  Our  subject  remained  on  the  farm  until 
he  reached  his  fifteenth  year,  and  during  his  thir- 
teenth and  fourteenth  years  he  drove  five  yoke 
of  o.xen  attached  to  an  immense  "  breaking  plow." 

In  1859  his  father  engaged  '"  ^'^'^  grocery  and 
general  provision  business  in  Lancaster,  and  it 
was  there  that  Nathan  was  initiated  into  business. 
He  also  was  enabled  to  improve  his  education,  as 
he  attended  the  High  School  in  Lancaster  from 
his  fifteenth  to  his  eighteenth  year.     In  1861  he 


became  a  student  in  Bryant  &  Stratton's  Business 
College  in  Chicago,  and  mastered  the  rudiments 
of  a  general  business  education.  When  twenty 
years  of  age  he  enlisted  in  the  army,  becoming  a 
member  of  the  Forty-first  Regiment  of  Wisconsin 
Volunteers,  infantry,  and  was  in  General  Wash- 
burne's  command  from  the  time  of  his  enlistment 
in  1864  until  the  regiment  was  mustered  out. 
After  returning  home,  he  entered  into  partner- 
ship with  his  father,  the  firm  being  J.  Nathan  & 
Son.  The  business  gradually  increased,  and  was 
later  enlarged  by  the  admittance  into  the  firm  of 
Joseph  Nathan,  an  elder  brother,  and  John 
Schreiner,  a  brother-in-law  of  Adolph  Nathan. 
The  business  continued  prosperous  under  the 
style  of  Nathan,  Schreiner  &  Company  until 
1880,  when  our  subject  sold  his  interest  and  re- 
moved to  Chicago,  where  he  became  associated 
in  the  present  firm  of  Kuh,  Nathan  &  Fischer. 
He  is  the  financier  of  the  business,  and  it  is  un- 
doubtedly true  that  the  wonderful  success  of  the 
house  is  largely  due  to  the  conservative  yet  lib- 
eral   policy  of  its  financier  and  credit  manager. 

To  show  how  successful  this  house  has  been,  it 
need  merely  be  stated  that  upon  its  organization 
in  1880,  it  controlled  not  one  dollar's  worth  of 
trade,  and  it  entered  a  field  where  many  large 
houses  in  its  line  virtually  controlled  the  business 
tributary  to  Chicago,  and  that  after  the  first  ten 
years  of  its  existence  it  is  doing  a  business  equal 
to,  if  not  larger,  than  that  of  any  other  house  in 
its  line  in  Chicago. 


/      7    / 


^^^<^--!S^^_-,;:::2>2>2^^ 


BIOCRAI'HIC.M.  lULriOXAKY  .l-\7)  /'OhTRAJ/-  uA/.LEKV. 


Ill 


In  187;,  before  severing  his  connection  with 
the  business  in  Lancaster,  Mr.  Nathan  assisted  in 
the  organization  of  the  Chicago  and  Tomah  Rail- 
road Compan\-,  of  which  he  became  treasurer  and 
general  financial  agent.  After  completing  fifty- 
miles  of  narrow  gauge  railroad  connecting  the 
Wisconsin  river  with  Chicago,  the  company  be- 
came heavily  involved,  and  availing  itself  of  its 
only  recourse,  sold  out  the  property,  right  of  way, 
good  will  and  all  assets ;  and,  thanks  to  the  good 
management  of  Mr.  Nathan,  who  was  the  financier 
of  the  corporation,  all  creditors  were  paid  in  full. 

In  1885  he  was  the  prime  mover  in  the  organi- 
zation of  Street's  Stable  Car  Lin<;,  which  has  since 
become  widely  known  as  a  very  successful  live- 
stock transportation  company.  He  became  presi- 
dent of  the  company  upon  its  organization,  and 
remained  its  presiding  officer  and  controlling 
spirit  until  1888.  when  failing  health,  caused  by 
over\vork,  compelled  him  to  relinquish  some  of 
of  his  work  and  seek  recreation  and  re.st.  conse- 
quently he  resigned  the  ofifice  of  president  and 
made  a  trip  abroad.  However,  he  is  still  largely 
interested  in  this  company,  and  has  been  its  vice- 
president  for  the  past  three  years.  He  is  also 
connected  as  special  partner  with  the  "  Great 
Eastern."  a  large  outfitting  establishment  in  l)u- 
luth,  Minnesota,  and  one  of  the  largest  in  the 
Northwest. 

In  1865   he    married    Miss   Rosa  Schreiber,  by 


whom  he  has  two  chililren  :  Louis  A.,  tlie  elder,  a 
voung  man  of  twenty-two,  is  at  present  employed 
in  his  father's  busines.s,  and  shows  promi.se  of 
worthily  succeeding  his  father.  The  other  cliild 
is  a  daughter  named  Jeanette  P.,  aged  eleven. 

Socially.  Mr.  Nathan  is  favorably  known.  He 
is  a  member  of  the  Standard  Club.  He  is  an  ad- 
mirer of  the  beautiful  in  art  and  literature.  He  is 
a  great  reader,  and  he  has  instilled  an  amount  of 
knowledge  into  his  brain  by  persuing  works  of 
acknowledged  merit  that  has  made  him  an  edu- 
cated gentleman,  although  having  acquired  but  a 
limited  amount  of  knowledge  at  school. 

In  conclusion,  it  mu.st  be  stated  in  justice  to 
Mr.  Nathan,  not  only  that  he  has  achieved  suc- 
cess in  life,  but  also  that  his  success  is  deserved. 
He  began  with  no  financial  means  at  his  com- 
mand :  he  has  risen  from  comparative  obscurity 
to  affluence  step  by  step,  and  now,  at  the  age  of 
forty-seven  years,  has  reached  a  high  position  in 
life,  and  is  universally  esteemed  and  honored. 

In  April,  i8go,  Mr.  Nathan  was  among  the 
forty-five  gentlemen  who,  owing  to  their  high  po- 
sition in  the  community,  and  their  natural  .ibilily, 
were  chosen  to  compose  the  directorate  of  the 
World's  Columbian  Exposition  to  be  held  at 
Chicago  in  1893,  and  it  can  be  truly  stated  thdt 
not  one  of  these  gentlemen  is  more  desirous  of 
seeing  this  grand  affair  a  wonderful  success  than 
is  Adolph  Nathan. 


FRANCIS    P.    OWINGS, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


THE  subject  of  this  biography,  though  still  a 
young  man,  has  attained  a  prominence  that 
men  ordinarily  reach  only  after  years  of  jjatient 
toil,  and  achieved  a  degree  of  success  of  which 
any  man  might  justly  be  proud.  The  story  of  his 
life,  were  it  written  in  full,  would  read  like  a  ro- 
mance, but  the  limits  of  our  sketch  forbid  that  we 
give  more  than  an  outline  of  his  remarkable  ca- 
reer. 

A  native  of  Alton.  Illinois,  he  was  born  on 
September  27,  1857,  the  son  of  David  F.  and 
Mary  B.  (Blandina)  Owings, and  is  one  of  a  family 
(if  seven  children.  His  father  was  educated  at 
Mt.  St.  Mary's  College  in  .Maryland,  was  .i  man  of 


sterling  busine.ss  qualities  and  during  our  subject's 
boyhood  was  engaged  in  the  banking  business. 
His  mother  was  a  woman  of  estimable  qualities, 
and  to  her  influence  and  example  he  attributes  in 
great  measure  \\  hatever  of  success  he  has  achieved. 
His  devotion  to  her  knew  no  bounds,  and  in  her 
old  age  he  was  her  solace  and  support.  .She  died 
in  October,  1889,  at  St.  Louis,  Missouri. 

Francis  attended  the  public  schools,  and  later 
attended  the  High  School  of  St.  Louis,  gradu- 
ating at  the  age  of  eighteen  years.  He  thereupon 
secured  a  clevkshi])  with  the  agency  of  Wood 
Reaper  Company,  at  .Mton,  Illinois,  at  a  salary  of 
twenty  dollars  per  month.      His  aptitude  for  busi- 


778 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AND  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


ncss  and  faithfulness  to  his  duties  wnn  the  esteem 
and  confidence  of  his  emploj-ers  from  the  first :  at 
the  end  of  six  months  liis  s.dary  was  doubled,  and 
a  few  years  later  he  had  an  interest  in  the  busi- 
ness. His  next  \enture  was  in  the  seed  trade  at 
Alton,  which  he  conducted  successfully  till  the  fall 
of  1879.  I^  ^^''^  while  in  this  business  that  he  was 
called  to  Chicago  to  purchase  a  car  load  of  goods. 
It  was  his  first  visit  to  the  metroiiolis  of  the 
west,  and  so  charmed  was  he  w  ith  the  business 
activity  and  evidences  of  prosperity  that  greeted 
him  on  every  hand,  that  he  then  and  there  resolved 
to  make  it  his  home,  and  returning  to  Alton,  closed 
out  his  business,  and  with-  sixteen  thousand  dol- 
lars, the  result  of  his  enter])rise  and  sa\-ing,  took 
up  his  abode  in  the  busy  cit\-  that  has  since  been 
his  home,  resolved  to  make  for  himself  a  name  and 
place  among  those  whose  enterprise  and  ability 
should  develop  her  resources  and  add  to  her  at- 
tractiveness. For  the  purpose  of  getting  a  start  he 
invested  one  thousand  dollars  in  the  agricultural 
machinery  business,  and  lost  it.  This  was  his  first 
Chicago  venture..  He  next  formed  a  company 
for  refining  sugar  by  a  new  process,  with  a  capital 
stock  of  one  million  dollars.  The  enterprise 
proved  a  complete  failure,  and  all  the  money  in- 
vested was  lo.st.  After  some  months  of  enforced 
idleness,  he  associated  himself  with  a  pretended 
refiner  of  syrups  in  the  refining  business.  Es- 
stablishing  himself  on  Desplaines  street,  he  de- 
voted himself  closely  to  the  business  ;  sales  in- 
creased, exceeding  their  ability  to  supph'  the 
demand,  and  he  was  congratulating  himself  that 
he  would  soon  make  good  the  losses  of  his  former 
ventures,  when,  alas,  complaints  from  customers 
began  to  pour  in — the  syrups  wouldn't  keep;  they 
were  compelled  to  take  back  their  goods,  and  the 
venture,  like  the  former  ones,  proved  a  failure. 
After  several  more  similar  investments,  .ill  of 
which  resulted  disastrousK-,  Mr.  Owings  found 
his  capital  of  $16,000,  w  ith  which  he  commenced, 
reduced  to  $1,800,  and  that  tied  up  in  a  mortgage. 
He  accepted  the  situation  gracefully,  firmly  be- 
lieving that  fortune  would  yet  smile  on  him,  and 
temporarily  took  a  position  as  accountant  in  a 
type-foundry.  Two  months  later,  his  $1,800  loan 
being  paid  him,  he  purchased  a  lot  on  Oakley 
avenue  for  S300,  and  built  a  cottage  on  it  for  $800 
intending  it  for  a  home.  Not  suited,  however, 
with  the  location,   he  sold   the   place,    realizing  a 


profit  of  $600.  This  was  the  beginning  of  his 
real-estate  tran.sactions,  and  of  that  turn  in  his 
affairs  which  has  led  to  his  reniarkabic  success, 
this  $600  being  the  only  money  he  had  made  in 
Chicago,  after  four  \-ears  of  hard  work.  This 
beginning,  modest  though  it  was,  gave  him  a  new 
hope ;  purchasing  the  two  adjoining  lots  he  built 
cottages  on  them,  and  before  they  were  completed 
sold  them,  making  a  profit  of  Sjoo  on  each. 
During  the  next  year  he  built  eight  two-story 
houses  which  he  sold,  realizing  a  profit  of  about 
$6,000.  About  this  time  the  roller-skating  fever 
was  sweeping  over  the  west.  Yielding  to  the  per- 
suasions of  a  friend.  Air.  O wings  decided  to  open 
a  rink,  but  soon  discovered  that  his  friend  was 
without  means,  and  tliat  he  was  about  to  embark 
in  an  enterprise  of  which  he  knew  absolutely 
nothing,  antl  with  .1  \er)-  small  capital.  Nothing 
daunted,  however,  he  pushed  ahead  with  charac- 
teristic energy,  and  did  a  paying  business.  He 
built  the  Princess  Rink  on  West  Madison  street, 
taking  the  precaution  to  construct  it  in  such  a 
manner  that  it  could  be  converted  into  an  opera 
house  when  the  "skating  craze  "  should  die  out; 
which  was  afterwards  done,  and  it  is  now  known 
as  the  Princess  Opera  House.  He  ne.xt  turned 
his  real-estate  transactions  to  building  on  lease- 
holds in  the  business  portions  of  the  city,  and  has 
erected  in  all  twenty-seven  buildings — among 
which  are  the  six-story  building,  Nos.  254  and  256 
Franklin  street  ;  the  Windsor  Theatre  Building, 
468-478  North  Clark  street ;  the  Owings  Building 
at  226  and  228  Jackson  street ;  the  eight-story  mar- 
ble front  building  at  232  to  236  Fifth  avenue;  Em- 
pire Block  at  "j}^  and  75  Third  avenue;  the  seven- 
story  building  at  the  S.  E.  corner  of  Fifth  avenue 
and  Monroe  street ;  the  si.x-story  building,  nearthe 
corner  of  Jackson  street  and  Third  avenue  ;  also 
61  and  63  Third  axfuue  and  65  and  71  Third 
avenue,  si\-stor\-  printers'  wareliouse,  and  the  mag- 
nificent architectural  beauty  at  the  S.  E.  corner 
of  Dearborn  and  .\danis  streets,  known  as  the 
Owings  Block.  It  is  145  feet  in  height  to  the  top 
of  the  main  walls,  with  a  high-pitcheil  gable  roof 
rising  thirt}-  feet  higher,  which  in  turn  is  over- 
shadoweil  by  a  tall  cone-shaped  tower,  whose 
ape.x  is  22'f^  feet  above  the  foundations.  The 
building  is  fourteen  stories  in  height  and  was 
the  first  of  that  height  erected  in  Chicago. 
It  w;is  built  at   a  cost   of  $300,000,  and   _\-ields  an 


B/ou/iArff/ctf.  Dfcnox.iKV  .i.\n  ro/;TKAiT  ^-.m.i.iiry. 


179 


annual  rental  of  §67.400.  Mr.  0\vin<,'s"  success 
is  the  result  of  keen  foresight,  close  calculation, 
unfalterin}^ courage  and  honest,  manly  daring.  lie 
has  taken  great  risks  and  won,  where  men  of  less 
nerve  would  have  failed.  Personall\-  he  is  a  man 
of  genial  nature,  of  fine  appearance  and  ])leasing 
address. 

He  was  married  in  1877  to  Miss  Jeannctte  A. 
Levis,  a  daughter  of  George  A.  Levis,  of  New 
Orleans.     Mrs.  Owings  was  one  of  the   belles  of 


her  cit\-,  ami.  Iiesides  her  remarkable  beaut\-,  is  a 
woman  of  unusual  personal  charms.  Through 
her  husband's  adversities,  she  was  to  him  a  con- 
stant inspiration,  helping  him  with  true  womanly- 
fortitude  to  bear  his  misfortunes,  aiding  with  her 
counsels  and  cheering  with  her  hopefulness,  and 
now  enjoys  with  him  that  prosperity  which 
has  come  as  the  fruit  of  their  labors.  Their 
family  consists  of  a  daughter  only,  Eugenie  M. 
Owings. 


ABRAPTAM    KUH, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


TO  have  attained  success  and  position  of 
business  and  social  prominence,  by  pa- 
tiently pursuing  a  fixed  purpose,  is  an  achievement 
of  which  any  man  might  justly  feel  proud. 
Abraham  Kuh  has  made  his  way  in  the  world, 
and  what  he  is  must  be  attributed  to  his  own 
efforts.  He  set  his  mark  high,  has  worked  with 
an  honest  and  manly  purpose,  and  accomplished 
most  satisfactory  results. 

He  is  a  native  of  Redwitz,  Bavaria,  Germany, 
and  was  born  May  7,  1834,  the  .son  of  Jacob  and 
Ida  (Lang)  Kuh.  He  was  educated  in  the  schools 
of  his  native  place,  leaving  school  at  the  age  of 
fourteen.  When  he  was  nineteen  years  old  he 
left  home  and  came  to  the  United  States,  and 
during  his  first  six  months  clerked  in  the  store  of 
his  brother  Isaac,  who  was  then  in  business  in 
New  York  city.  Leaving  New  Vork  he  went  to 
Dubuque,  Iowa,  and  there  spent  three  years 
clerking  in  the  clothing  house  of  Messrs.  B.  Wolf 
and  Co.,  receiving  a  salary  of  three  hundred  dol- 
lars the  first  year,  four  hundred  the  second,  and 
five  hundred  and  fifty  the  third.  He  was  econom- 
ical with  his  money,  and  with  a  cajiital  of  seven 
hundred  dollars  which  he  saved,  he  went  to  Fort 
Madison,  Iowa,  and  began  business  on  his  own 
account,  and  in  three  years  made  about  three 
thousand  dollars. 

Thus  far  his  plans  had  prospered  and  his  busi- 
ness success  was  all  that  he  could  e.xpect ;  but  his 
next  business  venture  was  less  fortunate.  Going 
to  St.  Joseph,  Missouri,  he  opened  a  clothing 
store  and  started  in  hopefully;  but  reverses  came 
and  he  lost   nearly  all   he  had   accumulated  ;  but 


nothing  daunted,  he  paid  his  liabilities  dollar  for 
dollar,  and,  with  a  brave  heart  and  sixty-two  dol- 
lars left  after  paying  his  debts,  turned  his  .steps 
toward  Chicago.  This  was  in  1861.  The  whole 
country,  agitated  by  the  war  of  the  Rebellion  just 
opening,  was  .still  suffering  from  the  financial 
panic  of  1S57-9,  and  western  banks  especially 
were  in  a  precarious  condition. 

Mr.  Kuh  began  buying  uncurrent  money,  and 
in  forty  days,  with  his  capital  of  si.xty-two  dollars, 
accumulated  one  thousand  dollars  in  these  un- 
current funds.  He  next  engaged  in  merchant 
tailoring,  and  during  the  following  three  years 
retrieved  much  of  his  losses.  His  business  train- 
ing and  experience  having  been  in  the  line  of 
buying  and  selling  clothing,  he  was  not  satisfied 
until  again  engaged  in  that  line,  and  it  was  this 
desire  that  led  to  the  establishment  of  the  cloth- 
ing house  of  Leopold,  Kuh  ami  Company,  which 
did  a  thriving  business  for  sonic  fourteen  years. 
In  1878  Mr.  Kuh  withdrew  from  the  firm,  selling 
his  interest  in  the  business,  and  feeling  much  the 
need  of  rest  and  recreation,  spent  eighteen  months 
in  Europe,  visiting  his  old  home  and  many  other 
places  of  interest.  Upon  his  return  in  1880  he 
opened  a  wholesale  clothing  house  on  Fifth 
avenue,  which  was  afterwards  removed  to  Market 
street,  and  again  to  the  corner  of  Franklin  and 
Jackson  streets.  The  business  is  conducted  under 
the  firm  name  of  Kuh,  Nathan  and  Fischer:  Mr. 
Kuh's  partners  being  Messrs.  Nathan  and  Fi.scher, 
whose  portraits  and  sketches  appear  in  other  parts 
of  this  work,  and  is  one  of  the  largest  and  most 
flourishing  and  stable  clothing  houses  in  the  west. 


ySo 


BIOCKAI'IIICAL  DIcriOXARY  A.\n  PORTRAIT  uAI.LERY. 


While  ^iviii<^  personal  attLiition  to  the  affairs 
of  his  firm,  Mr.  Kuh  has,  at  the  same  time,  been 
largely  interested  in  other  matters.  lie  is  a 
stockholder  in  the  Chemical  National  Bank  and 
the  (jerman  Ojjcra  House,  the  .Street's  .Stable 
Car  Comjiany,  and  other  public  and  prixate  enter- 
prises. 

He  is  a  generous  contributor  to  cliaritable  ob- 
jects, and  is  a  director  of  the  Old  Peojjle's  Home, 
of  Chicago.  Mr.  Kuh  is  a  man  of  hiL;h  personal 
qualities,  social  in  his  nature  and  fontl  ol  gootl 
fellowship.  He  is  a  man  of  correct  principles,  and 
high  minded  in  everything  he  does:  he  is  strong 
in  liis  friendships,  and  scorns  to  do  a  mean  act, 
and  in  all  his  dealings  and  intercourse  with  his 
fellow  men  strives   to  do  as  he  would  be  done  by. 

He  is  one  of  the  charter  members  of  the  Stand- 
ard Club,  one  of  the  wealthiest  social  organiza- 
tions of  Chicago,  whose  club-house  at  the  corner 
of  Michigan  avenue  and  Twenty-fourth  street  is  a 
model  of  architcctual   beauty  and  elegance. 

In  his  two  \isits  to  the  old  world,  and  his  ex- 
tensive travels  through  the  United  States,  Mr. 
Kuh  has  acquired  a  wide  range  of  practical  and 
interesting  facts,  and  being  a  clever  conversa- 
tionalist, is  a  most  agreeable  companion. 

He  is  not  a  man  of  strong  religious  sentiments, 
but  broad  and  liberal  in  his  views,  believing  that 
no  creed  is  lars^ie  enousih   to   cover  or  contain  all 


truth.  I  le  is  a  ciiarter  member  of  .Sinai  congrega- 
tion, whose  house  of  worship  is  located  at  the 
corner  III  Indiana  .i\enue  and  Twenty-first  street, 
;uul  takes  a  commendable  interest  in  its  work. 

In  political  matters,  as  in  religious,  Mr.  Kuh 
insists  on  his  right  to  think  and  act  for  himself, 
and  is  bound  by  no  party  ties  ;  he  holds  men  in 
higher  esteem  than  any  party,  and  in  casting  his 
ballot,  supports  the  candidate  whom  he  believes 
best  fitted  for  office,  regardless  of  the  party  name 
by  which  he  ma\-  be  called.  He  is  not  a  poli- 
tician. 

In  iSOi  Mr.  Kuh  married  Miss  C.iroline  Leo- 
pold, a  daughter  of  Mr.  L.  Leopold,  ;i  ]3rominent 
merchant  of  Chicago.  They  luue  one  daughter, 
now  Mrs.  E.  Bu.xbaum. 

Such  is  a  brief  outline  of  a  life  that  has  pursued 
the  e\en  tenor  of  its  way  through  prosperity  and 
misfortune  alike;  never  over-elated  by  success, 
never  cast  down  reverses.  Of  a  cheerful,  hopeful 
temperament,  possessing  a  genius  for  hard  work, 
with  a  firm  faith  in  his  ability  to  do,  and  strong 
in  the  belief  that  right  doing  must  lead  to  a 
happ\-  ending,  he  has  labored  patiently  and  per- 
severingl)',  and  li\es  to  enjoy,  not  only  an  ample 
fortune,  but  also  I  what  to  him  is  more  highly 
prized),  the  unbounded  confidence  and  lo\e  and 
esteem  of  all  ;vho  ha\e  come  within  the  range 
of  his  influence. 


ADLAI    THOiMAS    EWING, 


CHICAGO,  ILL, 


THE  subject  of  this  sketch  is  descemled  from 
Scotch-Irish  ancestors.  His  parents,  Jno. 
Wallis  Ewing  and  Maria  McClellan  Stevenson, 
were  natives  of  North  Carolina,  but  for  man\- 
years  resided  in  Christian  county,  Kentucky.  In 
1833  they  became  residents  of  McLean  county, 
Illinois,  where  Adlai  Thomas  was  born  on  the  5th 
day  of  I""ebruary,  1846.  Mr.  Ewing's  father  was 
a  man  of  marked  personality  and  great  force  of 
character.  His  mother  was  the  grand-niece  of 
Doctor  Ephraim  Bre\ard,  the  author  of  the 
Mecklenburg  Declaration  of  Independence,  w  hich 
was  the  first  renunciation  of  British  authorit\-  by 
American  colonists.  Mr.  I'^wing  is  the  \-oung. 
est  of  a    family   of  five  sons    and    one  daughter. 


and  is  a  spleiulitl  illustration  of  the  possibili- 
ties under  American  institutions,  opened  to 
c\-ery  young  man  ol  intelligence,  integrit}-  antl 
energy. 

He  was  educated  at  the  Illinois  State  Normal 
University,  studied  law  in  Bloomington,  Illinois, 
with  his  eldest  brother,  the  Hon.  James  S.  Ewing, 
and  was  admitted  to  the  bar  in  1868.  The  same 
year  he  commenced  the  practice  of  his  profession 
in  Chicago,  and  since  that  time  has  been  an  ac- 
li\e  anil  able  member  of  the  Chicago  bar.  Three 
of  Mr.  I'.wing's  brothers,  James  S.,  William  G.  and 
Henry  .\.,  are  lawyers  of  acknowledged  ability, 
and  for  many  \ears  ii.ive  occupied  leading  posi- 
tions at  the  bar  of  Illinois  and  Kansas. 


lUOGRAFlIICAL  PICTIOXAKV  A.\n  PO/^TRA/T  CAI.LERV. 


781 


Alth()ui,'li  Mr.  Kwinj,',  from  his  carl\  manli<H)il, 
has  been  a  consistent  and  persistent  advocate  of 
the  doctrines  of  the  Democratic  party,  he  has 
never  sought  pohtical  preferment.  Me  assisted 
in  organizing  tlie  Union  Club,  one  of  the  leading 
and  most  wealthy  social  clubs  of  Chicago,  and 
was  also  a  charter  member  of  the  famous  Iro- 
quois Club,  of  which  he  has  been  an  officer  al- 
most continually  since  its  organization,  having 
served  successively  as  secretary,  vice-president 
and  president. 

He  was  appointed  by  President  Harrison  one 
of  the  United  States  Commissioners  for  Illinois 
to  conduct  the  World's  Columbian  E.xposition, 
and  at  the  request  of  Hon.  James  G.  Blaine,  Sec- 
retary of  State,  called  to  order  the  first  meeting 
of  that  distinguished  body.  Mr.  Ewing  was 
elected  a  member  of  the  Committee  on  Perma- 
nent Organization  of  the  Commission,  and  was 
afterwards  made  a  member  of  the  Executive 
Committee,  and  also  a  member  of  the  Committee 
on  Fine  Arts. 

He  was  one  of  the  earliest  and  foremost  pro- 


moters of  the  great  sanitar\-  anil  commercial  en- 
terprise of  connecting,  b\-  abundant  water  way, 
Lake  Michigan  with  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  and  to 
his  intelligent  and  untiring  labors  in  this  behalf, 
as  much  as  to  those  of  any  other  man,  is  due  the 
incalculable  advantages  in  peace  and  war  that  will 
result  to  Chicago  and  the  country  at  large  from 
this  stupendous  triumph  of  engineering  skill.  He 
was  the  original  promoter  of  the  beautiful  boule- 
vard now  connecting  Union  Park  with  Douglas 
Park,  in  the  city  of  Chicago.  Mr.  Ewing  is  a  man 
of  great  energy  and  force,  and  although  he  has 
given  much  time  and  thought  to  matters  of 
purely  public  and  general  interest,  he  has  been 
provident  and  wise,  and  has  accumulated  a  hand- 
some fortune.  He  is  a  man  of  fine  ability,  many 
accomplishments,  equitable  temperament,  and 
genial,  sunny  disposition. 

He  was  married  in  1879,  ^'^  Huffalo,  New  York, 
to  Miss  Kate  Hyde,  a  lady  of  rare  intellectual 
gifts  and  personal  graces.  Four  children,  three 
daughters  and  one  son,  have  been  born  of  this 
marriage. 


WILLIAM    LOWRV   COPELAND,    M.D. 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


'Il/'ILI.IAM  L.  COPELAND  was  born  in 
VV  185  I  at  St.  Catherines.  Ontario,  the  son  of 
William  L.  Copeland,  a  highly  respected  citizen, 
a  native  of  Ireland,  and  Dency  P.  (Moore) 
Copeland,  a  native  of  New  York.  He  has  three 
brothers  and  two  sisters.  Arthur,  a  young  man  of 
exalted  character  and  serious  religious  convic- 
tions, is  a  resident  of  Aurora,  Illinois,  and  sec- 
retary of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  As.socia- 
tion  of  that  city.  The  other  two  brothers  re- 
side in  Winnipeg,  Manitoba,  one  of  whom. 
Charles,  is  Provincial  secretary  of  the  Young 
Men's  Christian  Association  of  that  place.  One 
sister  is  the  wife  of  Mr.  W.  J.  McCalla,  a  well- 
to-do  merchant  of  St.  Catharines,  C>ntario,  and 
the  other  resides  with  our  subject  in  Chicago. 
His  father's  death,  which  occurred  in  18.S7,  was 
the  first  death  in  a  family  of  eight  brothers  and 
sisters  since  1S13,  a  remarkable  instance  of  family 
longevity. 

Dr.  Copeland    was   educated    in    the    common 


schools  of  Upper  Canada,  said  to  be  the  most  per- 
fect common-school  system  in  the  world,  and  in 
the  St.  Catharines  Academy.  In  1872  he  was  grad- 
uated at  McGill  Medical  College,  Montreal,  and 
went  abroad  to  acquire  clinical  instruction  in  the 
hospitals  of  Europe.  He  studied  in  St.  Thomas 
Hospital  of  London,  also  in  the  Berkshire  Hos- 
pital for  one  year.  Returning  to  Canada,  his 
father  influenced  him  to  remain  there,  and  he 
opened  an  office  in  his  native  town,  and  succeeded 
in  building  up  a  large  and  lucrative  practice.  But 
the  advantages  and  opportunities  of  a  small  city 
were  not  sufficient  to  satisfy  his  ambition,  and 
consequently,  about  1879,  '^^^  removed  to  Chicago, 
and  was  soon  afterward  appointed  one  of  the  at- 
tending physicians  at  the  dispensary  of  the  Col- 
lege of  Physicians  and  Surgeons.  At  the  present 
time  (1892^  he  is  professor  of  anatomy  in  the  Chi- 
cago College  of  Dental  Surgery,  and  examining 
physician  for  the  Chosen  Friends.  He  is  a  mem- 
ber of  the  American  Medical  Society,  the  Chicago 


782 


niOGKAI'lIICAI.  DICTIOXARY  A.\D  I'ORTRAIT  (iALLKRV. 


,Mcdical    Society,  and    tlu-   Chicago    I'alliDloLjical 
Society. 

He  is  a  mcinbcr  of  the  ricsb\tcriaii  Church.  A 
Republican  in  political  belief,  he  is  yet  non-parti- 
san, and  in  castintj  his  ballot  has  ret^ard  for  prin- 
ciple and  men  rather  than  party.  From  youth 
up,  he  lias  possessed  remarkable  equanimity  of 
demeanor  and  a  full  command  nf  nerve,  and  is 
thereby  peculiarly  adapted  for  the  practice  of 
medicine.  A  man  of  excellent  principles,  he  is 
held  in  high  esteem,  especially  by  those  who 
know  him  best.      Althout^h  one   of  the  old-school, 


orthoilo.x  ])ractitioners,  he  is  entirel}'  free  from 
prejudice  in  his  attitude  towartl  the  rejiresentatixcs 
of  other  schools  of  medicine. 

In  1S76  he  was  married  to  Miss  May  St. 
Jcihn,  an  accomplished  and  popular  lady,  the 
daut;hter  of  the  late  Samuel  St.  John,  a  well- 
known  citizen  of  St.  Catharines,  Ontario.  Mrs. 
Copeland  is  a  sister  of  J^rofessor  L.  St.  John, 
one  of  the  founders  of  the  Collci^e  of  Physi- 
cians and  Surgeons  of  Chicago.  The\-  ha\e  twn 
daughters,  aged,  respectively,  nine  and  sixteen 
years. 


JAMES    W.    TUOHV, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


Tl  1  M  remarkable  success  of  him  whose  name 
heads  this  sketch  was  the  result  of  perse- 
\'ering  and  well-directed  effort  in  the  line  of  his 
nati\-e  talents.  Me  liad  a  purpose  in  life,  and 
•worked  with  a  will  for  its  attainment.  He  was 
born  in  Care\\  Ireland,  near  the  Lakes  of  Kilar- 
ne_\-,  on  the  (Sth  of  July,  1849.  Me  was  the  son 
of  Edward  and  I-^lizabeth  (Crenini  Tuohy.  When 
James  was  fifteen  years  of  age  he  came  to  the 
L'nited  States,  whither  his  father  had  ]5receded 
him  some  years.  The  mother,  now  se\'cnt_\--three 
years  of  age,  resides  at  Utica,  I.a  .Salle  count}-, 
Illinois,  where  our  subject  passed  his  boyhood. 
He  received  such  education  as  the  district  school 
afforded,  and  at  an  early  age  accepted  a  clerkship 
in  the  dry-goods  store  of  Mr.  Dennis  Lynch,  of 
L'tica.  From  LUica  he  remoxed  to  .Streator, 
where  he  was  in  the  emplo}'  of  1).  lleenan  and 
Company.  The  ne.\t  step  in  his  successful  career 
was  to  enter  into  partnership  with  Mr.  F.  Shields, 
of  Braidwood,  Illinois,  under  the  firm-name  of  F. 
Shields  and  Company,  and  where  he  developed 
remarkable  a]ititude  for  mercantile  pursuits.  In 
1S73,  when  but  twenly-four  years  of  age,  he  pur- 
chased Mr.  Shields'  interest,  assuming  full  con- 
trol of  the  business.  A  little  later  he  established 
a  second  store,  at  Wilmington,  Illinois,  both  of 
which  he  conducted  with  great  success,  winning 
for  himself  the  title  of  the  "  ho\-  merchant." 
Desiring  a  witler  field  of  operations  he  disposed 
of  his  business  at  Braidwood  and  Wilmington  in 
1880,  and    removed    to    Chicago,  locating  in  the 


West  Division  of  the  city.  He  opened  a  store 
at  the  corner  of  Madison  and  Peoria  streets, 
where  he  continued  until  1883,  and  then  pur- 
chased from  Carson,  I'irie,  .Scott  and  (."ompan\- 
their  dry-goods  establishment  at  the  corner  of 
Clark  and  Erie  streets,  on  the  North  siile.  This 
was  conducted  as  a  department  store,  and  under 
his  able  management  came  to  rank  among  the 
leading  retail  houses  of  the  Northwest.  The 
encouragement  Mr.  Tuoh\-  had  received  thus 
far  in  his  business  causetl  him  to  further  extend 
his  field  of  operations,  .\ccordingly.  in  1886  he 
opened  a  store,  in  a  buikling  designed  and  erected 
especially  for  his  use,  at  the  corner  of  Madison 
and  Wood  streets.  Upon  the  removal  of  Messrs. 
Carson,  Pirie,  Scott  and  Company  from  the  West 
Side  in  the  spring  of  1877,  I\Ir.  Tiiohy,  with 
characteristic  foresight,  secured  their  former  stand 
on  West  Madison  street.  The  department  store 
which  he  opened  there  became  one  of  the  most 
extensi\e  in  the  city.  This  immense  establish- 
ment, together  with  his  other  three  stores,  he 
conducted  with  marked  ability  anil  eminent  suc- 
cess until  liis  decease,  which  occurretl  June  y. 
1890.  .Stricken  down  in  tile  prime  of  his  man- 
hood .nul  in  the  midst  of  prosjicrity,  when  long- 
cheiished  hojjes  were  being  realized,  his  early 
death  was  a  >^hoek  to  his  i-xtensive  circle  of  busi- 
ness friends  who  had  |)redicteil  for  him  still 
greater  achiexenunts,  ,ind  to  his  immediate  laniily 
an  irrejiarable  loss.  i\Ir.  Tuoh}'  enjoyed  the 
reputation,  both   in  Chicago  and  throughout  the 


B/OCRAI'/t/C.U.  D/CTIOX.IU'V  AXD  rORTKAlT  uALLEIiV. 


785 


Xorthwcsl.  of  being  careful.  fai-sii;litcil  and 
shrewd  in  tlie  conduct  of  his  ou  n  affairs,  ami  up- 
right and  honorable  in  dealing  with  others. 

On  October  6,  1874,  Mr.  Tuohy  was  married  to 
Mi.ss  Nellie  Cavanaugh,  of  Ottawa.  Illinois,  who 
survives  him.  Mrs.  Tuohy  is  a  woman  of  unusual 
executive  ability.  Such  was  the  confidence  re- 
posed in  her  by  Mr.  Tuohoy  that  he  made  her 
his  sole  executrix,  and  in  the  succes.sful  manage- 
ment of  the  estate  she  has  proved  herself  most 
worthy  of  the  charge.  She  is  a  graceful,  attract- 
ive woman,  and  an  agreeable,  bright  conversation- 
alist. The  remainder  of  the  family  consists  of 
one  daughter,  Mary  Elizabeth,  twelve  years  of 
age,  an  e.xtremely  bright,  beautiful  girl,  who 
promises  much  as  an  accomplished  woman ; 
James  \V.,  aged   ten :    Walter  Grant,   aged    five ; 


Arthur  Cavanaugh,  aged  two,  ami  I'aul,  the  baby 
of  the  family,  making  a  hai)py  group  of  bright, 
intelligent  children. 

He  was  a  good  husband,  kind  father,  and 
staunch  friend ;  he  was  conscientious  and  gener- 
ous, contributing  largely  to  the  advancement  of 
Christianity.  To  deserving  cliarities  his  hand 
was  always  open,  as  many  representatives  of 
Chicago's  churches  and  institutions  can  testify; 
witty,  fond  of  a  joke,  and  hospitable  in  his  home, 
he  took  an  unusual  interest  in  and  devoted  much 
time  to  the  welfare  and  advancement  of  his  chil- 
dren. To  those  who  knew  his  worth  he  needs  no 
eulogy:  speech  cannot  express  the  love  of  his 
friends.  The  flowers  of  Calvary  cemetery  now 
bloom  and  fade  over  that  epitome  of  all  that  is 
mortal  engraven  upon  the  plate  of  the  casket. 


CHARLES   WARRINGTON    EARLE,   A.M.,    M.D. 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


ATKII.  yc  30th,  1639.  W'c,  wiiose  names 
are  underwritten,  doe  acknowledge  our- 
selves the  legel  subjects  of  his  majestic,  King 
Charles,  and  in  his  name  doe  hereby  bind  our- 
selves into  a  civill  body  politicke,  unto  his  lawes 
according  to  matters  of  justice." 

.-\mong  the  twenty-nine  names  affixed  to  this 
quaint  document  which  appears  in  the  records  of 
Portsmouth.  Rhode  Island,  is  to  be  found  that  of 
one  Ralph  Earle.  Ralph  Earle  was  an  English- 
man, who  with  his  wife,  Joan,  came  from  E.xeter 
in  1634,  and  founded  a  family  which  is  to-day 
conspicuous  in  mercantile  and  professional  life  in 
every  State  of  the  Union.  Sprung  from  this 
stock,  and  of  it  an  honored  branch,  is  Charles 
Warrington  Earle,  born  in  Westford,  Vermont, 
.\pril  2,  1845.  When  he  was  nine  years  old  his 
father,  Moses  L.  Earle,  removed  from  Vermont  to 
Lake  county,  Illinois.  Mr.  Earle  was  an  ambi- 
tious farmer,  and  his  son  experienced  all  the  ad- 
vantages, as  well  as  the  disadvantages  of  being 
"a  farmer's  boy."  His  early  education  was 
much  retarded  and  interrupted  by  the  demands 
of  farm  work,  yet  the  strength  and  endurance 
gained  in  the  fields  more  than  made  up  for  it  in 
after  years.  For  seven  years  he  labored,  dividing 
his  time  between  the  farm  and   the  school-room 


When  the  first  call  for  volunteers  came  in  the 
war  of  the  rebellion,  this  sixteen-year-old  boy  was 
ready  to  oflfer  such  an  amount  of  brawn,  muscle 
and  enthusiasm  as  would  have  done  honor  to 
many  a  man.  Persuading  his  father  to  allow  him 
to  enlist,  he  became  a  member  of  the  Fifteenth 
Illinois  Volunteer  Infantrv',  w^hich  was  mustered 
into  service  in  the  summer  of  1861.  This  regi- 
ment was  enlisted  for  "  three  months'  service," 
but  when  the  recruits  reached  Freeport  they  were 
informed  that  enough  "  three  months'  men  "  had 
already  been  sent  on,  and  that  they  could  either 
return  to  their  homes  or  enlist  for  three  years.  It 
did  not  take  them  long  to  decide,  and  soon  they 
were  attached  to  Gen.  Fremont's  corps,  then  oper- 
ating in  Missouri.  In  the  fall  of  1861  our  young 
volunteer  was  disabled,  sent  home,  and  put  into 
the  Academy  at  Hurlington,  Wisconsin.  In  the 
spring  of  1862,  unable  to  resist  the  call  of  Presi- 
dent Lincoln  for  three  hundred  thousand  men,  he 
enlisted  in  the  Ninety-sixth  Regiment  of  Illinois 
Volunteer  Infantry.  This  regiment,  under  the 
command  of  Gen.  Gordon  Granger,  was  first  em- 
ployed to  guard  the  cities  of  the  Ohio  from  the 
threatened  attacks  of  Gen.  John  Morgan.  It 
began  active  service  in  Tennessee  under  Gen. 
Ro-;ccrans.     At     Franklin.    Tennessee.    Orderly- 


7S6 


lUOGliAI'HICAL  DICTIOXARV  AXP  PORTRAIT  r.AI.LERY. 


scr<jcant  Chas.  Earlo  was  promoted  to  second- 
lieutenant  of  his  company,  and  in  the  battle  of 
Chickamauga  he  commanded  it.  In  that  battle 
the  loss  of  the  company  was  thirty-five  out  of 
forty-five  ;  Lieutenant  Earle  was  slightly  wounded, 
and  in  the  report  of  his  regimental  commander 
was  especially  commended  for  brave  conduct. 
Years  afterward,  at  Kingston.  Jamaica,  Colonel 
George  Hicks,  in  an  address,  speaking  of  the 
.services  of  the  Ninety-sixth,  .said :  •'  I  found 
that  I  had  now  but  a  very  few  men  with  me,  and 
I  should  have  thought  that  I  had  wholly  strayed 
from  my  regiment  were  it  not  that  I  had  w  ith  me 
the  colors  of  the  regiment,  together  with  the 
commander  of  the  color  company,  the  intrepid 
boy  lieutenant,  lion-hearted,  fearless,  unflinching 
Charlie  Earle,  whose  name  must  be  inscribed  high 
among  the  highest  on  the  roll  of  Chickamauga 
heroes."  On  the  day  following  the  battle.  Lieu- 
tenant Earl's  company  was  assigned  to  picket 
duty  on  Missionary  Ridge,  below  which  the  Union 
forces  were  gathering  for  the  battle  of  Chatta- 
nooga. Through  the  cowardice  of  a  staff-officer 
they  were  left  unrelieved,  and  fell  into  the  hands 
of  the  Confederates  as  prisoners  of  war.  On  the 
the  night  of  October  i,  1863,  Lieutenant  Earle 
was  consigned  to  Libby  Prison,  where  he  re- 
mained until  that  wonderful  escape  through  the 
tunnel,  February  g,  1864.  The  stcny  has  often 
been  told  of  the  six  awful  days  of  wading 
through  swamps,  terrorized  by  men  and  hunted 
by  dogs,  until  with  indescribable  emotions  they 
came  in  sight  of  Union  troops.  Returning  soon 
to  his  regiment.  Lieutenant  Earle  was  rapidly  ad- 
\anced  through  the  I'anks  respectively  of  first- 
lieutenant,  captain,  adjutant,  and  finally  aid-de- 
camp and  acting  assistant  inspector-general  on 
the  staff  of  Gen.  W.  C.  Whittaker,  and  at  the 
close  of  the  war  was  breveted  Captain  of  the 
United  States  Volunteers  for  gallant  and  merito- 
rious conduct  at  the  battles  of  Chickamauga,  Re- 
seca,  Kenesaw  Mountain,  Franklin  and  Nashville. 
In  1865  he  rec(jmniencetl  his  studies  at  Beloit 
College,  W'isconsin.  After  a  studious  sojourn  of 
three  years,  he  matriculated  at  the  Chicago  Med- 
ical College,  graduating  in  1870,  one  of  the  two 
honor-men  of  his  class.  Dr.  Earle  commenced 
practice  in  the  office  of  the  celebrated  Professor 
William  H.  Byford,  of  whose  advice  and  friend- 
ship he  was  the  favored  recipient. 


In  1870  the  Woman's  Medical  College  was 
organized,  with  Dr.  Earle  as  professor  of  physi- 
ology. For  the  past  fifteen  years  he  has  been 
professor  of  diseases  of  children,  and  treasurer 
in  the  same  institution,  and  upon  the  death'  of 
Dr.  B)-ford  became  its  president.  He  was  one  of 
the  founders  of  the  College  of  Physicians  and 
Surgeons,  and  is  now  president  of  the  faculty  and 
professor  of  obstetrics.  He  is  also  professor  of 
operative  obstetrics  in  the  Post-Graduate  College 
and  Hospital  of  this  city.  He  is  a  member  of 
the  Illinois  State  Medical  Society  :  of  the  Amer- 
ican Medical  Association  :  of  the  Pediatric  So- 
ciety;  of  the  Chicago  Medical  Society,  and  of  the 
British  Medical  Society.  He  is  an  honored  mem- 
ber of  the  G.  A.  R..  and  Lo\al  Legion  ;  also  a 
member  of  The  Ir\ing,  a  prominent  literary  club 
of  the  city. 

Notwithstanding  the  enormous  demands  of  his 
practice.  Dr.  Earle  has  been  the  author  of  many 
articles  on  a  wide  range  of  medical  subjects,  which 
lia\e  attracted  attention  in  this  country  and  in 
Europe.  A  course  of  study  in  the  hospitals  of 
Florence,  Vienna,  Berlin,  Paris  and  London,  re- 
sulted in  a  valuable  series  of  essays  on  obstetri- 
cal subjects.  Owing  to  his  occupancy  of  the 
chair  of  diseases  of  children  in  the  Woman's 
Medical  College,  Professor  Earle  has  been  enabled 
to  publish  many  important  papers  on  Pediatrics. 
He  contributed  to  the  Chicago  Medical  Society  a 
paper  entitled  "'  Diphtheria  and  Its  Municipal 
Control,"  after  reading  which  he  offered  the  fol- 
lowing resolution,  which  was  passed  with  only 
one  dissenting  \ote:  "Inasmuch  as  the  conta- 
giousness of  diphtheria  is  recognized  by  the  great 
majority  of  medical  practitioners;  Resolved,  That 
the  commissioners  of  health  will  be  justified  in 
placarding  or  otherwise  designating  the  houses 
infected  with  this  disease." 

I'or  eighteen  years  Dr.  Earle  was  chief  plnsi- 
cian  in  the  Washingtonian  Home,  where  he 
made  a  close  study  of  inebrietj',  and  arrived  at 
im])ortant  conclusions  concerning  its  treatment, 
which  he  has  embodied  in  some  of  the  most  prac- 
tical publications  ever  issued  on  that  subject. 

Dr.  Earle  is  a  Republican,  and  a  member  of  the 
Lincoln  Club,  though  not  active  in  politics,  being 
thoroughly  de\-oted  to  his  profession.  He  is  a 
much  esteemed  member  of  the  Union  Park  Con- 
greijational  Church. 


^/W/tWjc  C^^r^ 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXAKV  AXP  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


In  rct^ard  to  the  personal  characteristics  of 
Professor  Earle,  we  cannot  do  better  than  quote 
the  words  of  an  eminent  brother  ph\-sician  of 
this  city  :  "  Great,  honest-hearted,  noble  man  ;  his 
blufT  exterior  hides  one  of  the  tenderest  hearts 
that  ever  beat.  Gentle  as  a  child,  perfectly  hon- 
est and  disinterested  in  his  practice,  he  could  not 
be  hired  to  do  a  dishonorable  thing.  He  is  a 
man  of  brains  and  ability,  and  thinks  down  deep 
into  his  cases.  The  Doctor  is  held  in  the  highest 
regard  in  the  Chicago  Post-Graduate  School,  of 
which  he  is  to  a  larsjc  extent  the  ortjanizer.  and 


787 

in  the  Woman's    Medical  College  (^f  this  city  his 
u  ork  is  beyond  all  i)raise." 

In  1871  Dr.  Earle  was  married  to  .Miss  I-"ann\- 
Hundy,  a  sister  of  the  late  Major  J.  M.  Hund_\-, 
who  was  for  many  years  a  distinguished  member 
of  the  metropolitan  press.  Mrs.  Earle  is  an  ac- 
complished musician,  and.  a  woman  of  strong  lit- 
erary taste.  She  has  alwa\s  taken  a  deep  interest 
in  c\  erything  pertaining  to  her  husband's  profes- 
sional life.  Two  children  ha\e  been  the  result 
ot  this  union  :  Miss  Carrie,  and  Master  William 
Bvford  Earle. 


\\.    FR  AX  KLIN    COLEMAN,   M.D. 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


\ly^  FR.ANKI.IN  COLEM.W  was  born  in 
V  »  .  Brockville,  Ontario.  His  paternal  great- 
grandfather was  among  those  who,  upon  the 
Declaration  of  Independence  by  the  revolting 
colonies  in  1776,  remained  loyal  to  the  British 
crown  and  made  a  home  in  Upper  Canada.  From 
him  Coleman's  Corners  derived  its  name  and 
noted  enterprise  as  a  manufacturing  center.  He 
is  described  as  "  a  man  who  shared  the  municipal 
honors  of  his  day,  and  left  his  impress  upon  the 
local  legislature  of  his  time."  The  liberal  num- 
ber of  eight  sons  and  four  daughters  ga\'e  evi- 
dence of  the  good  old  way  in  which  he  helped  to 
man  the  ship  of  state. 

His  grandson  Billa  ( father  of  W.  Franklin  Cole- 
mam,  with  his  father  and  two  brothers,  were  large 
manufacturers  at  Coleman's  Corners,  which,  about 
1855,  was  named  Lyn.  Billa  married  Ann  Eliza 
Willson.  born  in  New  York  State,  but  of  English 
descent.  She  was  noted  as  a  woman  of  saintlj- 
virtues  and  of  rare  beauty.  She  went  to  rest, 
beloved  by  all  who  knew  her,  two  weeks  after  the 
birth  of  her  first-born  child.  William  Franklin. 

During  early  infancy  W.  Franklin  Coleman 
was.  nolens  votens,  moved  to  Coleman's  Corners. 
From  the  age  of  six  to  twelve  his  governess  and 
various  village  schoolmasters  thrashed  out  a  fair 
crop  of  wild  oats,  and  an  average  one  of  the  three 
Rs  and  allied  products.  The  years  from  twelve 
to  fifteen  were  given  to  the  Brockville  Cirammar 
School,  where  he  and  a  chum  were  wont  to  be  on 
exhibition  as  "  first  in  mathematics."     The  follow- 


ing three  years  were  spent  at  the  Pottsdam  Acad- 
emy, New  York  State,  then  the  resort  of  many 
Canadians. 

The  study  of  medicine  was  begun  at  McGill 
College,  Montreal,  in  1856,  arul  continued  for 
three  winters,  while  during  the  corresponding 
summers  he  received  instruction  from  the  hate 
Dr.  Reynolds,  of  Brockville.  Over-zeal  in  the 
dissecting  room  induced  an  attack  of  typhoid, 
which  converted  the  .student  into  such  a  thing  of 
shreds  and  patches  that  for  two  succeeding  years 
phjsic  was  thrown  to  the  dogs.  His  medical 
studies  were  resumed  at  Queen's  College,  King.s- 
ton,  Canada,  and  after  two  years  a  diploma  with 
honors  was  awarded. 

The  serious  business  of  advising,  dosing  and 
dieting  humanity  was  begun  in  his  native  village 
of  Lyn,  where,  for  seven  years,  the  young  doctor 
gained  wisdom  by  experience  in  the  varied  prac- 
tice of  a  countr)-  physician.  With  \-ears.  love  of 
stud}-  and  desire  for  more  thorough  knowledge 
and  skill  in  one  special  branch  of  his  ])rofession 
induced  Dr.  Coleman  to  turn  his  attention  to  the 
departments  of  eye  and  ear.  Desirous  of  greater 
clinical  advantages  tlian  this  continent  then 
afff)rded,  he  went  to  England,  where  a  year  was 
spent  at  Moorfields  Eye  Hosjiital  ami  the  Lon- 
don Hospital,  after  which  the  examining  board 
of  the  Royal  College  of  Surgeons,  England,  was 
pleased  to  enroll  him  a  member  of  the  college. 

Returning  to  Canada,  he  settled  in  Toronto, 
and  there  formed  a   partnership  with  Dr.  A.  M. 


788 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOAARV  AND  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Roscbrugh,  an  oculist  and  aurist  of  established 
reputation.  He  was  appointed  surgeon  to  the 
Toronto  Eye  and  Ear  Iniinnary,  which  position 
he  held  during  his  seven  j'ears'  residence  in  that 
city.  Although  devoting  most  of  his  time  to  his 
favorite  branch  of  medical  science,  Dr.  Coleman, 
during  these  years,  also,  practiced  general  medi- 
cine, but  finally  decided  to  limit  his  attention  to 
his  work  as  an  oculist  and  aurist. 

M'ith  a  view  to  acquiring  still  further  knowl- 
edge in  his  specialty,  Dr.  Coleman  again  went 
abroad,  and  spent  a  year  in  the  clinics  of  Vienna 
and  Heidelberg,  under  the  guidance  of  such 
men  as  Jaeger,  Schnabel,  I^olitzer,  Gruber  and 
O' Becker. 

Upon  his  return  to  Canada,  he  selected  St. 
John,  New  Brunswick,  by  the  seaside,  as  his  field 
for  special  practice,  and  here  another  seven 
years'  service  won  him  a  Rachel  and  goodly 
wages.  But  the  oculist's  ambition  soon  outstrip- 
ped the  confines  of  the  quiet  Canadian  city,  with 
its  cramping  limitations  and  its  lack  of  compan- 
ionship in  scientific  research,  and  having,  in  addi- 
tion to  a  large  private  practice,  gained  a  rich 
harvest  of  experience  from  his  position  as  sole 
oculist  and  aurist  to  the  Provincial  Hospital,  he 
again  turned  westward. 

With  the  encouragement  of  some  of  the  promi- 
nent physicians  in  Chicago,  to  whom  Dr.  Coleman 
was  known  by  his  articles  in  medical  journals,  as 
well  as  by  introductory  letters  from  professional 
men  in  the  East,  he  decided  to  settle  in  this  lead- 
ing city  of  the  \\'est.  Skill  gained  from  large 
experience,  a  mind  well  trained  in  scientific 
research,  a  steady,  persevering  attention  to  details 
have,  in  a  few  years,  earned  for  him  the  wcll- 
deservcd  reward  of  a  good  practice  and  wide 
reputation. 

Finding  here  no  school  for  graduates  in  medi- 
cine, such  as  is  provided  in  various  cities  in  the 
East,  Dr.  Coleman  undertook  the  task  of  convinc- 
ing the  profession  in  Chicago  of  the  need  of  such 
an  institution,  and,  after  a  year  of  persevering 
labor,  succeeded  in  organizing  the  Chicago  Poly- 
clinic. The  management  of  this  institution  prov- 
ing unsatisfactory  to  himself  and  some  of  his  col- 
leagues, they  decided  to  establish  another  school, 
by  the  constitution  of  which  the  controlling  power 
should  rest  in  the  faculty.  This  latter,  known  as 
the   Post-Graduate    Medical   School,   of    Chicago, 


has  recently  erected,  on  Plymouth  Place,  a  com- 
modious building,  which  is  also  the  home  of  the 
Chicago  Charit}'  Hospital. 

Dr.  Coleman  is  a  member  of  the  Chicago  Uph- 
thalmological  Society,  of  the  Chicago  Medical 
Society,  and  of  the  Illinois  State  Medical  Society. 
He  is  oculist  and  aurist  to  the  St.  Elizabeth  Hos- 
pital, president  and  director  of  and  professor  of 
ophthalmology  in  the  Post-Graduate  Medical 
School;  also  examiner  of  pension  claims  for  eye 
and  ear  applicants.  Dr.  Coleman  is  a  member  of 
Grace  Episcopal  Church. 

Intense  fondness  for  scientific  study,  especially 
for  those  branches  embraced  in  the  field  of  medi- 
cine, makes  Dr.  Coleman's  professional  life  an 
enjoyment  rather  than  a  burden.  Indomitable 
energy,  calm  determination,  untiring  perseverance 
and  absolute  truthfulness  are  strong  and  lovable 
traits  in  the  character  of  this  ph3^sician.  While 
genial  with  his  patients  and  his  professional  breth- 
ren in  general,  it  is  by  his  personal  friends  alone 
that  the  full  charm  of  his  character  is  appreciated. 
Naturally  undemonstrative  and  reserved,  strangers 
have  small  opportunity  to  conjecture  the  wealth 
of  humor  and  entertainment  which  he  offers  to 
those  welcomed  within  the  sacred  precincts  of  his 
home. 

Dr.  Coleman  man-icd  in  18S2,  in  St.  John,  New- 
Brunswick,  Canada,  Mary  Winniett  Hartt,  the 
namesake  of  a  maternal  grandmother,  Mary  Anne 
Peters  (;/rc  Winniett),  whose  connections  by  blood 
or  marriage  include  many  names  illustrious  on 
both  continents.  Througii  her  maternal  grand- 
mother, Mrs.  Coleman  is  a  direct  descendant  of 
Elizabeth  Yates  [ju'c  I'cndcrell),  whose  brothers 
sheltered  King  Charles  II.  \\\\cw  lleeing  from 
Cromwell's  troopers,  after  the  battle  ot  Worces- 
ter, for  which  loyalty  an  annuity  was  gi'anted  to 
the  family,  which  is  still  enjoyed  by  the  heirs. 
Her  grandmother's  aunt  married  Colonel  Wolse- 
ley,  an  ancestor  of  Sir  Garnet  Wolseley.  Sir 
Fenwick  Williinns,  the  hero  of  Kars,  was  her 
grandmother's  secimd  cousin.  Sir  William  Win- 
niett, captain  in  the  British  na\y,  later  go\-ernor 
of  the  gold  coast  in  Africa,  and  knighted  for  treat)' 
service  there,  was  her  grandmother's  brother. 
Another  brother,  Alexander  Winniett,  was  con- 
nected by  marriage  with  Oliver  Wendell  Holmes. 
Her  maternal  great-grandmother  a\  as  the  tlaugh- 
ter  of  Peter  Totten,  of  New  York,  whose  descen- 


BIOGRAriUCAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  OAI.I.IIRV. 


789 


cl.iiits.  ficncral  Tottcn  ami  George  Miierson  Tot-  such  as  attorney-general  of  the  province,  member 

ten,   were  well  known   in  United   States   history,  of    executive    and    legislative    councils,    etc.      A 

Her     maternal     grandfather,     Benjamin     Lester  woman   of    cultivated   tastes   and   varied   talents, 

Peters,   was   the  son   of    a  distinguished  lo>-alist,  possessing  dignity,  courtesy  and  ease  of   manner, 

who  settled  in  New  Brunswick  in  1784,  and  whose  Mrs.  Coleman  is  a  true  helpmeet  to  her  husband 

sons    occupicil   pr.)minent   government   positions,  in  his  literary  and  scientific  labors. 


CHARLES    ELI    JUDSON. 


CHIC.\(;0.    ILL. 


CHAR1J:S  I-:LI  JUDSON.  president  and 
engineer  of  the  Consumers',  Hyde  Park  and 
Lake  Gas  companies  of  Chicago,  was  born  at 
Prattsburg.  New  York,  December  21,  1843,  and  is 
the  son  of  Aaron  and  Sophronia  (Mason)  Judson. 

He  is  descended  from  William  Judson,  who 
with  his  family  left  Yorkshire,  England,  in  the 
year  1634.  and  settled  in  Stratford,  Connecticut, 
where  some  of  his  lineal  descendents  .still  reside 
on  the  old  homestead.  William  Judson  was 
closely  identified  with  the  early  history  of  Har- 
vard College. 

During  the  past  twent\-five  decades  the  Judson 
family  has  contributed  many  sons  to  the  Christian 
ministry,  notably  the  Rev.  Dr.  Adoniran  Judson, 
the  missionary  to  Burmah. 

Mr.  Judson  was  about  fi\e  years  of  age  when 
his  father,  a  Presbyterian  clergyman,  accepted  a 
call  to  the  Second  Presbyterian  Church  of  Oswego, 
New  York.  He  was  strongly  anti-slavery  and 
prf)-temperance  in  his  views,  and  identified  him- 
self prominently  with  the  leaders  of  both  causes, 
lecturing  through  the  country  and  writing  forcible 
articles  for  the  papers  in  defense  of  his  convic- 
tions. He  was  noted  as  an  eloquent  and  con- 
vincing speaker.  He  died  August  21,  1852,  be- 
fore he  could  witness  the  abolition  of  that  system 
of  slavery  which  he  had  so  strongly  denounced  in 
the  pulpit,  on  the  platform  and  in  the  press.  He 
left  his  widow  and  two  sons  in  only  moderate 
circumstances.  In  the  following  s])ring  young 
Judson  was  sent  to  a  boarding  school  at  Sand 
Lake,  New  York,  and  in  four  years  was  reaily  to 
enter  college,  but  owing  to  his  youth  was  denied 
admission  until  the  following  year,  1858,  when  he 
entered  the  sophomore  class  of  Union  College  at 
Schenectady,  New  York,  and  graduated  in  July, 
1861,  in  his  eighteenth  year.     His  favorite  studies 


in  college  were  engineering  and  chemistry,  and 
those  preferences  undoubtedly  had  much  to  do 
with  his  later  business  experiences. 

Immediately  after  graduation  Mr.  Judson  re- 
turned to  Oswego,  and  engaged  in  the  drug  busi- 
ness. Six  months'  experience  of  this,  however, 
was  enough,  and  the  spring  of  1862  found  him  a 
member  of  the  firm  of  Bolles  and  Judson,  located 
at  Albany,  New  York,  engaged  in  the  manufac- 
ture and  wholesale  jobbing  of  paper.  They  con- 
ducted this  business  successfully  until  the  fall  of 
1S65,  when  the  firm  sold  out  and  engaged  in  the 
drilling  of  oil  wells  at  Pithole,  Pennsylvania. 
They  met  with  success  in  this,  but  dissolved 
partnership  in  January,  1866,  and  Mr.  Judson 
went  to  Savannah,  Georgia,  where  he  organized 
the  Southern  Wrecking  and  Submarine  Company, 
became  its  vice-president  and  engineer,  and  made 
a  contract  with  the  city  of  Savannah  for  the  re- 
moval from  the  Sa\annah  river  of  the  obstruc- 
tions which  had  been  placed  there  during  the  late 
civil  war.  This  contract  was  very  profitable  in 
its  early  stages,  but  owing  to  a  disagreement 
arising  between  the  United  States  Treasury  De- 
partment and  the  municipal  authorities  of  Savan- 
nah, the  company  suspended  operations  and  sold 
out  at  a  great  personal  loss. 

In  the  fall  of  1866  Mr.  Judson  went  to  Scran- 
ton,  Pennsylvania,  and  accejited  the  position  of 
treasurer  and  engineer  of  the  Scranton  Gas  and 
Water  Company,  where  he  remained  uninter- 
ruptedl)-  for  seventeen  years.  In  the  fall  of 
1883  he  was  tendered  the  position  of  president 
and  engineer  of  the  Consumers'  Gas,  Fuel  and 
Light  Company  of  Chicago,  just  then  complet- 
ing its  plant.  He  accepted  the  position  and 
moved  to  Chicago.  On  the  failure  of  this  cor- 
poration he  was  appointed  its  receiver,  and  subse- 


790 


BIOGIiAPHICAL  DIcriOXARY  A.XD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


qucntly  became  the  presitiLiit  ami  engineer  of 
the  Consumers'  Gas  Company,  which  succeeded  to 
the  property  of  the  former  corporation.  In  the 
spring  of  1887  he  became  president  and  engineer 
of  the  Hyde  Park  ami  Lake  Gas  companies 
also. 

In  the  fail  of  1872  Mr.  Judson  associated  him- 
self with  Thos.  J.  I'^islicr,  of  Laramie,  Wyoming, 
under  the  firm  name  of  Judson  and  Fisher,  in  the 
cattle  and    sheep   raising  business,  and   has   since 


that  time,  under  different  firm  names,  continued 
in  the  same  business.  He  is  undoubtedly  en- 
titled to  recognition  as  being  one  of  the  earliest 
established  ranchmen  in  that  portion  of  Wyoming. 

Mr.  Judson  was  married  August  23,  1877,  to 
Miss  Mary  Spencer  Black,  only  daughter  of 
Robert  T.  Black,  of  Scranton,  Pennsylvania. 

In  religious  matters  Mr.  Judson  is  a  Presby- 
terian, and  in  politics  a  Republican.  He  has 
ne\'cr  held  public  office. 


RALPH    S.    AND    ROBERT    L.   GREENLEE, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


RALPH  STEBBINS  and  ROBERT  LEM- 
UEL GREENLEE  were  born  in  Sum- 
merhill  township,  Crawford  county,  Pennsylvania. 
They  are  of  Scotch  and  English  extraction.  The 
Greenlee  family  were  Covenanters,  and  were 
driven  from  Scotland  in  1684,  on  account  of  their 
religious  belief,  and  settled  in  Maryland,  whence 
they  emigrated  to  Crawford  county,  Pennsylva- 
nia. Their  father,  Edmund  Greenlee,  was  born 
March  31,  181 1,  and  is  still  living  in  the  old  fam- 
ily homestead  near  Meadville,  Pennsyh-ania — a 
strong  man  physically  and  mentally.  Their 
mother  was  Mary  (Stebbin.s)  Greenlee,  of  linglish 
descent.  Her  ancestors  immigrated  to  America 
in  1633,  and  settled  at  Springfield,  Massachusetts. 
Thence  they  moved  to  Crawford  county,  Pennsyl- 
vania, where  she  met  Edmund  Greenlee,  to 
whom  she  was  married  in  1833.  On  April  13, 
1838,  the  twins,  Ralph  and  Robert,  were  born. 
From  their  earliest  infanc)'  there  was  great  diffi- 
culty in  distinguishing  one  from  the  other,  so 
much  were  they  alike  in  looks,  forms  and  manner. 
They  were  sent  to  school,  and  given  the  best  edu- 
cation afforded  in  the  common  and  graded 
.schools  of  the  district,  until  the}-  were  nineteen 
years  okl,  when  the}-  began  assisting  their  father, 
who  at  that  time  was  conducting  an  extensive 
dairy  business.  He  was  a  man  of  considerable 
inventive  genius,  and  he  devised  and  manufac- 
tured machinery  for  making  all  of  his  own  cheese 
boxes  and  butter  kegs.  At  the  age  of  twenty- 
five,  in  1 863,  the  sons  left  the  farm  and  remo\ed 
to  Chicago,  to  start  in  business  on  their  own  ac- 
count.      Making    use    of  their    mechanical  skill. 


acquired  while  working  with  their  father,  the)' 
opened  a  cooper  shop,  employing  machinery  in 
their  work.  Thisaroused  the  ire  and  concerted 
opposition  of  the  western  coopers,  for  they  ob- 
jected to  any  departure  from  the  methods  of 
their  forefathers.  The  opposition  was  met  boldly 
and  firmly,  and  finally  overcome,  and  the  firm  of 
Greenlee  Brothers  were  duly  prosperous. 

From  this  beginning  they  drifted  into  the  man- 
ufacture of  wood  working  machinery,  making  a 
specialty  of  the  highest  grades  known,  and  con- 
stantly adding  new  inventions  and  methods  until 
the  Greenlee  machines  have  become  famous  with 
manufacturers  in  wood  all  over  the  world.  Im- 
mediately after  the  great  fire  of  1871,  they  re- 
mo\'ed  to  their  present  quarters  on  \\'est  Twelfth 
street,  where,  in  addition  to  the  manufacture  of 
wood-working  machinery,  they  establi.shed  in 
1883  the  Northwestern  Stove  Repair  Company, 
the  largest  concern  of  its  kind  in  the  world,  of 
which  Mr.  Robert  L.  Greenlee  is  president,  and 
Mr.  Ralph  S.  Greenlee  is  \ice-president  and  trea.s- 
urer.  Here  also,  in  1886.  they  established  two 
large  foundries,  under  the  corporate  name  of 
(ireenlee  P'oundry  Compan}-,  with  Mr.  Robert  L. 
Greenlee,  president,  and  Ralph  S.  Greenlee,  vice- 
president  and  treasurer.  Their  business  of  manu- 
facturing machinery  is  conducted  under  the  cor- 
porate name  of  Greenlee  Brothers  &  Compan\-, 
with  Ralph  S.  Greenlee,  president,  and  Robert  L. 
Greenlee,  \ice-president  and  treasuier.  They  have 
recenth-  (1892)  purchased  the  old  established 
stove  business  of  Collins  &  Burgie.  which  they  re- 
organized and  incorporated,  with  Ralph  S.  Green- 


\ 


^'-t.-oe,..^,. 


^^Z-^^^^^^^^^l^ 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXAIiV  AXP  PORTRAIT  CAI.I.ERV. 


793 


k-c,  president,  and  Robert  L.  Greenlee,  vice-presi- 
dent and  treasurer,  and  located  at  Marengo,  Illi- 
nois, about  sixtj-  miles  from  Chicago.  Their 
main  office  is  in  Chicago. 

Mr.  Ralph  S.  Greenlee  married  on  l-'ebru- 
ar\'  15,  1866,  Miss  Elizabeth  Ikooks,  resident 
of  Chicago,  but  a  nati\e  of  Eastern  Canada.  Her 
father,  Mr.  William  Brooks,  was  for  many  years 
a  resident  of  Sherbrook,  Canada,  and  one  of  the 
leading  spirits  of  the  conservative  go\-crnment  of 
the  Dominion.  They  have  one  child:  IMiss  Ger- 
trude, an  accomplished  j-oung  lady. 

On  April  11,  1867,  Mr.  Robert  L.  Greenlee 
married  Miss  Emily  Brooks,  a  sister  of  his  broth- 
er's wife.  They  have  three  children  :  William 
Brooks  Greenlee,  now  ( 1892)  in  his  junior  \car  at 
Cornell  Universit}';  Miss  Grace  Greenlee,  who 
was  graduated  in  1891  from  Ogontz,  Philadelphia, 
and  Miss  Isabel  Greenlee,  who  is  now  in  her  sec- 
ond year  at  the  same  school. 

Their  politics  are  Republican,  antl  the\-  are 
staunch  believers  in  the  principles  of  their  ])arty. 
They  contribute  generously  to  all  worthy  chari- 
ties, and  are  unusually  liberal  in  their  contribu- 
tions to  educational  institutions,  believing  that 
the  education  of  the  people  will  remove  man\-  of 
their  ills.  Nor  is  their  view  of  education  limited 
to  the  narrow  routine  of  the  school  or  lecture- 
room.  The}'  have  been  careful  students  of  men 
and  events,  and  b\'  extensive  travels  at  home  and 
in  foreign  lands,  they  have  acquired  a  most  valu- 
able   fund    of    knowledi/'-'.     Few    .\mericans  are 


more  conversant  with  the  wonders  and  beauties 
of  the  world  than  thev.  Their  first  extensive 
travels  abroad  began  in  1883,  when  Mr.  Ralph  S. 
Greenlee,  with  his  family,  who  always  accompany 
him  in  his  travels,  made  a  thorough  tour  of  Old 
.Mexico  and  Europe,  lasting  thirteen  months,  and 
he  has  but  recently  returned,  with  his  wife  and 
daughter,  from  a  tour  of  the  world,  lasting  eigh- 
teen months.  During  this  last  trip  they  spent 
three  months  in  Japan  and  China,  v  isiting  the  in- 
terior of  both  countries,  ami  v\ent  all  through 
India  and  the  Island  of  Ceylon, .Egypt  and  Tur- 
ke\-,  and  made  a  tour  of  Palestine.  Mr.  Robert  L. 
Cireenlee  and  his  familv"  have  traversed  the  same 
countries,  except   Japan  ami  East  India. 

In  stature  thev' are  five  feet  and  ten  inches  in 
height,  and  weigh  one  hundred  and  eighty-si.x 
pounds  each.  They  have  a  commanding  pres- 
ence, well-formed  heads  which  set  squarly  upon 
their  shoulders,  and  are  men  who  would  attract 
immediate  and  respectful  audience  in  any  assem- 
bly. Their  eyes  are  dark  and  kindly,  and  have 
that  expression  which  places  the  stranger  imme- 
diatelv-  at  ease  in  their  presence.  They  are  cour- 
teous, but  not  effusive,  showing  in  this  the  true 
Scotch  and  Engli.sh  conservatism.  Their  leading 
characteristics  are  inbred  politeness,  kindness  and 
consideration  for  others,  coupled  with  indomitable 
will-power,  untiring  energy,  broad  liberality  and 
uncompromising  honesty.  Their  fortunes  have 
been  fairly  gained,  ami  stand  proud  monuments 
of  their  sturdv  manhood  and  genius. 


MAJOR    GEORGE    M.    BARBOUR. 


ciiic.'\(;c),  ILL. 


THERE  is  nothing  more  interesting  to  a  stu- 
dent of  human  nature  than  to  trace  the 
career  of  a  man  who,  endowed  with  energy  and 
ambition,  enters  boldly  into  the  struggle,  of  life 
and  makes  for  himself  a  high  place  in  the  busv 
world.  Such  a  man  is  the  subject  of  this  sketch. 
He  was  born  in  1844  in  western  New  York, 
and  comes  of  a  family  distinguished  in  the  historv' 
of  Vermont  and  \'irginia,  and  is  the  son  of 
Bomeroy  J.  and  Eunice  (Henry)  Barbour  -the 
latter  being  a  niece  of  ex-Governor  Eeonard,  a 
prominent    statesman,     lie    spent    his   youth    in 


Batavia,  New  \'ork,  and  in  Boston,  Massachusetts, 
and  was  educated  at  Hobart  College,  Geneva, 
New   York. 

Naturalh'  of  a  roving  disposition,  the  ships  of 
Boston  harbor  had  great  attraction  for  young 
Barbour,  ami  at  the  age  of  fourteen  j'ears  he  ran 
away  from  home,  and  made  a  runawav'  trip  to 
South  America  and  the  West  Indies,  the  voyage 
covering  si.x  months.  He  returned  with  a  more 
confirmetl  desire  for  adventure,  but  the  rough  life 
of  a  sailor  had  no  further  charms  for  him.  This 
tiesire,   however,   was  soon   to  be  gratified  in  the 


■94 


niOGRAFHICAL  DICTIONARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


stirring  cvoiits  of  the  War  of  the  Rebellion,  and 
three  daj's  after  the  call  of  President  Lincoln  for 
men  in  April,  1861,  he,  witli  many  others,  was 
marching  down  Broadway.  New  York  city,  going 
to  the  front  in  defence  of  the  Union,  having  en- 
listed as  a  private  in  the  'rwent}--second  Regi- 
ment New  York  Volunteers,  infantry.  He  was 
seventeen  years  old  at  that  time. 

He  was  present  at  the  armed  occupation  of 
Baltimore  under  General  Butler;  the  capture  of 
Harper's  Ferry,  and  the  famous  battle  of  Bull 
Run. 

In  this  service,  his  desire  for  action  ;ind  a  life  of 
adventure  had  full  swaw  and  when  his  term  of 
enlistment  expired  he  immediately  re-enlisted  as 
second  lieutenant  in  the  h'ourth  Regiment  New 
York  Cavalry.  He  saw  a  great  deal  of  active 
service  wjth  his  company  and  in  the  battle  of 
Kelley's  Ford,  February  17,  1865,  his  senior  lieu- 
tenant (Domingues)  being  killed,  he  commanded 
his  company  and  was  promoted  for  bra\ery 
and  meritori<ius  conduct  in  that  decisive  engage- 
ment. After  tliat  perilous  campaign  that  cul- 
minated at  Gettysburg,  he  resigned  from  the 
cavalry,  in  which  he  had  served  in  fourteen 
battles  and  more  than  one  hundred  skirmishes, 
his  whole  record  being  one  of  marked  bravery. 
He  became  quartermaster  of  the  Third  Massachu- 
setts Artillery,  from  which  he  was  within  a  year 
promoted  to  duty  in  the  cpiartermaster  general's 
department  in  the  regular  service,  and  completed 
a  continuous  service  of  nearly  seven  years,  during 
which  time  he  had  earned  the  respect  of  his  supe- 
rior officers  and  the  love  anil  admiration  of  his 
comrades. 

During  the  winter  preceding  the  close  of  the 
war  Major  Barbour  was  stationed  in  Washington, 
and  his  duties  brought  him  in  daily  contact,  for 
about  four  months,  with  President  Lincoln.  The 
duties  related  to  telegraphic  messages  in  the 
famous  little  brick  office  that  then  stood  between 
the  White  House  and  the  War  Department,  and 
there  was  soon  established  a  modest  degree  of  in- 
timate confidence  in  him  on  the  part  of  President 
Lincoln,  which  resulted  in  impressing  Major  Bar- 
bour with  a  deep  veneration  for  the  great  war 
president,  and  he  enjoys  recalling  numerous  tid- 
bits of  ciuaint  remarks,  characteristic  of  that  great 
man. 

He  was  present  at    Ford's    Theatre,  seated   near 


the  stage,  on  the  night  of  the  assassination  of  the 
President,  and  w'itnessed  the  action  of  Booth  and 
the  e.xcited  frenzy  of  the  audience,  and  from 
there  hastened  to  the  residence  of  Secretary 
.Sew.ard  in  time  to  render  assistance  to  him  and  his 
two  stricken  sons,  who  with  the  nurse,  Robinson, 
were  the  four  \  ictims  of  the  conspirator  Payne. 
Subsequently  he  witnessed  the  execution  of 
Payne,  Harold,  Alzerodt  and  Mrs.  Surratt. 

Major  Barbour  refers  with  a  just  pride  to  his 
military  record.  From  his  enlistment  to  his  re- 
signation he  never  lost  a  day,  was  never  sick, 
detailed  or  absent  on  furlough,  and  did  not  see 
his  home  for  more  than  four  years.  In  1864,  lie 
was  in  the  saddle  sixty-eight  consecutive  hours, 
except  a  brief  interval  when  he  dismounted  to 
transfer   his  saddle    to  a   fresh  horse. 

In  1867,  following  the  advice  of  Horace  Greeh', 
he  turned  his  face  toward  the  setting  sun,  antl 
went  to  Denver,  Colorado,  where,  without  so- 
licitation he  was  appointed  assistant  collector  of 
internal  revenue. 

He  also  engaged  in  architectural  work,  anil  was 
correspondent  for  several  eastern  papers.  Sub- 
sequently he  engaged  in  journalism  and  estab- 
lished daily  papers  in  Jacksonville,  Florida,  and 
Pierre,  Dakota,  and  conducted  them  with  success. 
As  a  correspondent  of  the  Chicago  Tunes  and 
Boston  Herald,  he  accompanied  the  part\-  com- 
posed of  Generals  Grant  and  Sheridan  and  Col. 
Grant  and  their  families,  on  their  extended  south- 
ern tour  in  the  winter  of  1879-80.  writing  mo.st  in- 
teresting accounts  of  the  trip,  and  also  for  several 
months  acting  as  secretar_\-  for  General  Grant. 

In  1880  he  aided  in  locating  and  building  the 
South  Florida  Railway  for  its  ow  ners.  the  Boston 
Herald,  and  organized  its  operating  service,  and 
subsequently  was  manager  of  the  land  depart- 
ment of  the  Texas  &  St.  Louis  Railway.  Recent- 
1\-  he  has  been  engaged  with  a  syndicate  ot  Chi- 
cago German  capitalists  in  establishing  a  railway 
in  Arkan.sas  and  Louisiana,  which  he,  by  tact  and 
great  business  abilit\-,  profitably  disposed  of.  in 
the  summer  of  1890,  to  an  English  syndicate. 

Major  Barbour  has  during  liis  career  been  the 
originator  and  manager  of  nian\-  large  schemes 
and  operations,  for  which  work  he  seems  peculiar- 
ly adapted.  In  January,  1891,  he  accepted  an  ap- 
pointment in  the  Department  of  Publicity  and 
Promotion  in  the  World's  Columbian  I-Lxposition, 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIO.XARV  A.\D  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


795 


a  position  in  which  liis  journalistic  talents,  varied 
experience  and  tact  in  mana;4enunt,  has  made  him 
peculiarlj-  useful. 

He  is  the  author  of  several  books  of  i,n-eat  merit 
in  their  richness  of  description  ami  cleverness  of 
diction,  as  well  as  in  cleverness  of  illustration  by 
the  author,  who  is  a  skillful  artist. 

Major  Barbour  is  a  most  entertaining  talker, 
his  conversation  being  replete  with  original 
ideas,  thrilling  incidents  and  sparkling  with  wit 
and  bon  vwts.  He  is  at  the  same  time  a  si)unil 
and  logical  reasoner.  He  is  a  man  of  genial  tem- 
perament, jovial  and  social,  and  has  a  host  of 
friends  and  admirers. 


He  was  married  in  1867  to  Miss  Mary  Lewis,  a 
most  estimable  lady,  and  has  two  children.  His 
daughters,  both  charming  and  attractive,  are 
named  respectively  Grace  May  and  I'rancis  E.; 
the  eldest,  now  in  her  nineteenth  \car,  is  a  stu- 
dent in  the  University  of  Michigan,  and  a  young 
Woman  of  superior  mind,  and  tlie  j-oungest,  an 
accomplishetl  girl  of  si.xteen  _\'ears,  has  accom- 
panied her  father  on  many  of  his  travels,  and  is  a 
delightful  conversationalist  and   a   fine  musician. 

Major  Barbour  is  an  e.\|)erienced  sportsman 
and  an  expert  horseman.  He  is  also  a  linguist  of 
no  mean  attainments,  anil  is  at  home  alike  in 
backwoods  or  salon. 


iMAJOR   JOHN    M.   SOUTIIWORTH, 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


THE  subject  of  this  article  is  an  able  lawyer, 
with  that  grasp  of  mind  which  enables  him 
to  readily  apprehend  the  true  issues  of  a  case  and 
to  detect  false  analogies.  After  he  has  investi- 
gated a  subject  his  conlusions  are  almost  invari- 
ably found  to  be  correct.  A  man  of  great  nerve 
force,  equable  temper,  and  invariably  courteous 
to  all. 

He  was  born  in  Bradford,  Vermont,  in  1839.  His 
father  was  Epenetus  Southworth,  connected  with 
ties  of  blood  with  an  ancestry  notable  in  New 
England  annals;  he  died  in  1869  at  Crystal  Lake, 
McHenry  county,  Illinois.  His  mother,  before 
marriage,  was  Miss  Phebe  Sawyer,  now  living  in 
Woodstock,  Illinois.  On  the  paternal  side  the 
ancestry  is  traceable  back  to  good  old  English 
families,  and  in  New  England  to  the  first  Massa- 
chusetts colonies,  with  a  relationship  to  the  distin- 
guished Governor  Bradford,  the  first  governor  of 
Massachusetts — he  of  Thanksgiving  fame ;  on  the 
maternal  side  related  to  the  Wcbsters,  as  John 
M.'s  grandmother  was  a  first  cousin  of  the 
illustrious  Daniel  Webster — an  ancestral  tree 
fruited  with  rich  deeds  and  examples.  But  John 
M.  Southworth  is  a  man  who  did  not  depend 
upon  his  ancestry  to  carry  him  through  life  or  to 
success.  In  the  independence  of  his  nature  ami 
consciousness  of  inherent  intellectual  power,  he 
chose  to  make  his  own  wa}'  in  the  world.  Ik- 
was  like  one  the  poet  alludes  to  : 


"  Being  not  inoppcd  by  ancesUy,  whose  ijracc 
Chalks  successors  their  way,  neither  aUied 
To  eminent  assistance,  but  spidcr-hke, 
Out  of  his  self-drawing  web  he  gives  us 
The  force  of  his  own  merit,  makes  his  way.'' 

The  family  consisted  of  three  brotliers  and  one 
sister.  The  eldest  brother,  William  S.,  is  con- 
nected with  the  courts  in  Oregon  ;  the  youngest 
brother,  George  McKean,  died  in  Chicago  in 
1880.  The  sister  (Sue)  is  married  to  Judge 
Seneca  Smith,  and  lives  in  Portland,  Oregon. 
The  mother  has  recently  gone  there  to  spend  the 
winter,  and  perhaps  to  remain  longer  with  her 
children,  William  and  Sue.  The  youngest  brother 
was  a  brilliant,  promising  young  man,  possessed 
of  many  excellent  and  high  traits  of  character, 
and  was  universally  esteemed.  Insidious  disease 
worked  its  inevitable  and  fatal  results,  and  carried 
him  away  before  his  time — as  it  seems  to  the 
vision  of  man.  He  was  deputy  sheriff  and 
clerk  of  the  court  in  Mcllenrj-  county  under 
John  M.,  and  held  other  important  positions  in 
Chicago  and  elsewhere.  He  married  a  niece  of 
the  late  ex-Governor  Andrew  Shuman.  who  died 
ten  months  after  marriage. 

When  John  M.  was  seventeen  years  of  age  the 
family  came  west,  and  eventually  located  in 
Mcllenr}'  county,  when  the  former  completed 
his  education  and.  taught  school  two  years. 

In  April,   1S61,  he   enlisted  as  a   private  in   the 


796 


BIOGRArmCAL  OICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


Seventh  Illinois  Regiment,  three  months'  service 
— the  first  ret^iment  orjjanized  for  the  Rebellion, 
there  having  been  six  in  the  Mexican  War — subse- 
quently he  joined  the  famous  Eighth  Illinois 
Cavalr\-.  lie  was  commissioned  lieutenant  and 
served  to  the  end  of  the  war  in  the  Army  of  the 
I'otomac,  participating  in  the  many  battles  in  which 
that  regiment  and  army  were  engaged,  and  the  his- 
tory of  both  are  too  well  known  to  need  repetition 
in  this  connection.  He  made  a  good  record  as  a 
soldier,  and  returned  to  civil  life  and  has  made  an 
exceptionally  good  one  since.  He  was  compli- 
mented on  account  of  his  meritorious  and  valiant 
military  services  with  a  brevet  major's  commis- 
sion. On  his  return  to  McHenry  county  he  was 
elected  sheriff  and  ser\-ed  w  ith  marked  credit  and 
satisfaction  ;  later  clerk  of  the  circuit  court,  and 
in  the  meantime  read  law  and  was  admitted  to 
practice  in  1873.  Soon  after  he  was  appointed 
one  of  the  commissioners  of  the  Joliet  Peniten- 
tiary, which  position  he  held  several  years,  and 
performed  the  important  duties  of  the  same  with 
signal  fidelity  and  abilit\-.  He  was  more  than  a 
commissioner  in  name.  He,  froni  a  philanthropic 
and  statesman-like  standpoint,  sought  to,  and  did 
ameliorate  and  lessen  the  severity  of  prison  punish- 
ment. B}-  a  firm  stand  taken  by  him,  and  without 
the  then  sanction  of  the  State  Executixc,  but 
afterwards  acquisced  in,  the  administration  of 
affairs  at  that  prison  was  changed,  and  largel>- 
through  his  efforts  they  were  modified. 

In  all  the  penal  institutions  in  the  State  the 
dictates  of  a  higher  humanity  now  prevail.  His 
literature  on  the  subject  of  prisons  and  prison  dis- 
cipline is  preserved,  and  has  a  pl.ice  with  such  and 
kindred  literature,  and  many  nf  the  principles 
thus  early  advocated  by  him  are  now  approxed 
and  in  force. 

He  is  the  author,  and  secured  the  passage  in 
the  legislature  of  the  "  Habitual  Criminal  Act," 
the  workings  of  which  have  been  salutory  in 
controlling  the  habitual  and  dangerous  criminal 
classes.  In  1886  he  framed  and  secured  the  pas- 
sage in  the  Legislature  of  the  "Police  Pension 
Bill,"  which  is  admitted  by  the  highest  police  and 
other  authorities  to  be  a  wise  and  beneficial 
measure.  He  has  received  merited  jjublic  recog- 
nition for  his  sagacity  and  jjliilanthropic  motives 
in  what  he  has  ilone  to  better  the  coiulition  of  his 
fellow -men     in    such     and    other     waj's.      He,    of 


course,  has  mingletl  in  politics,  but  not  of  the 
politicaster  order,  but  higher  and  better  politics, 
which  should  enlist  the  interest  and  efforts  of 
every  true  and  patriotic  citizen.  He  is  original 
and  stateman-like  in  what  he  proposes  and  dis- 
poses in  his  political  movements.  In  1880  there 
was  a  close  and  hard-fought  contest  in  this  State 
in  the  canvass  to  select  a  candidate  for  the  presi- 
dential nomination  'oy  the  Republican  party.  It 
was  •'  Grant  or  Blaine,"  so  far  as  this  State  was 
concerned,  with  Grant  in  the  lead,  and  his  friends 
disposed  to  overide  and  ignore  all  opposition. 

It  was  Major  Southworth,  a  delegate  from  the 
then  Fourth  Congressional  District,  who  moved  in 
the  Congressional  district  sub-convention  to  nom- 
inate two  delegates  to  the  State  convention  for 
election  to  the  national  convention;  who  moved 
that  the  district  convention  elect  two  delegates 
direct  and  issue  credentials  to  the  national  con- 
vention, which  was  done,  and  the  delegates  ad- 
mitted. It  is  believed  that  this  is  the  first  in- 
stance on  record  of  such  action.  It  was  sub- 
sequently agitated  and  tried  in  New  York  and 
other  States,  and  adopted  by  the  National  Re- 
publican Committee.  The  conception  was  Major 
Southworth's.  and  is  considered  a  cure  for  some 
political  evils  of  tyrannical  bossism,  and  is  there- 
fore a  salutor\'  reform  in  political  methods.  This 
was  but  in  keeping  with  his  general  reform  in- 
clinations in  other  directions. 

A  few  years  ago  he  came  to  Chicago,  and  en- 
gaged in  the  practice  of  the  law  with  General  John 
F.  F'arnsworth,  the  former  colonel  of  the  Eighth 
Illinois  Cavalry,  and  continued  two  years,  since 
which  time  he  has  been  alone,  successfully  en- 
gaged in  general  practice. 

He  has  prosecuted  and  defended  in  some  im- 
portant litigations,  which  he  has  generally  carried 
to  a  result  in  favor  of  his  clients.  One  of  the 
celebrated  cases  was  the  Joseph  C.  Mackin  ballot- 
forgery,  which  Mr.  Southworth  worked  up  to  a 
successful  culmin.ition,  and  the  criminals.  Mackin 
and  Gallagher,  served  terms  in  the  penitentiary  as 
punishment.  To  enumerate  all  the  imjiortant 
cases  he  has  been  associated  with  since  he  has 
been  in  practice  would  require  too  much  space; 
sufifice  it  to  sa}-,  he  has  been  successful  and  con- 
tinues to  be. 

He  pos.sesses  the  essential  elements  in  the  make- 
up  of  his  character— capacity  and  individuality. 


li/ouix.iruK.u.  />/c/7(>.\.iu)-  ./.\/»  roi<ri<.iir  u.\i.i.i:iiV. 


191 


wliicli  arc  usually  a  guarantee  of  success,  lie  lias 
taken  a  merited  high  rank  at  the  Chicago  bar. 
lie  is  a  man  true  to  every  friend  and  every  en- 
gagement, and  exacts  equal  fidelity;  and  is  a  man 
of  many  e.\cellcnt  traits  of  character  and  high 
worth.  He  is  painstaking  and  persevering  in 
prosecuting  litigation,  and  hence  has  the  con- 
fidence of  his  clients. 

When  the  present  (llarrisoni  administration 
came  into  power,  it  was  suppo.sed  a  change  would 
be  made  in  the  office  of  United  States  district 
attorney  for  this  district,  and  a  large  number  of 
the  friends  of  Major  Southworth,  with  one  ac- 
cord and  with  unaminity,  pointed  to  him  as  the 
proper  man  for  the  position.  In  furtherance  of 
this  idea  and  conviction  of  the  fitness  of  the  ap- 


pointnicnl,  petitions  anil  letters  of  recommeiula- 
tion  poured  in  upon  our  I'nited  States  senator, 
and  the  authorities  who  sought  to  control  the  aj)- 
pointment,  which  were  strong  and  high  tributes 
to  his  abilitv,  worth,  character  and  qualifications, 
and  of  themselves  an  encomium  on  the  man. 
They  all  bore  testimony  to  his  superior  ability 
as  a  lawyer,  his  e.\emi)lary  character  as  a  citizen 
and  a  man  and  his  always  unswerving  devo- 
tion to  the  principles  of  the  Republican  party. 
These  testimonials  were  from  some  of  the  best 
and  most  prominent  men  in  Illinois.  Major 
Southworth  is  proud  of  his  native  State;  has 
been  a  member  of  the  V'ermont  Association 
about  ten  years,  and  has  just  closed  a  term  as  its 
president. 


DANIEL   .T.    SCHUYLER. 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


AMONG  the  old  Knickerbocker  families  known 
l\  to  fame  through  history,  song  and  legend, 
none  are  more  justly  celebrated  than  that  of  the 
Schuyler  race.  Over  two  centuries  and  a  hall 
ago  Philip  Pieterson  Van  Schuyler,  the  first  of 
the  name  in  this  countrj-,  was  among  the  Dutch 
immigrants  who,  leaving  their  nati\e  Holland, 
settled  where  the  city  of  Albany,  the  capital  of 
the  Empire  State,  now  stands.  His  children 
were  fast  advancing  toward  manhood  when  the 
New  Netherlands  were  made  a  present  (immi- 
grants, natives  and  all)  by  King  Charles  II  to  his 
beloved  brother,  the  Duke  of  York.  An  English 
fleet  was  dispatched  across  the  Atlantic  to  im- 
jiress  on  Governor  Stuyvesant  the  not  very  wel- 
come intelligence  that  it  was  incumbent  upon 
him  to  acquiesce  in  that  arrangement.  The  terri- 
tory passing,  by  royal  mandate,  into  English 
hands,  and  its  name  being  changed  to  the  now 
world-famous  one  of  New  York,  in  honor  of  the 
I)roprietor.  The  Schuylcrs  took  a  very  promi- 
nent part  in  the  conduct  of  colonial  affairs. 

When  Albany  became  an  incorjjorated  city  in 
1686,  the  first  mayor  of  the  town  was  a  Schuyler, 
who  continued  in  ofiice  eight  years,  ant!  was  after- 
ward president  of  the  king's  council  in  New  York, 
acting  governor,  a  member  of  the  New  \'ork  A.s- 
semblv  and  commissioner  of  Indian  .iff.iirs. 


He  was  a  man  of  iron  will  and  strong  character, 
and  while  in  the  capacity  of  Indian  Commissioner 
obtained  an  unbounded  control  over  th6  leading 
spirits  of  the  Five  Nations.  He  was  also  of  sub- 
tle intelligence  and  keen  perception,  for  while  the 
French  and  English  were  contending  over  the 
apportionment  of  the  Iroquois  country,  he  took 
five  of  the  Iroquois  chiefs  to  England  for  the 
purpose  of  impressing  them  with  the  greatness 
of  the  English  nation  and  detaching  them  from 
the  French.  He  succeeded  in  convincing  the  In- 
dians that  it  would  be  greatly  to  their  interest  to 
aid  the  English  in  driving  the  I'rench  out  of  the 
country. 

General  Philip  Schuyler  was  the  next  of  the 
name  to  render  important  service  to  our  nation, 
and  endear  his  name  to  every  true  American  by 
his  actions  in  the  struggle  for  independence,  be- 
ing conspicuous  as  a  soldier  and  as  a  statesman 
during  the  revolutionary  period.  A  general  in 
the  field,  a  member  of  the  Continental  Congress, 
and,  afterwards.  United  States  Senator  from  New 
York,  he  was  noted  for  his  bravery  and  devotion 
to  the  cau.se  of  liberty,  and  did  much  to  lay  the 
.solid  foundations  of  our  great  Republic.  He  has 
been  styletl"the  father  of  the  canal  system  of 
the  United  States,"  for  his  life-long  advocacy  of 
the  development  of  the  resources  of  the  country 


798 


lUOl^R.irillC.lL  D/CTIOXARV  A.XD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


through  a  skillfully  planiU'd  system  of  internal 
improvements.  The  Schuylers  are  scattered 
through  the  States  of  New  York  ami  New  Jer- 
sey, and  they  are  also  in  the  States  further  west 
the  descendants  of  the  illustrious  colonist.  Philip 
Pieterson  Van  Schuyler.  One  branch  '  of  the 
family  located  just  before  the  Revolution,  in  or 
near  Newark,  New  Jersey,  and  to  this  particular 
branch  belongs  Daniel  J.  -Schuyler,  tiie  subject  of 
this  sketch.  He  is  the  son  of  John  Jacob  Schuy- 
ler, who  married  Sally  A.  Davis,  of  Huguenot 
.-incestr)-  on  her  mother's  side,  and  a  woman  of 
fine  mental  qualities  and  unusual  force  of  charac- 
ter. She  was  born  in  New  York  .State,  and 
lived  near  the  village  of  Minaville,  Montgomery 
county,  at  the  time  of  her  marriage. 

The  grandfather  of  John  Jacob  Schuyler  had 
settled  on  a  tract  of  land  within  three  miles  of 
what  afterward  became  the  town  of  Amsterdam, 
and  his  son  and  some  of  his  grandsons  grew  up 
on  this  farm,  which  is  still  in  the  family.  Here 
Daniel  J.  Schuyler  was  born,  February  16,  1839. 
From  his  father  he  inherited  the  sturdy  physique, 
the  industry,  the  integrity  and  force  of  character 
of  the  Schuylers,  and  from  his  mother  a  corre- 
spondingly healthy,  vigorous,  and  active  intellect. 
While  his  father  looked  after  his  physical  training 
in  the  earK-  \ears  of  his  life,  his  mother  watched 
with  jealous  care  his  mental  dexelopmcnl.  ;uul 
missed  no  opportunit_\-  of  aiding  him  to  add  to 
his  store  of  knowledge. 

While  _\-et  a  pupil  in  the  county  school  he  ile- 
veloped  a  remark. U)le  turn  for  literature,  and  had 
soon  perused  all  the  books  within  his  reach,  lie 
famili,iri/,ed  himself  with  liislory,  among  his 
fav(jrites  being  Prescoll's  "('iini|uest  of  Mexico," 
Irving's  works,  ami  volumes  cjf  biography  and 
travel,  lie  won  some  renown  in  letters,  as  a 
writer  of  poetr)-  and  ess.ays  foi-  the  \  illage  news- 
paper. He  delivered  a  thrilling  address  on  John 
Brown's  crusade  against  slavery,  soon  alter  the 
famous  abolitionist  ended  his  career,  ,ind  from 
this  time  he  was  lool<ed  upon  as  a  young  man  of 
more  than  average  abilit\-  in  a  liter.iry  and  foren- 
sic WAX.  At  seventeen  years  of  age  he  attended 
the  academy  near  Schenectady  for  six  months, 
leaving  for  an  interval  to  work  \\\>^n\  the  larm; 
he  returned  and  continued  his  schooling  at  the 
academy  at  Amsterdam,  and  later,  at  lMaid<lin. 
Delaware  county,   New  York.     He   entered  as  a 


sophomore  in  Union  College.  Schenectad)-,  re" 
maining  here  until  1H61. 

His  mind  for  some  time  had  been  made  up  as 
to  the  selection  of  a  profession,  law  being  his 
choice,  ami  resoKing  to  begin  at  once,  he  left  col- 
lege at  the  end  of  the  junior  year  and  entered 
the  ofifice  of  J'rancis  Kernan.  in  Utica.  Mr. 
Kernan's  record  is  too  well  known  to  need  much 
comment,  he  being  the  man  who  defeated  Roscoe 
Conkling  for  Congress  in  1872,  and  served  with 
him  in  the  United  States  Senate  from  1875  to 
18S1.  L'nder  the  preceptorship  of  this  eminent 
lawyer  and  politician,  Mr.  .Schuyler  pursued  his 
legal  studies  until  Januarw  1864,  when  he  was 
admitted  to  the  bar.  He  immediately  came  west 
and  began  to  practice  before  the  Chicago  courts 
in  |anuar\-,  I  S64.  His  entire  professional  life  has 
been  spent  in  Chicago,  and  he  has  achie\eil  in 
twenty-seven  years  the  promise  of  his  \-oung  and 
vigorous  manhood.  He  came  here  with  the 
qualifications  that  ha\'e  ne\er  failed  to  win  tiis- 
tinction,  genuine  ability,  intlustr_\',  and  sterling- 
integrity.  Like  all  \<)ung  men  who  enter  upon  a 
lawyer's  career,  he  had  to  place  himself  ujjon  trial 
before  the  public  and  await  the  public  verdict  as 
to  the  extent  of  his  taleiUs  antl  the  measure  of 
his  trustworthiness.  This  \erdict,  alwa\s  uner- 
ring, came  early  in  his  existence  and  was  a  strong 
endorsement  of  his  htness  for  the  calling  he  had 
chosen. 

In  1872,  Air.  Schuyler  became  associated  in 
practice  with  the  late  Judge  George  Gardner,  and 
this  partnershi[)  contimu-d  until  Mr.  Gardner  was 
elected  one  of  the  Judges  of  the  Superior  Court 
of  Chicago,  in  1879.  .\  partnership  was  then 
formetl  between  ]\Ir.  Schu\-ler  and  Mr.  C.  I'",. 
Krcmer.  ,ind  the  fnni  as  thus  constitutetl  has 
Continued  in  existence  up  to  the  iiresent  time, 
the  senior  member.  Mr.  .Schuyler,  engaging  in 
general  practice,  ,nid  the  junior  member  paying 
special  attention  to  the  dei)artment  of  admiraltx'. 
While  Mr.  Schuyler  has  been  engaged  in  gen- 
er.d  practice,  still  he  has  devoted  himself  largely 
to  connnercial,  cor])orati(Ui,  and  firt'  insurance 
law,  and  in  the  domain  of  the  latter  his  ojjinions 
are  regarded  by  insuiance  men  as  authoritx'.  In 
this  branch  of  the  law  it  has  been  his  fortune  to 
meet  with  satisfactory  success,  both  in  the  argu- 
ment of  questions  of  law  before  the  court  and 
the    trial   of  cases   before    juries,    many  of  which 


BIOOR.irmCM.   inCTIO.XAlKV  .l.\/>  /•OA'TA'.l/r  C.AI.I.IIRY. 


799 


cases  lia\c  invoked  larye  aiiioimts  ami  intricate 
(|uestioiis  both  of  law  anil  fact. 

lie  was  married  in  1865  to  Miss  Mar\-  J.  \\\- 
ford,  second  daughter  of  the  late  Dr.  Win.  H. 
Hyford.  one  of  the  most  distinguished  of  west- 
ern ])hysicians,  and  their  uni<in  has  been  blessed 
w  ith  four  cliildren,  two  surviving. 

In  politics,  always  a  staunch  and  aggressive 
member  of  the  Republican  party,  he  has  taken 
an  active  interest  in  promoting  the  interest  of  his 
l)arty.  both  by  word  and  e.\ample,  and  ne\er 
.seeking  liis  reward  but  in  a  con.scientious  knowl- 
edge of  his  work  and  the  courage  of  his  convic- 
tions.    A   member  of  the   University  Club,  he  is 


not  less  esteemcil  as  a  citizen  than  as  a  law\er. 
and  his  kindly  impulses  and  cliarming  cordiality 
of  manner  ha\e  rendered  him  exceedingly  popu- 
lar among  all  classes  of  peo|)le.  The  judgment 
which  the  world  passed  upon  Daniel  J.  Schu)ler 
in  his  early  years  of  jiractice  has  never  been  set 
aside  nor  in  any  degree  modified.  It  has,  on  the 
contrary,  been  em])hasized  by  his  careful  conduct 
of  important  litigation,  his  candor  and  fairness  in 
the  presentation  of  cases,  his  zeal  and  earnest- 
ness as  an  advocate,  and  the  generous  commen- 
dation which  he  has  received  from  his  contempo- 
raries, who  unite  in  bearing  testimony  as  to  his 
hii/li  character  and  suijcrior  mind. 


TOIIN    BARTON    PAVNH, 


C'HIC.VGO.    ILL. 


THK  first  English  emigrants  to  Virginia  were 
a  superior  race,  with  enlarged  views  of  go\- 
ernment,  liberty  and  law.  From  these  ancestors 
sprang  men  in  great  numbers  renow  ned  for  honor 
and  patriotism,  unsurpassed  in  statesmanshij),  and 
famous  for  scholarship  and  oratory.  .A  worth)- 
and  typical  representative  of  those  men  is  the 
subject   of   this   sketch. 

John  l^arton  Pa)-ne  was  born  on  January  26, 
1855.  at  Pruntytown,  \'irginia.  His  ancestors 
may  be  traced  back  two  hundred  and  fifty  years 
to  the  reign  of  Charles  II.  of  England.  About 
the  year  1640  the  progenitor  of  the  Payne  famil_\- 
came  from  England  to  the  colony  of  \'irginia. 
and  his  descendants  are  widely  scattered  o\er  the 
Old  Dominion  and  other  Southern  States.  The 
great-grandfather  of  our  subject.  I-'rancis  Payne, 
was  a  valiant  American  officer  in  the  Revolution- 
ary War.  His  grandson,  Amos  Pa\-ne,  the  father 
of  John  Harton,  was  a  graduate  of  Transylvania 
L'niversity,  and  was  a  jiracticing  ph\sician  of  con- 
siilerable  celebrity. 

John  Barton's  youth  was  spent  in  Orlean. 
Fauquier  county,  \'irginia,  where  he  received  a 
thorough  English  education,  and  he  afterwards 
]jursued  a  classical  course  under  private  tutors. 
In  1874  he  began  the  study  of  the  law  while  he  w.is 
acting  as  assistant  clerk  of  the  courts  at  Prunt\- 
town,  Taylor  county.  He  completed  his  law  stud- 
ies early  in  1876,  and  in  August  <jf  that  \ear  passed 


an  examination  before  three  judges,  and  was 
licensed  to  practice — commencing  practice  at 
once.  Even  at  that  early  age  Mr.  Payne  had  at- 
tained a  wide  reputation  as  an  orator,  and  his 
speeches  in  behalf  of  Tilden  and  Ilcndridks  were 
considered  among  the  best  made  in  that  cam- 
paign. He  was  then  made  acting  chairman  of  the 
Democratic  count)'  committee,  and  was  also  a  de- 
legate to  the  senatorial  .ind  congressional  conven- 
tions from  Taylor  count)-. 

In  ]\Iarch.  1S77,  he  remo\-cd  to  Kingwood,  Pres- 
ton count)-.  West  \'irginia.  His  business  was 
soon  quite  extensive,  antl  he  was  retained  in  man\' 
important  cases.  In  1878  he  was  elected  chair- 
man of  the  Democratic  executive  committee  of 
Preston  count)-,  which  jxisilion  he  helil  for  several 
)-ears.  C^ctober  17,  1878,  he  was  married  to  Miss 
Kate  Hunker,  ilaughter  of  the  late  Judge  Edward 
C.  Bunker.  He  then  took  a  leading  part  in  ])oli- 
tics:he\\as  temporar)- chairn-ian  of  the  Grafton 
convention  of  1880;  chairman  of  the  Preston  de- 
legation in  the  Fairmont  congressional  conv-en- 
tion  :  a  member  of  the  congressional  executi\-e 
committee  aiul  a  delegate  to  the  Martinsburg 
State  convention.  Then  he  supporteil  the  Hon. 
Charles  J.  Faulkner  for  governor,  and  was  ten- 
ilered  the  position  of  presidential  elector,  which 
he  declined.  In  the  presidential  canvass  which 
followetl,  the  elotiueiit  voice  of  Mr.  Pav'ne  was 
again  heard,  as  the  champion  of  Hancock. 


Soo 


BIOGR.irUJCAL  DICTIOXARY  A.\D  PORTRAIT  CALLERY. 


He  was  elected,  h\-  the  bar.  special  jiidL;e  of 
the  circuit  court  of  Tucker  count)'  in  May,  1881, 
to  hear  and  decide  a  chancery  cause,  to  which  the 
rey;ular  judge  was  a  party.  Mr.  l'a\ne  has  had 
the  management  of  many  \er\-  im]inriaiit  cases. 
among  which  is  a  notable  one  in  which  he  called 
in  question  the  constitutionalit}-  of  the  lawgiving 
a  landlord's  lien  ]ireference  o\.er  chattel  exemp- 
tions. He  obtained  an  injunction  from  the  cir- 
cuit court  on  that  ground,  which  was  affirmed  b_\' 
the  supreme  court  of  appeals,  w  here  it  was  ably 
argued  by  Mr.  Payne  in  June,  1880.  He  was 
elected  mayor  of  Kingwood  in  January,  1882. 
After  retiring  from  that  office  he  removed  to  Chi- 
cago, where  he  has  been  actively  engaged  in  the 
practice  of  his  profession  up  to  the  present  time 
(1892).  Mr.  Payne  has  steadily  advanced  to  the 
front,  and  the  numerous  important  cases  in  which 
he  has  figured.  ha\e  gi\en  him  a  wide  celebrity  as 
an  astute  lawyer  and  an  eloquent  advocate.  It 
takes  a  brilliant  man  to  build  up  a  high  reputation 
in  the  legal  profession  in  a  large  city,  and  that  is 
what  the  tact,  .skill,  energy  and  legal  acumen  of 
Mr.  Payne  has  already  done.  On  June  26,  1890, 
a  banquet  was  given  by  the  State  Association  at 
the  Palmer  hou.se,  to  the  members  of  the  National 
Commission  of  the  World's  Columbian  Exposi- 
tion. Among  other  pleasant  things  said  by  the 
Chicago  Times  oi  the  next  morning,  is  the  follow- 
ing :  "There  were  in  all  three  hundred  and  forty 
gentlemen  at  table,  of  this  number  one  hundred 
and  si.x  were  state  and  national  commissioners ; 
to  them  were  assigned  the  places  of  honor;  they 
were  made  to  feel  that  they  were  the  welcome  and 
privileged  guests,  not  alone  of  the  State  Associa- 
tion, but  of  Chicago,  nor  are  they  likely  to  forget 
the  splendor  of  the  surroundings  and  the  extra- 
ordinary social  irlat  with  which  the  hospitality  of 
Chicago  was  inaugurated.  Those  only  who  know 
what  a  rich  and  varied  setting  the  Palmer  can  give 
to  e\'en  an  ordinary  banquet,  can  full)'  ajipreciatc 
what  a  jeweled  and  lustrous  frame-work,  radiant 
with  beauty  and  color,  it  can  jinnide  for  a  great 
fete.  .Such  an  occasion  was  the  celebration  of 
last  night."  Thg  bancjuet  was  ])receded  by  an 
informal  reception  in  the  grand  parlor.  In  these 
beautiful  rooms,  the  notables  of  many  States  repre- 
sented in  the  commission,  were  made  acquainted 
with  the  nntables  of  Chicago.  Chief  Justice 
Fuller,    surrounded    b\'    well-known   iiublic   men. 


and  greeted  heartily  by  many  old  Chicago  friends 
and  neighbors,  made  the  center  of  an  interest- 
ing group,  with  him  were  Judge  Gresham,  Judge 
Harris,  of  Kentucky:  ex-Senator  Palmer,  of 
Michigan:  e.x-Governor  Walker,  of  Connecticut; 
Judge  Thomas  Moran,  President  Lyman  J.  Cage. 
E.  (",.  Keith.  Edwin  Walker,  the  Hon.  R.  E. 
Goodell,  the  Hon.  Erskine  M.  Phelps,  Judges  Gary, 
Anthony.  Driggs,  McConncll,  and  others  equally 
jjrominent  in  professional  and  social  circles. 
Fully  an  hour  was  spent  in  this  reception  and  the 
assembly  had  grown  so  large  as  to  fill  the  grand 
corridor.  Quite  a  bevy  of  ladies  attired  in 
stylish  and  costly  demi-toilct,  indulged  their  curi- 
osity in  taking  a  peep  at  the  notable  public  men  in 
the  throng ;  later  the  ladies  were  rewarded  with  a 
glimpse  of  the  splendors  of  the  banquet  hall,  as 
the  decidedly  distinguished  looking  company  sat 
at  the  table.  Ushered  by  Judge  Driggs,  chair- 
man of  the  reception  committee,  and  John  Bar- 
ton Payne,  chairman  of  the  banquet  committee, 
the  head  of  the  column  passed  in  to  dinner  in  the 
following  order:  Chief  Justice  Fuller  with  Judge 
Harris,  Judge  Gre-sham  with  Senator  Palmer, 
President  L.  J.  Gage  with  Bishop  Fallows  and 
Judge  Thoman  with  Vice-President  Thomas  B. 
Bryan.  The  decoration  effects  and  banquet  ser- 
\'ice  combined  to  make  a  scene  marvelously  beau- 
ful.  The  president's  tables  was  placed  at  the 
south  end  of  the  room,  the  arch  above  it  festooned 
with  national  colors  and  draped  with  curtains  of 
delicate  smilax.  This  verdant  drapery  fornjed  a 
back-ground  for  a  splendid  bust  of  Columbus. 
Masses  of  palms  and  feathery  ferns  sprang  from 
the  foot  of  the  noble  columns  which  support  the 
richly  illuminated  ceiling  of  the  splendid  room  : 
these  fluted  columns-gilded,  as  they  are,  were  lu.s- 
trous  in  the  glow  of  the  electric  radiators  massed 
in  the  great  chandeliers  which  depend  from  the 
center  panels  of  the  ceiling.  The  display  of  floral 
beaut)-  was  something  superb,  and  the  air  of  the 
room  was  liea\)-  with  exquisite  fragrance.  From 
the  chandeliers  depended  immense  balls  of  roses 
and  the  base  of  the  gilded  columns  were  covered 
in  masses  of  color  blazing  peonies.  I-'or  all  these 
color  effects  an  abundance  of  palm,  fern  and 
tropical  plants  afforded  a  vernal  back-ground  and 
a  delightful  frame.  The  great  room  was  ablaze 
with  light  and  festooned  with  ropes  of  roses.  The 
snowv  tables  were  tinted  with  delicate  shades  of 


BIOGRAl'lIlCAL  DICTIOXARV  AXD  I'OIiTRAIT  CAl.LERY. 


80 1 


pink  and  i^reen,  softening  tlic  rays  of  numberless 
wax  tapers.  Music  enhanceil  the  pleasure  of  the 
scene,  in  itself  a  festival  of  radiant  color,  a  living 
feast  of  beauty,  a  banquet  to  all  the  senses.  Judge 
Thonian,  as  president  of  the  State  Association, 
occupied  the  chair,  supported  on  his  right  by 
Chief  Justice  M.  W.  Fuller,  on  the  left  by  Bishop 
Fallows.  Tliose  at  the  president's  table  were 
seated  in  the  following  order:  L.  D.  Thoman, 
president ;  liishop  Fallows.  E.  S.  Dreyer,  ex- 
Senator  Palmer,  Lyman  J.  Gage,  Judge  J.  T. 
Harris.  Charles  H.  Richmond,  Vice-President 
Hryan.  Mark  L.  McDonald,  E.  T.  Jeffery,  \V.  T. 
Haker,  Chief  Justice  Fuller,  E.  \V.  Cotterell,  \V. 
Livingston,  Jr.,  Judge  Gresham,   Mayor  Cregier, 


M.  11.  Lane,  Major  C.  H.  Jones.  Ferd.  VV.  Peck, 
.M.  IL  De  Voung,  W.  Forsyth,  J.  Irving  Pierce. 
The  dainty  and  costly  menu  prepared  for  the  dis- 
tinguished visitors  was  served  in  truly  epicurean 
style.  After  the  repast  was  over,  eloquent 
speeches  were  made  by  the  president,  Hon.  Leroy 
D.  Thoman  and  others.  It  was  concluded  that 
the  success  of  this  brilliant  entertainment  was 
largely  due  to  the  energy,  activity  and  arduous 
labors  of  Mr.  Payne  and  associates,  and  what 
speakes  volumes  in  their  praise  is  the  fact  that 
after  paying  all  expenses  the  committee  were  able 
to  declare  a  dividend,  and  Mr.  Payne  enclosed  his 
check  to  each  member  of  the  association  for  the 
amount  due  him. 


FREDERICK    J.   V.   SKIFF. 


DENVER,   COL. 


THERE  are  few  better  known  men  west  of 
the  Missouri  river  than  Frederick  J.  \- 
Skiff,  the  subject  of  this  biography.  His  selec- 
tion as  chief  of  the  Department  of  Mines  and 
Mining  was  undoubtedly  due  to  the  success  of 
his  past  career  and  his  knowledge  of  mineral 
products  and  acquaintance  in  the  mining  region. 
He  is  a  man  of  great  force  of  character  and  in- 
domitable energy,  and  it  is  safe  to  predict  that  he 
will  discharge  the  arduous  duties  of  his  office  with 
the  zeal  and  ability  which  has  always  character- 
ized the  man. 

He  was  born  in  Chicopee,  Mas.sachusetts,  on 
the  5th  day  of  November,  1851,  and  is  the  son 
of  James  M.  Skiff  and  Angelina  C.  (Winchcll) 
Skiff,  both  of  whose  ancestors  have  lived  in  this 
country'  since  about  1620. 

He  is  of  Scotch  descent  on  his  father's  side,  and 
on  the  maternal  of  English  extraction.  Freder- 
ick received  the  rudiments  of  his  education  at  the 
public  schools  and  afterward  took  a  special  aca- 
demic course.  Upon  leaving  school,  actuated  by 
the  famous  advice  of  Horace  Greeley,  he  turned 
his  face  toward  the  setting  sun  and  finally  located 
in  the  Missouri  Valley. 

Here  he  entered  the  field  of  journalism,  and  for 
nine  years  was  c<innected  with  various  papers, 
earning  by  his  application  to  his  profession  and 
the  high    order    of    his   talents,    a    most  enviable 


reputation.  In  1877  he  went  to  Denver,  Colo- 
rado, and  ultimately  became  general  manager  of 
the  Denver  Trtbune,  which  he  conducted  with 
great  success  for  seven  years,  increasing  its  circu- 
lation largely,  and  making  it  one  of  the  most 
influential  journals  in  the  west. 

In  1884,  after  sixteen  years  of  a  most  success- 
ful and  notable  career  in  journalism,  he  organized 
with  other  gentlemen  the  Colorado  Land  and 
Loan  Company,  formed  for  the  purpose  of  re- 
deeming and  improving  arid  lands,  the  construc- 
tion of  irrigating  canals,  and  promoting  town  sites, 
etc.  This  company  was  the  means  by  which 
many  now  thriving  towns  were  started,  and  lands 
almost  utterly  useless  made,  by  irrigating  and 
improving,  of  great  value.  It  would  indeed  be 
difficult  to  estimate  the  benefit  this  company  was 
to  the  west,  either  directly  or  indirectly,  being 
the  means  of  bringing  much  capital  into  Colorado 
and  advancing  the  interest  of  the  state  in  general. 
In  1886  Mr.  Skiff  was  elected  to  the  Colorado 
State  Legislature.  In  1888  he  sold  his  interest  in 
this  company,  and  was  then  appointed  commis- 
sioner of  the  Bureau  of  Statistics. 

During  his  residence  in  Colorado  he  has  been 
more  or  less  interested  in  mining  ventures,  and 
during  his  journalistic  career,  naturally  wrote  a 
good  deal  on  the  question  of  mining.  He  has 
always  taken  a  deep  and  active  interest   in  indus- 


8o2 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


trial  matters,  and  has  addressed  man)-  notaVjle 
bodies  and  conventions  on  that  subject. 

In  his  capacity  as  Commissioner  of  the  Statist- 
ical Bureau,  he  made  a  collection  of  the  mineral 
products  of  Colorado,  which  was  placed  on  ex- 
hibition in  Chicago  in  1889,  and  at  the  exposition 
at  St.  Louis  in  1890. 

He  was  made  a  Mason  at  the  age  of  twenty- 
one,  and  is  very  prominent  in  that  body,  ha\ing 
taken  all  the  degrees  up  to  and  including  the 
thirty-second.  He  is  a  man  of  considerable 
literary  talents.  Among  other  productions  he 
wrote  the  dedication  ode  for  the  Masonic  Temple, 
recently  erected  in  Denver,  Colorado.  A  staunch 
Republican    he  takes    an  active    interest    in    the 


movements  of  the  political  world,  aidinc;  by  word 
and  act  the  interest  of  his  party. 

His  religious  belief  is  Episcopalianism.  He  was 
married  in  i876to  Miss  Mary  Richardson  French, 
daughter  of  Dr.  Otis  Everett  French,  formerly  of 
]5oston,  and  niece  of  Judge  James  J.  French,  of 
Toledo,  Ohio.  They  have  two  bright  children, 
Frederick  Clifton  Walcott  and  lima  French  Skiff, 
aged  respectively  ten  and  six  years.  Mr.  Skiff  is 
a  domestic  man  and  never  happier  than  when  in 
the  bosom  of  his  family,  to  whom  he  is  most 
devotedly  attached. 

An  excellent  public  speaker,  with  a  very  logical 
and  philosophical  mind  he  has  great  powers  of  con- 
versation, is  an  admirable  host  and  welcome  guest. 


MICHAEL    BRAND, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


THE  subject  of  this  sketch  is  numbered 
among  Chicago's  successful  business  men. 
Beginning  his  business  career  while  yet  a  boy,  he 
has  risen  from  comparative  obscurity  to  a  posi- 
tion of  affluence.  He  is  a  native  of  Germany,  and 
was  born  at  Odernheim,  Rheinhesseii,  on  the  23d 
of  March,  1826,  the  son  of  John  and  Sibilla 
(Bauer)  Brand.  His  father  was  a  farmer  by 
occupation,  and  for  many  years  was  the  adjunct 
of  the  town  of  Odernheim.  Michael  was  edu- 
cated in  the  public  and  private  schools  of  his 
native  town,  and,  closing  his  studies  at  the  age  of 
sixteen  years,  he  became  an  apprentice  to  a  Mr. 
Goldbeck,  a  brewer  in  the  city  of  Worms,  with 
whom  he  remained  two  years,  learning  the  brew- 
ing business. 

During  the  several  years  next  following,  he  trav- 
eled about  through  Switzerland  and  F" ranee,  per- 
fecting his  knowledge  of  brewing,  by  entering  the 
employ  of  various  brewing  companies. 

About  the  year  1848  he  returned  to  his  native 
town,  and  established  himsef  in  the  brewing  busi- 
ness on  his  own  account.  Independent  by  nature, 
resolute,  self-reliant  and  a  lover  of  liberty,  his 
symi)athies  instinctively  were  with  the  oppressed, 
and  during  the  exciting  times  of  the  German  re- 
volution in  1848-49  he  took  a  decided  stanil  on 
the  side  of  the  revolutionists.  After  this  trouble 
had  subsided,  those  who  had  taken  part  in  the  re- 


volution were  subjected  to  continued  annoyance, 
and  being  tired  of  such,  and  seeing  no  hope  of 
realizing  anything  towards  freeing  his  country,  he 
decided  to  leave  the  country  of  his  birth  and 
start  for  the  United  States  to  establish  a  new 
home,  where  he  arrived  early  in  July.    1852. 

He  spent  his  first  year  in  Detroit,  and  in  1853 
settled  in  Chicago,  and  became  associated  with 
Mr.  Valentine  Busch,  under  the  firm  name  Busch 
&  Brand,  in  the  brewing  business.  This  partner- 
ship continued  until  the  decease  of  Mr.  Busch, 
which  occured  in  1872.  During  the  first  five  or 
six  years  of  the  firm's  existence  their  main  plant 
was  located  at  Blue  Island.  They  also  had  a 
plant  at  Nos.  29  and  3 1  Cedar  street,  Chicago, 
whither  they  moved  their  principal  office  in  1S63. 
Before  the  great  fire  in  1871  and  the  death  of  Mr. 
Busch  in  1872,  a  division  of  the  firm's  property 
was  made,  and  the  Blue  Island  plant  went  to  the 
heirs  of  the  deceased  partner,  while  Mr.  Brand 
retained  the  plant  on  Cedar  street.  He  conducted 
the  business  under  the  name  of  the  Michael  Brand 
Brewing  Company.  In  1S7.S  the  Cedar  street 
brewery  was  changed  to  a  malting  establishment, 
and  Mr.  Brand  built  a  new  brewery  the  same  year 
at  I'.lston  a\enne  and  Snow  streets.  In  1889, 
lie  sold  this  breuery  (retaining  the  Cedar  street 
propertv,  which  he  now  owns)  to  the  L'nited 
States    Brewing    Company,   from   which    it    after- 


BIOGRAPinCM.  DICTIOXINV  .I.VD  PORTRAIT  CAI.l.ERY. 


803 


waril  i)asscd  into  tlic  liaiuis  i)f  .1  >\iulicatc,  knew  11 
as  the  United  States  Hrewing  C()mi)an\ .  Hav- 
ing amassed  a  handsome  fortune  Mr.  liraml,  \\\h\\\ 
selling  his  brewing  interests;  retired  from  active 
business,  and  lives  in  elegance  and  comfort,  enjoy- 
ing the  fruits  of  his  labors  and  disi)ensing  gener- 
ous hospitality,  in  his  home  at  No.  32  Cedar  street. 

Mr.  Hrand's  life  has  been  one  nf  acti\it)-  and 
influence,  and  he  has  been  called  to  nunierous  im- 
portant positions  of  trust,  in  all  nf  which  he  has 
fulfilled  his  duties  in  a  manner  alike  cretlitahle  ti> 
himself  and  to  the  satisfaction  of  his  constituents. 

He  was  a  member  of  the  general  assembly  of 
Illinois  for  the  years  1862-63  and  ten  years  later, 
1S73-74,  rejiresented  the  nineteenth  ward  of 
Chicago  in  the  coninmn  council.  11  is  official  con- 
duct was  that  of  an  upright,  honorable  busines.s- 
man,  and  he  retired  from  his  office  as  he  had  en- 
tered— with  the  confidence,  respect  and  esteem  of 
his  fellow-citizens.  He  was  one  of  the  stockholders 
of  the  Inter-State  Exposition  Compan}-,  of  Chi- 
cago, and  is  now  (1892)  a  director  of  the  Inter- 
national Hank  of  Chicago;  also  a  member  of  the 
Hoard  of  Traile  since  1882. 


I  le  is  a  man  of  fine  social  (|ualities,  and  loves 
good  fellowship,  and  heartily  enjoys  the  com- 
panionship of  his  friends.  He  is  a  member  of 
the  Ccrmania  Society,  and  also  of  the  Iroquois 
Club.  From  his  extensive  travels,  both  in  this 
and  foreign  countries,  he  has  ac(|uired  a  \ast  fund 
of  valuable  information,  ami  is  an  interesting 
talker.  His  political  affiliations  have,  as  a  rule, 
been  with  the  Democratic  jiaity. 

In  religious  faith  he  is  a  Protestant,  and  holds 
liberal  views,  asking  for  himself  that  perfect  free- 
dom of  tliouglit  which  he  cheerful!)-  \-ields  to 
others. 

Mr.  Hrand  was  married  in  1859  ^o  Miss  Philli- 
pena  Darmstaetter,  a  daughter  of  Mr.  Michael 
Darm.staetter,  a  prominent  brewer  of  Detroit, 
Michigan.  Mrs.  Brand  is  a  woman  of  refined  and 
cultivated  tastes,  and  presides  with  true  \\oinanl\- 
grace  over  her  happy  home. 

In  personal  appearance  Mr.  Hrand  is  somewhat 
below  the  medium  height,  of  a  robust  build  and  fair 
complexion.  Mis  success  is  the  result  of  persis- 
tent effort,  careful  business  methods  and  judicious 
inxestments. 


HON.    FRANCIS   A.    HOFFMANN,  JR. 


CHICAGO,    ILL. 


WITH  a  large  and  increasing  practice,  the 
firm  of  Brandt  &  Hoffmann  has  the  unique 
distinction  of  being  the  oldest  law  firm  in  the 
city  of  Chicago.  Both  members  of  the  fnni 
are  well  known  and  able  lawyers,  in  the  prime  of 
physical  strength  and  mental  vigor. 

Francis  A.  Hoffmann,  Jr.,  is  about  forty-five 
years  of  age,  having  been  born  December  26, 
1845,  at  Addison,  Du  Page  county,  Illinois.  His 
father  was  a  clergyman  of  the  Evangelical  Luther- 
an Church,  well  versed  in  the  classic  authors  of 
(ireece  and  Rome  and  in  moilern  literature. 
Having,  through  ill  health,  given  up  his  pastorate 
in  the  church,  he  became  one  of  the  founders  of 
the  Republican  ])arty,  and  was  elected  Lieutenant- 
(jovernor  of  Illinois.  (Governor  Yates,  in  his 
message  to  the  legislature,  January  2,  1865,  says 
of  him:  "I  cannot  fail  hereto  refer  in  kindness 
and  gratitude  to  Lieut.-Governor  Hoffmann,  wlm 
has  been  my  constant  adviser  and  counselor,  and 


who  has  acted  as  governor  in  my  absence  with 
great  ability  and  efficiency."  His  mother  was 
C\nthia,  lu'c  Gilbert,  a  descentlant  of  the 
1  luguenots,  who  left  France  soon  after  the  Revo- 
cation of  the  Rdicl  iif  Nantes,  in   16S5. 

When  k'raiicis  was  onl\-  li\e  \-ears  old  his 
l)arents  removed  to  Chicago,  where,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  his  school  days,  he  has  resided  ever 
since.  His  elementary  education  he  received  at  a 
private  school  and  at  the  academy,  Bloomfield, 
New  Jersey.  At  thirteen  years  of  age  he  was 
entered  at  Wheaton  College  as  freshman,  and 
remained  two  years,  giving  evidence  at  that  early 
age  of  both  ability  and  application.  He  then 
went  to  Knox  College  where  he  was  graduated 
in  the  class  of   1865  with  the  degree  of  A.  M. 

Having  decided  to  fit  himself  for  the  legal 
l)rofession,  he  entered  the  law  department  of 
Michigan  L'nivcrsit_\-,  and  devoted  himself  to  the 
study    of     law.      His     ability,     application     and 


8o4 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARV  AXD  PORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


advancement  was  sucli  tli.it  he  was  admitted  to 
practice  in  March,  1867.  He  was  also  admitted 
to  the  bar  in  this  State  the  following  month,  and 
has  been  actively  engaged  here  ever  since  in  the 
practice  of  his  profession.  In  order  to  gain  a 
thorough  knowledge  of  law,  Mr.  Hoffmann  con- 
nected himself  with  the  distinguished  firm  of 
McAllister,  Jewett  &  Jackson,  of  Chicago.  When, 
in  1868,  that  partnership  was  dissolved,  the  firm 
became  McAllister  &  Hoffmann,  and  continued 
until  Mr.  McAllister  was  raised  to  the  bench  in 
1869.  The  fact  of  having  been  student  and 
partner  of  so  able  a  jurist  as  the  late  Judge 
McAllister  is  sufficient  guarantee  of  Mr.  Hoff- 
mann's high  standing  at  the  bar.  In  the  Spring 
of  1869,  the  3'oung  lawyer  became  a  member  of 
the  firm  of  Harris,  Hall  &  Hoffmann,  but  in  the 
fall  of  the  same  year  he  left  that  firm  and  entered 
into  a  partnership  with  Mr.  Geo.  W.  Brandt, 
which  still  continues  under  the  title  of  Brandt  & 
Hoffmann  and  is  now  the  oldest  law  firm  in  Chi- 
cago. Mr,  Brandt  is  the  author  of  a  legal  work  on 
"  Suretyship  and  Guaranty  "  which  has  attracted 
much  attention  and  received  very  high  encomiums 
from  the  profession  both  in  this  country  and 
abroad. 

As  a  lawyer  Mr.  Hoffmann  is  a  man  of  great  in- 
dustry and  of  extensive  knowledge.  He  is  pains- 
taking and  exact  in  his  preparation  of  a  case, 
simple  and  laconic  in  his  statement  of  facts  and 
clear  and  logical  in  his  deductions.  With  an  ex- 
cellent know-ledge  of  the  principles  of  law,  he  is 
ready  and  exact  in  their  application.  His  ease, 
fluency  and  grace  of  expression,  combined  with  a 
thorough  mastery  of  his  subject,  render  him  an 
able  advocate  and  a  great  power  both  with  judge 
and  jury.  He  seldom  uses  the  art  of  rhetoric,  but 
when  he  does  his  sentences  glow  with  beauty  of 
expression  and  originality  of  thought  and  sparkle 
with  wit.  In  discharge  of  his  professional  duties, 
he  .sets  for  himself  a  high  standard  of  ethics  and 
adheres  to  it  rigidly.  If  any  of  his  brethern  at 
the  bar  forget  the  usual  courtesies  of  the  pro- 
fession, gentlemanly  but  severe  chastisement  will 
most  certairil}'  follow.  The  practice  of  the  firm  is 
principally  litigated  cases.  The  celebrated  and 
well-known  fne  insurance  case  of  Huchberger, 
which  was  trieil  in  the  United  States  Court,  before 
Judges  Drummond,  Dyer,  Davis  and  Blodgett,  and 
in  which  such  men  as  Gen.  U.  F.  Linder,  Emory 


A.  Storrs,  Thomas  A.  Hoyne,  Wni.  K.  .McAllister 
ex-Judge  Knowlton,  Robert  Hervey,  ex-Judge 
Waite  and  others  were  engaged,  was  one  of  the 
many  famous  cases  won  by  Mr.  Hoffmann. 

In  politics,  Mr.  Hoffmann  is  a  Democrat,  active, 
earnest  and  uncompromising.  When  only  twenty- 
one  years  old  he  declined  a  nomination  as  repre- 
sentative to  the  General  Assembly  of  Illinois,  but 
his  work  was  so  able  in  support  of  the  ticket  that 
he  received  the  name  of  "The  Boy  Orator.  "  He 
seeks  no  ofifice  and  has  accepted  such  onl}'  in  the 
interest  of  his  party.  When  the  Board  of  Elec- 
tion Commissioners  was  formed.  Judge  I'render- 
gast  named  Mr.  Hoffmann  as  one  of  its  three 
members.  He  was  chosen  first  president  of  the 
board.  During  the  first  six  months  of  the  board's 
existence,  he  sacrificed  that  period  of  his  life  to 
its  organization,  and  much  of  its  good  work  is  due 
to  the  forms  and  methods  introduced  by  him  at 
that  time.  The  motto  of  the  board  :  "  To  avoid 
ignorance,  know  the  law;  to  avoid  penalty,  obey 
the  law;"  was  furnished  by  Mr.  Hoffman.  Me  re- 
signed his  position  at  the  end  of  six  months  and 
was  appointed  soon  after  Corporation  Counsel  by 
the  Hon.  Carter-H.  Harrison,  then  mayor.  He  re- 
signed this  position  to  accept,  under  President 
Cleveland,  the  office  of  United  States  Appraiser, 
which  position  he  held  for  fifteen  months,  and  then 
resigned  it.  Every  means  was  used  by  the  Hon. 
Daniel  Manning  to  induce  him  to  retain  the 
position,  which  he  had  filled  with  great  satisfac- 
tion to  the  public  and  many  and  high  encomiums 
were  expressed  by  individuals  and  by  the  press 
touching  his  ability  and  success  in  the  discharge 
of  the  onerous  and  difficult  duties  of  his  office. 
Before  he  resigned  he  formed  the  plan  and  origin- 
ated the  "  Board  of  General  Appraisers,"  the  mem- 
bers of  which  form  a  court  of  final  appeal  ranking 
as  high  as  our  Circuit  Court  judges.  The  i)lan  was 
adopted  and  has  worked  excellently.  The  Hon. 
De  Witt  C.  Cregier,  m,-\yor  of  Chicago  in  1889, 
appointed  Mr.  Hoffmann  Cit_\-  Collector,  an  office 
which  he  filled  with  credit  to  him.self  and  benefit 
to  the  people.  In  the  discharge  of  the  duties  of 
these  offices,  he  never  allowed  them  to  break  up 
his  law  practice  which  has  gone  on  uninterrupt- 
edly and  continues  to-day. 

Mr.lloffmann's  success  both  in  his  profession 
and  in  pulilic  office  is  largel\-  due  to  his  business 
method,  power    of    organization    and    the  happy 


BIOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  AXP  rORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


805 


faculty  which  he  has  <if  managing  men.  Courteous 
and  kind  in  manner,  dignified  in  demeanor,  firm 
in  conviction  and  independent  in  action,  lie  is  a 
man  who  gains  the  respect  of  ail  with  whom  he 
comes  in  contact.  He  dislikes  controversy,  but 
when  the  necessity  requires  does  not  hesitate  to 
state  his  principles  and  convictions. 

On  May  14th,  1870,  Mr.  Hoffmann,  married  a 
German  lady.  Miss  Emma  Hierwirth,  and  was 
blessed    with     four    children     wlium    it    is   their 


father's  delight  and  constant  endeavor  to  surround 
with  every  i)leasure  and  comfort. 

Mrs.  Hoffmann  died  in  iSScj.and  since  then  Mr. 
Hoffmann  married  Mrs.  Mary  E.  Taylor,  an  ac- 
complished lady  of  Chicago.  In  the  pleasures  of 
home  and  in  the  enjoyment  of  the  family  circle, 
Mr.  Hoffmann  finds  the  necessary  rela.vat  ion  after 
his  professional  and  public  duties.  An  affection- 
ate husband  and  an  indulgent  father,  he  finds 
peace  and  rest  in  the  bosom  of  his  family. 


THEODORE   G.    CASE, 


CHICAGO,   ILL. 


CONSPICUOUS  in  the  long  roll  of  eminent 
names  that  have  conferred  honor  upon  the 
legal  profession  in  the  west  is  that  of  the  subject 
of  this  biography.  He  is  conceded  to  be  one  of  the 
most  eloquent  and  powerful  advocates  of  the  Chi- 
cago bar.  He  has  great  versatility  of  talents — ex- 
actness and  thoroughness  characterize  all  t>f  his 
attainments.  Vigilant,  zealous  and  industrious  ; 
how  could  he  be  otherwise  than  successful  ?  A 
perfect  command  of  the  English  language,  com- 
bined with  histrionic  ability  of  a  high  order,  has 
placed  Theodore  G.  Case  by  the  .side  of  the  finest 
American  orators.  In  illustration  he  is  peculiarly 
happy,  and  vision,  personification,  hyperbole, 
simile,  contrast  and  antitheses  succeed  each  other 
in  rich  and  varied  profusion.  His  manner  and  ac- 
tion are  energetic,  without  verging  on  extravagance. 
Mr.  Case  was  born  in  Castleton,  Rensselaer 
county.  New  York,  July  13,  1853.  He  was  pre- 
pared for  college  at  the  Collegiate  Institute,  New- 
ton, New  Jersey,  after  which  he  entered  the  Uni- 
versity of  .Michigan,  took  a  special  course,  and 
graduated  in  July,  1870,  having  conferred  upon 
him  the  degree  of  pharmaceutical  chemist.  Upon 
his  graduation  he  became  interested  with  several 
New  York  capitalists,  and  was  by  them  sent,  with 
others,  to  construct  the  Houston  and  Great 
Northern  Railroad,  of  Texas,  in  which  employ- 
ment he  was  engaged  until  1873,  when  he  re- 
turned to  New  York  city.  In  the  fall  of  the  same 
year  he  commenced  the  study  of  law,  with  Messrs. 
Lum  and  Babbitt,  at  Jersey  City,  New  Jersey. 
Remaining  with  this  firm  two  years,  he  then  en- 
tered the  law  school  of  the  University  of  the  City 


of  New  York,  meanwhile  attending  as  a  student  at 
the  law  office  of  the  Hon.  William  M.  Evarts. 
Immediately  after  graduating  he  engaged  in  gen- 
eral practice  in  New  York  City,  but  making  a 
specialty  of  corporation  business,  remaining  in 
that  city  until  April,  1878,  at  which  time  he  went 
to  Green  Bay,  Wisconsin,  to  enter  upon  the  duties 
of  general  counsel  of  the  Green  Bay  and  Min- 
nesota Railroad  Company,  to  which  position  he 
had  accepted  an  appointment.  Ujjon  the  re- 
organization of  this  railroad  company  into  the 
Green  Bay,  Winona  and  St.  Paul  Railroad,  he 
was  elected,  on  June  7,  1881,  its  general  solicitor. 
In  April,  1884,  he  was  retained  by  the  bond- 
holders of  the  St.  Louis,  Hannibal  and  Keokuk 
Railroad  Company,  to  foreclose  a  mortgage  on 
the  railroad  of  that  company  in  the  United  States 
circuit  court  at  St.  Louis,  Missouri.  Owing  to  the 
onerous  duties  involved  in  the  foreclosure  suit, 
Mr.  Case  resigned  his  position  as  general  attorney 
of  the  Green  Bay,  Winona  .nnd  St.  Paul  Railroad 
Company,  in  March,  1885,  and  moved  to  St. 
Louis,  engaged  in  the  general  practice  of  his  pro- 
fession in  that  city,  and  attended  to  the  foreclos- 
ure suit  against  that  compan)-.  which,  after  a  great 
legal  fight,  in  which  were  arrayed  against  him 
many  of  the  great  legal  celebrities  of  the  south 
and  west,  he  succeeded  in  obtaining  a  judgment 
against  that  railroad  company  for  more  than  a 
million  dollars.  During  his  residence  in  Missouri 
he  was  associated  in  the  trial  of  several  cases  with 
the  late  Hon.  B.  Gratz  Brown,  ex-United  Senator 
from  Missouri. 

In  May,  1S86,   Mr.  Case  removed   to   Chicago, 


8o6 


BrOGRAPHICAL  DICTIOXARY  A.\D  FORTRAIT  GALLERY. 


where   he   has    continued    to    reside    ever    since. 
Since  his  advent  in  Chicago,  he  has  been  counsel 
for    the    complainant   in  the  celebrated   Bowman 
divorce  case,  which  has  attracted  so  much  atten- 
tion among    the   legal   fraternity  throughout  the 
United  States.     In  the  defense  of  Peter  Madden, 
who  was  indicted  upon  what  is  know  in   Illinois  as 
"the  habitual  criminal  act,"  he  raised  legal  points 
in  his    defense    which    completely   revolutionized 
the  practice  in  the  criminal  courts  of  Chicago,   by 
compelling  the  prosecution  to  try  prisoners  at  or 
before  the  second    term  after  their  commitment 
to  the  county  jail.     The  Chicago    Times,  the   fol- 
lowing daj-,   in  mentioning   the  case,  said :  "  The 
State's  attorney  was  surprised,  and  a  jail  delivery 
almost    took    place,    so    many  prisoners  were   re- 
leased under  Mr.  Case's  legal    points."     His  de- 
fense in  the  celebrated   case  of  Henry  Schwartz, 
who   was    charged,    in  connection    with    Newton 
Watt,  with  the    murder  of  Kellogg  Nichols,  the 
express  messenger  on  the  Chicago,   Rock   Island 
and  Pacific  railroad,    and  for  the  robbery  of  the 
safe  of  the  United  States  Express  Company,  con- 
taining $22,000,  was  a    masterpiece.     The    trial, 
which  took   place   in    Morris,  the  county  seat    of 
Grundy  county,  in  March  and  April,   1887,  lasted 
for  six  weeks,  and  will  be  known  and    pass  into 
history  as  one  of  the  most  remarkable    trials   on 
circumstantial  evidence  on  record.     The  prosecu- 
tion was  conducted  with  a  spirit  and  energy  sel- 
dom witnessed.     Mr.  Case  was  the  leading  coun- 
sel for  the  defense.     His  cross-examination  of  the 
witnesses  for  the  prosecution  was  most  searching 
and  effectvial,  and  during  the  progress  of  the  trial 
he  displayed  the  greatest    legal  acumen  ;  his  re- 
sources were  most  fertile  ;  he  grappled  all  the  dif- 
ficulties of  the  situation  with  facility  and  boldness  ; 
he  pushed  every  argument  to  the  uttermost.     His 
closing  address,  which  was    of  four  hours'  dura- 
tion, was  brilliant,   eloquent  and   fervid.     At  the 
time  of  the  opening,  the  excitement  was  tremen- 
dous; hundreds  of  people  were  turned  away  from 
the     court    room    for    lack    of   space ;    the    aisles, 
benches,  chairs  and  windows  were  packed  almost  to 
suffocation.     He  was,  at  times,  eloquent,  ])athetic 
and    logical  ;    he    spoke    with    keen    antl    cutting 
satire  upon  the  character  of  the  witne.sses  for  the 
prosecution,  and  the  great  danger  of  convicting  on 
circumstantial   evidence.     The    tenacity  of  mem- 
ory,   the  acuteness  and  accuracy  of  hearing  and 


observation  of  the  w  itnesses.  were  commented  on 
with  the  most  sagacious  skill.  He  showed  him- 
self to  be  an  advocate,  uniting  the  rare  gift  of 
oratory  with  the  most  convincing  logic— a  thor- 
ough knowledge  of  human  affairs.  He  aroused 
the  emotions  of  all  present,  and  held  the  court, 
jury  and  auditors  spell-bound  hour  after  hour. 
The  peroration  drew  tears  from  the  eyes  of  more 
than  half  the  vast  audience  in  the  court  room.  It 
was  a  very  able,  touching  and  pathetic  appeal  for 
mercy.  It  is  conceded  that  Mr.  Case's  brilliant, 
skillful  and  powerful  defense  .saved  his  client  from 
the  gallows.  The  fact  that  Mr.  Case  has  been 
identified  with  criminal  cases  must  not  be  sup- 
posed to  mean  that  he  has  no  abilitites  as  a  civil 
lawyer ;  on  the  contrary,  as  we  have  already 
shown,  some  of  the  most  difficult  cases,  involving 
the  most  important  and  intricate  legal  questions 
ever  tried  in  Wisconsin  and  Missouri,  were  con- 
ducted by  him,  as  were  many  of  the  reported 
cases  adjudicated  in  the  federal  courts.  Mr.  Case 
is  not  merely  a  brilliant  advocate,  learned  in  the 
law  and  deeply  skilled  in  its  dialectics  :  in  the  less 
showy  walks  of  his  profession  he  is  uncommonly 
powerful.  Whether  drudging  at  the  business  of 
his  office  as  a  common  law  attorney  and  equity 
pleader,  or  shining  as  a  leader  in  a  great  nisi 
prills  cause,  he  is  equally  admirable,  ever  ready 
and  perfectly  suited  to  the  place  he  is  filling.  He 
has  but  one  rule,  a  thorough  preparation  of  the 
evidence  and  law  of  every  case,  diligence  in  en- 
forcing both,  with  the  tone,  manner  and  conduct 
of  a  gentleman.  He  is  not  only  a  great  huvyer, 
but  a  brilliant  advocate,  combining  the  dual 
qualities  of  both.  The  greater  the  occasion,  the 
greater  his  capacity  to  master  it. 

Among  other  cases  in  which  Mr.  Case  has  been 
successful,  was  the  acquittal  of  Harvey  Gurley, 
who  was  indicted  for  kidnapping  Annie  Red- 
mond ;  the  recovery  of  $40,000,  this  being  the 
largest  jiersonal  injury  verdict  ever  given  in  this 
country  :  the  securing  of  the  divorce  for  'I .  P. 
Keefe  from  his  wife,  where  she  was  found  guilty 
of  adultery  ;  the  acquittal  of  Theodore  Sutter,  who 
was  charged  with  murdering  Henry  Romag,  and 
many  other  prominent  cases.  Mr.  Case  was  the 
author  and  instigator  of  the  short-cau.se  calendar 
bill,  and  is  at  present  the  senior  member  of  the 
well  known  law  firm  of  Case,  Hudd  and  Hogan, 
who  occupy  elegant  offices  in  the  Ouinlan  block. 


INDEX. 


Adams,  John  0 204    | 

Allen,  Gordon  \V 395 

Allerton,  Samuel  \V 281 

Altgeld.  John  P ■•  2/8 

Anderson,  James  C 172 

Andrews.  Alexander  B 563 

Armour,  Philip  1)  . . .   5 

Ashcraft.  Edwin  M 57 

Aver>-,  Daniel  J 236 

Ayer,  Benjamin  F 726 

Baines,  Oscar  O 755 

Baker,  William  T 722 

Banning.  Ephraim 220 

Barber,  Hiram 645 

Barbour,  George  M 793 

Barnard, Gilbert  W 1 5° 

Barrett,  John  P 39 

Barrows.  Rev.  John  H 137 

Baxter.  Lewis  T 639 

Beidler.  Henry 168 

Bemis,  Henry  \" 697 

Best.  William 294 

Billings,  Cornelius  K.  G 265 

Block.  W.  Thomas 461 

Bogue.  George  M 116 

Bonney.  Charles  C 224 

Brand,  .Michael 802 

Brintnall,  Solva 120 

Bristol,  Rev.  Frank  M 212 

Bryan,  Thomas  B 3^ 

Bryant,  Henry  B I97 

Buffum,  Joseph  H 458 

Bulloch,  Augustus  G 517 

Burgeit.  John  M.  H 408 

Burnhani,  Daniel  H 86 

Butler,  Edward  B 306 

Butler.  Julius  W 378 

Byam,  John  W 695 

Byford,  Henry  T 340 

Byford,  William  H 316 

Byford.  William  H,  Jr 420 

Camp,  Isaac  N 685 

Campbell,  Benjamin  H 428 

Case,  Theodore  O 805 

Cass,  George  W 474 

Chalmers.  William  J 273 

Chase.  Horace  G 594 

Cheney,  Orlando  H 297 

Chumasero,  John  T 336 

Chytraus,  Axel 640 

Clarke,  George  R 474 

Claussenius,  Henry 518 


Cobb.  Henry  1 175 

Coburn.  Lewis  L 532 

Coe,  Albert  L 366 

Colby.  John  A 149 

Coleman.  W.  Franklin 787 

Copeland.  William  L 781 

Corwith.  Henry  656 

Coy,  Irus 74 

Crane,  Charles  S 482 

Crerar,  John 5*^ 

Cudahy,  John 232 

Cudahy.   Michael 200 

Dale,  William  M 255 

Danforlh.  Isaac  N 190 

Davies,  Charles  F 309 

Davis,  George  R '2 

Deering,  William 616 

Delamater,  Nicholas  B 609 

Dent,  Thomas 122 

Depew.  Chauncey  M 449 

Dewar,  Alexander  L 252 

Dewey,  David  B 4° 

DeWoIf,  Calvin 350 

DeWolf,  Oscar  C  1 59 

DeYoung,  Benjamin  R 667 

DeYoung.  M.  H 473 

Dexter,  Ransom 590 

Dickinson.  John  T 75^ 

Dixon,  Arthur 436 

Dolese,  John 424 

Donnersberger,  Joseph 531 

Doolittle.  James  R 82 

Doud,  Levi  B 153 

Dunphy,  John  M 457 

Earle,  Charles  W 785 

Eiboeck,  Joseph 481 

Ennis,  Alfred 298 

Everingham.  Lyman 386 

Ewing.  Adlai  T 780 

Exall.  Henry 5'° 

Fairbank,  Nathaniel  K 740 

Farwell.John  V 113 

Ferguson,  Charles  H 610 

Field,  Marshall 100 

Fishcll.  Albert 643 

Fischer.  Siegfried  M 7''>S 

Fisk,  Franklin  W 1S4 

Foss.  George  E 423 

Foster,  Charles  11 335 

Fowler,  Anderson 52 

Frake,  James 329 


Freshwaters.  Milton  K 682 

Frost,  Charles  S 87 

Furnas,  Robert  W 513 

Gage,  Frank  N 432 

Gage,  Lyman  J 8 

Gale,  Edwin  0 4°° 

Gardner,  Peter  G 677 

Gartside,  John  M 614 

Gary,  Noah  E 529 

Cassette,  Norman  T 208 

Giles.  Charles  K 69 

Gillett,  Egbert  W 374 

Gilman.  John  E 452 

Gobel.  Elias  F 53*^ 

Goodman.  William  O 635 

Goudy,  William  C 34 

Gould.  Elwyn  B 277 

Grannis.  Amos 7^ 

Grannis,  William  C.  I) 33 

Gray,  William  H 244 

Greenlee,  R.  S.  and  R.  L 79° 

Greene,  Frank  C    ^ 259 

Greene.  Frank  R 729 

Greenfield.  Charles  E 673 

Gresham,  Walter  q 7> 5 

Griswold.  Edward  P 478 

Gross,  Samuel  E 78 

Grosvenor,  Lemuel  C 4^8 

Gunderson,  S.  T 692 

Crunther,  Charles  F j'o 

Hamill,  Charles  D 199 

Hamilton,  David  G 54° 

Hammer.  D.  Harry 52^' 

Harper,  John  E 548 

Harris,  N.  W    240 

Har\ey,  Turlington  W 39*' 

Haskell,  Loomis  P 655 

Hatch,  Azel  F 130 

Head,  Franklin  H 584 

Hedges,  Samuel  P '7^' 

Henderson,  Charles  M i34 

lienrotin,  Charles '44 

Henrotin,  Fernand loj 

Herrick,  John  J 216 

Herrick,  Roswell  Z 497 

I  lesing,  Washington 105 

Higgins.  Van  H A'^ 

Hill,  Lysander 274 

Hilliard,  Laurin  P 322 

Hoch,  James  J f>59 

Hoffm.nnn.  Jr.,  Francis  A 803 

Holdom,  Jesse 589 


INDEX. 


Hollistcr,  John  H 628 

Howard.  Martin 365 

Hullxrt,  Alvin 572 

Ihirlbul,  X'inccnt  L 544 

Hutchins,  Albert  E 571 

Hutchinson,  Charles  L 11 

Hutchinson,  Jonas 148 

Jackson.  Huntington  W 119 

Jacobs,  Benjamin  F 290 

Jacobs.  William  V 597 

Janiieson,  Malcolm  M 61 

Jayccx,  Elbert  E 98 

Jeffery,  Edward  T 708 

Jenney,  William  L 92 

Johnson,  Charles  P 598 

Johnson.  Hosmer  A 194 

Johnson.  William  E.  W 730 

Jones,  J.  M.  W 522 

Jones,  Joseph  R 14° 

Jones,  Samuel  J 164 

Judd.  Edward  J 557 

Judson,  Charles  E 7S9 

Kahn,  Felix 539 

Keith.  Edson . .  58 

Keith,  Elbridge  G 15 

Kennett,  Francis  J 514 

Kent,  Sidney  A 126 

Kern,  Charles 580 

Ketcham,  James  P 759 

Ketcham.  William  P 377 

Kimball.  Mark 349 

King,  Henry  W 104 

King,  William   F 552 

Kirk,  James  S. . .  .    223 

Kirk,  John  B 248 

Kistler,  Louis 733 

Kuh,  Abraham 779 

Lacey,  Edward  S 712 

Law,  William,  Jr 445 

Lawrence,  Edward  F 286 

Leslie,  John  H 602 

Leiter,  Levi  Z 321 

Leland,  Warren  F 179 

Lindsay,  William 419 

Ludlam,   Reuben 228 

Lyman,  David  B 558 

McCormick,  Cyrus  H 62 

McCormick.  Cyrus  H.,  Jr 718 

McFatrich,  James  B 390 

Mclntyre,  Robert 743 

McKey,  Henry 407 

McNeil,  Malcom 260 

Mahoney,  Joseph  P 415 

Mallcttc,  James  P 606 

Marshall,  James  D 315 

Masscy,  George  V 501 

Mason,  William  E i6o 

Mead.  Aaron  B 362 

Millard,  Sylvester  M 41 1 


Miller.  John  S 717 

Mitchell,  Clifford 721 

Mitchell,  Joseph  S 490 

Moore,  James  H 404 

Moulton,  George  M 564 

Munn,  Benjamin  M 171 

Munn,  Daniel  W 77 

Nathan.  Adolph 774 

Newman,  Jacob     583 

Nickerson.  Samuel  M 18 

Norton,  James  S 305 

Noyes,  Henry  C 483 

Odell,  John  J.  P 215 

Ogden.  Edwy  J 772 

Otis,  E.  A 243 

Owings,  Francis  P 777 

Palmer,  Percival  B 247 

Palmer,  Potter 702 

Palmer.  Thomas  W 416 

Payne,  John  B 799 

Pearsons.  Daniel  K 330 

Peck,  Ferdinand  W 106 

Pike,  Eugene  S 16 

Pinkerton,  Allan 671 

Pluemer,  Adolph 463 

Porter,  Rev.  Jeremiah 344 

Porter,  Willard  H 431 

Porter,  Washington  502 

Pratt,  Edwin  H 746 

Pullman,  George  M 734 

Purdy.  Warren  G 339 

Purington.  D.  V 615 

Quick,  John  H.  S 262 

Ream,  Norman  B 22 

Remy,  Curtis  H 494 

Rend,  William  P 28 

Revell.  Alexander  H 486 

Reynolds,  Henry  J 530 

Reynolds,  Stephen  A 509 

Rhodes,  J.  F'oster 632 

Rich,  Arthur  D 561 

Robinson,  Lewis  W 587 

Rogers,  Henry  W 306 

Rosenberg,  Jacob 389 

Rothschild.  Abram  M 506 

Russell,  Edward  W 44' 

Saul,  George  W 7^7 

Sawin,  George 361 

Seeberger,  Anthony  F 133 

Senn,  Nicholas 37" 

Sexton,  James  A 251 

Scales,  Frank 1 87 

Schintz,  Theodore 412 

Schneider,  George "o 

Schwab,  Charles  H 125 

Schuyler,  Daniel   j 797 

Scott,  Albert  G 613 

Scott,  James  W. .  .■ 56 


Shepard,  Jason  H 446 

Sherman,  John  H 1 10 

Shufeldt,  Henry   H 442 

Silverman,    Lazarus 664 

Singleton,  William  F 764 

SkifT,  Fred  J.  V 801 

Smith,  Abner 189 

Smith,  George  T 668 

Smith,  Willard  A 467 

Southworth,  John  M 795 

Spalding.  Albert  G 686 

Stearns.  William  M 663 

Steele,  D.  A.   K 435, 

Stensland,  Paul  U 624 

Stickney.  Edward  S 620 

Stobie,  Charles  S  555 

Streeter,  John  W   698 

Strong,  William  E 88 

Swenie,  Denis  J 745 

Symonds,  Henry  R 464 

Thatcher,  Augustus  T 674 

Thoman,  Leroy  D 326 

Thomasson.  Nelson 282 

Thompson,  William  H 266 

Thorpe,  John 725 

Tobey.  Frank  B 704 

Tousley,  Orson  V 547 

Truax,  Charles  256 

Tucker,  Henry  S 382 

Tuohy.  James  W 782 

Tuthill,  Richard  S 129 

Van  Inwagen,  James  636 

Vocke,  William 568 

Wacker,  Charles  H 648 

Wacker,   Frederick 646 

Wadsworth.  Francis  L 498 

Walker,  Edw  in 24 

Walker,  James  H 358 

Walker,  Francis  W 605 

Waller,  Thomas  M 505 

Warvelle,  George  W 678 

Washburne,  Hempstead 385 

Watry,  Joseph 652 

Weigley,  Frank  S.    572 

Wheeler,  Georgi?  H   236 

Wheeler,  Harris  A 659 

Wheeler,  Newton  C 681 

Whitfield,  George  W 485 

Whitney,  Loren  H 354 

Widener,  Peter  A.  B 493 

Wilce,  Thomas 576 

Willard,  George 354 

Williams,  Abram 180 

Williams,  George  T 94 

Williams,  John  F 75> 

Wilson,  John  P 631 

Wilson,  John  R 73 

Windrow,  Sven 752 

Wolfl",  Ludwig 660 

Yerkes,  Charles  T 154 


